EMISSARY (European Military Integrated Space Situational Awareness and Recognition capabilitY) project was officially launched in Rome last month with a Gran Agreement Kick-off meeting and Neuraspace, global leader in space safety, security and sustainability, is part of the industrial consortium as national coordinator for Portugal. EMISSARY is co-funded by the European Commission under the European Defence Fund (EDF).
The four-year initiative, with a total value of €158 million, seeks to develop autonomous and interoperable European capabilities for Space Situational Awareness (SSA) in support of defence and security. EMISSARY will enhance the acquisition of Space Domain Awareness information by supporting the development of a network of advanced sensors and a dedicated military command and control software for SSA, enabling the collection, processing, and secure exchange of data for operational use. EMISSARY will support European space operations while ensuring national and European sovereignty over data and decision-making.
Coordinated by Leonardo, the initiative brings together 46 beneficiaries from 13 supporting Member States – including Italy, France, Spain, Germany, Poland, Finland, Austria, Sweden, Portugal, Greece, Luxembourg, Romania, and Norway.
Neuraspace will use its core competencies in AI/ML (artificial intelligence and machine learning) algorithms for data analysis, data warehousing, and automated data processing and contribute in these key areas. In particular, Neuraspace will extract valuable intelligence for anomaly detection, threat classification, and avoidance measures. It will also adapt its data warehouse to handle classified data (up to ‘secret’) and integrate new data formats as defined by the consortium. And it will prototype, roll-out, test, and qualify from its data warehouse and AI/ML data analytics toolkit within an operational environment.
Chiara Manfletti, CEO of Neuraspace, said: “Joining the EMISSARY consortium and initiative is a significant milestone with huge potential for Neuraspace. It underscores the company’s commitment to enhancing space safety, security and sustainability. The project goals also align with Neuraspace’s commitment to innovation in space operations and shaping the future of space situational awareness.
"SSA is vital for the continued and safe use of space and underpins collision prevention, national security, sustainable space operations, terrestrial infrastructure protection, and international cooperation in space. As space activities intensify and the geo-political threat rises, the significance of SSA – as well as the risks to spacecraft and their services needed on Earth – will only continue to grow."
With Neuraspace being in the consortium and acting as a national coordinator, Portugal can boost its national investments in SSA and its space surveillance and tracking (SST) capabilities. It also allows the country to establish itself as a key European and NATO player in space safety and security, an increasingly contended area.
Neuraspace's participation in EMISSARY represents an important achievement for the Portuguese space industry,” Manfletti said. “The project promises to solidify Portugal's position as a key player in European space security and contribute to a more secure and sustