SOLAR MEMS

nanoST: Compact, Autonomous and High-Accuracy Attitude Determination for Satellites   The nanoST Star Tracker is a high-accuracy attitude determination device designed to provide reliable and autonomous orientation knowledge for satellites in orbit. By capturing images of the star field through an integrated CMOS sensor, nanoST identifies stars and constellations in real time and processes this information onboard to calculate the spacecraft’s precise pointing and three-axis attitude.   Built to meet the growing demand for compact and efficient space systems, nanoST offers a powerful combination of performance, robustness, and simplicity. Its architecture is based on highly proven COTS components combined with carefully selected space-grade parts, achieving an optimal balance between reliability, cost-effectiveness, and flight heritage. This approach ensures strong resilience against the harsh space environment while maintaining competitive lead times and flexibility for different mission profiles.   One of nanoST’s key advantages is its fully integrated, plug-and-play design. The unit operates autonomously and does not require additional electronic modules or external processing units, significantly simplifying spacecraft integration. This reduces system complexity, saves valuable onboard volume and mass, and accelerates platform development cycles, particularly important for CubeSats, small satellites, and constellation missions.   For testing and validation purposes, the portfolio also includes the STAR-D and STAR-S models. These units are specifically designed to support platform testing, AIT phases, and early mission validation activities, allowing teams to evaluate performance and integration in a flexible and efficient manner before final deployment.   With its compact form factor, high pointing accuracy, and ease of integration, nanoST, supported by the STAR-D and STAR-S for testing, provides a complete and scalable attitude determination solution for next-generation satellite missions.   #SpaceTechnology #NewSpace #SmallSat #CubeSat #Satellite #AerospaceEngineering #AttitudeDetermination #StarTracker #SpaceInnovation #OnBoardProcessing #PlugAndPlay #COTS #SpaceSystems

Exploring the Icy Worlds of Jupiter – The JUICE Mission   A new era of planetary exploration is underway with JUICE (Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer), led by the European Space Agency.   After its launch in 2023, JUICE began an extraordinary multi-year journey across the solar system, using a series of gravity assists to reach Jupiter in the early 2030s. Once there, the spacecraft will conduct detailed observations of Jupiter and focus on three key moons Ganymede, Callisto, and Europa, all believed to host vast oceans beneath their icy crusts.    What makes JUICE truly groundbreaking is its mission scope:   ▪️ Habitability Focus: Instead of simply flying by, JUICE will study whether these moons possess the essential ingredients for life: water, energy, and chemical building blocks. ▪️ Historic First: It will become the first spacecraft to orbit Ganymede, the largest moon in the solar system. ▪️ Advanced Technology: Equipped with radar to probe beneath ice layers, magnetometers to analyze subsurface oceans, and high-resolution imaging systems, JUICE is built to operate in one of the harshest radiation environments in the solar system. ▪️ Global Collaboration: The mission represents years of cooperation between European institutions, international partners, scientists, and engineers.   Beyond the scientific discoveries, JUICE symbolizes something even greater: humanity’s growing capability to explore distant worlds with precision and purpose. Each data transmission from Jupiter will help us better understand how planets form, how oceans evolve, and whether life-friendly environments may exist far beyond Earth.   The journey is ambitious. The science is transformative. The potential impact is profound.   #JUICE #ESA #SpaceExploration #PlanetaryScience #Innovation #DeepSpace #FutureOfScience

Driving Innovation at the Jornadas Informativas EDF 2026 We are pleased to share that our CEO, José Miguel Moreno López and Strategy Director, Enrique Navarro Gil, attended the Jornadas Informativas 2026 del Fondo Europeo de Defensa (EDF) this week in Madrid. The event was organized by DIGEID with the support of ISDEFE, bringing together key stakeholders from across the European defence ecosystem to discuss upcoming funding opportunities and collaborative innovation initiatives for 2026 under the European Defence Fund. Our participation reflects our continued commitment to advancing cutting-edge navigation and sensing technologies aligned with Europe’s strategic defence priorities and to strengthening partnerships that will shape the future of resilient positioning and orientation solutions. We look forward to building on the insights gained and exploring new opportunities for collaboration within the EDF framework. #EDF #EuropeanDefenceFund #DefenceInnovation #SpaceTechnology #Navigation #Collaboration

See You at SSSIF in Malaga! We’re excited to share that our Head of Star Trackers, Jason Wander Cóndor Romero, and our R&D Manager, Andrea Esteban Pérez, are attending this year’s Small Satellite & Services International Forum in Malaga. SSSIF brings together leaders and innovators from across the small satellite ecosystem, from spacecraft manufacturers and subsystem providers to launch services and downstream applications. It is a fantastic opportunity to exchange ideas, explore partnerships, and discuss the future of agile, high-performance space systems. If you’re attending SSSIF, let’s connect! #SSSIF #SmallSat #SpaceTech #SatelliteTechnology #Malaga #SpaceInnovation #NewSpace #Aerospace

Introducing Skyfusion: The Next Frontier in Autonomous Air Transport   Our latest blog dives into the Skyfusion project, part of the 2024 Science & Innovation Missions Program, aimed at pushing UAVs (unmanned aerial vehicles) beyond current limitations, especially in BVLOS operations.   Skyfusion focuses on key technologies: ▪️ Robust autonomous navigation, independent of GNSS. ▪️ Intelligent autopilot capable of maintaining stability under any load and condition. ▪️ Advanced photonic sensors and data fusion from LiDAR, radar, SWIR, sun sensor and star tracker to ensure safe flight day or night.   The project culminates in a lab demonstrator prototype, with the potential to transform autonomous air operations, developed with leading partners like SITEP S.L. - Sistemas de Información Territorial y Posicionamiento, GeoNumerics, SOLAR MEMS, ASE Optics Europe, qurv, Computer Vision Center, Instituto Nacional de Técnica Aeroespacial «Esteban Terradas» and Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya.   Discover how innovations in navigation and sensors are redefining the future of UAVs: https://lnkd.in/e-_ZHmhP   #Skyfusion #UAV #AerospaceInnovation #AutonomousFlight #Technology #PhotonicSensors #LiDAR #GNSS

Before GPS. Before Satellites. There Were the Stars. Today, we talk a lot about GNSS-denied environments, jamming, spoofing, and the fragility of satellite-based navigation. Entire industries are now asking how we operate when those signals disappear. But more than half a century ago, one aircraft had already answered that question, quietly, elegantly, and at Mach 3+. The SR-71 Blackbird. Flying higher than 85,000 feet and faster than any operational aircraft before or since, the Blackbird operated in a realm where traditional navigation simply wasn’t enough. GPS didn’t exist. Radio navigation aids were unreliable and, in hostile territory, dangerous. Even the most advanced inertial systems of the time would drift too much over long, intercontinental missions. The SR-71 was equipped with an Astro-Inertial Navigation System (ANS), an engineering marvel that included a fully automated stellar tracker roughly the size of a washing machine. This wasn’t a symbolic backup or a manual sextant-style solution. It was a precision instrument that continuously observed stars through a dedicated quartz window, compared them to an onboard star catalog, and corrected inertial errors in real time while the aircraft streaked across the planet faster than a rifle bullet. No satellites. No external signals. No emissions that could be detected, jammed, or spoofed. Just physics, celestial mechanics, and extraordinary engineering discipline. From Secret Weapon to Cultural Icon Unsurprisingly, the SR-71 didn’t just become a technological legend, it became a cultural one. Its unmistakable shape and near-mythical performance earned it a place far beyond classified hangars. The Blackbird has appeared in films and TV series such as: 🎬 X-Men: First Class 🎬 Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen 🎬 The Iron Giant (as inspiration for futuristic aerospace design) 📺 Also in countless Smithsonian, National Geographic, and Discovery Channel documentaries, where engineers and pilots recount stories that still sound like science fiction today. On screen and off, the SR-71 came to represent the ultimate fusion of speed, secrecy, and innovation. Why This Matters More Than Ever Fast forward to today. As airspace becomes more contested and electronic warfare more sophisticated, the industry is once again rediscovering the value of non-RF navigation methods. Stellar navigation, high-grade inertial systems, sensor fusion, and autonomous navigation are no longer “legacy ideas” they are becoming essential components of resilient PNT architectures. What feels futuristic now was already flying operational missions in the 1960s. Sometimes progress isn’t about adding more satellites or more signals. Sometimes it’s about remembering that the most reliable reference frame we’ve ever had… has been above us all along. The stars don’t jam, they don’t spoof and they’ve been guiding navigation for millions of years. #SR71 #Blackbird #StellarNavigation #GNSSDenied #EngineeringLegends

Singapore Airshow 2026 Ines Perez, our Business Development Manager and Álvaro López Olea, Project Engineer, attended Singapore Airshow 2026, where innovation, scale and ambition were on full display. From advanced aerospace technologies to conversations shaping the future of aviation, the event offered valuable perspectives on where the industry is heading and how engineering and business strategy must evolve together to get there. A big thank you to everyone who shared ideas, challenges, and opportunities along the way. Events like this reinforce the importance of global collaboration and staying close to both technology and people. #SingaporeAirshow2026 #AerospaceIndustry #Engineering #BusinessDevelopment #Innovation #GlobalCollaboration

AAS GN&C Conference | Colorado Our Business Development Manager Timothy Browne and GNC Engineer Diego Zarco Vaz are attending the AAS GN&C Conference in Colorado, connecting with industry leaders and experts across the aerospace community. From in-depth technical sessions to meaningful conversations around guidance, navigation, and control systems, the event has been a great opportunity to exchange ideas and explore the innovations shaping the field. We were proud to sponsor this year’s AAS GN&C Conference and support a community that continues to push the boundaries of aerospace technology. Looking forward to continuing the conversations and building on the momentum coming out of the event. #AASGNC #Aerospace #GNC #Engineering #BusinessDevelopment #IndustryEvents #TeamInAction

We are delighted to welcome Enrique Navarro Gil as our new Strategy Director   Enrique brings extensive experience in international leadership, global business strategy, and industrial cooperation, particularly within complex and highly regulated markets such as defense. He currently serves as Foreign Affairs Advisor at AXISCADES and as Chairman of MQGlobalnEt, where he fosters international collaboration by connecting experts across finance, law, insurance, and venture capital.   Previously, Enrique chaired leading global associations dedicated to industrial cooperation and offset, playing a key role in strengthening collaboration between governments, major international contractors, and local industry. Throughout his career, he has consistently advocated for strategic, sustainable approaches to industrial cooperation in global defense markets.   A recognized and influential voice in the sector, Enrique is a regular columnist and commentator on defense policy, industrial strategy, and R&D investment. His analyses offer thoughtful perspectives on the evolution of the defense industry and its international competitiveness, contributing to informed debate across the ecosystem.   With a strong background in strategic consulting and international business development, Enrique adds significant value to our long-term vision, reinforcing our commitment to global growth, technological sustainability, and strategic partnerships.   Welcome to the team, Enrique.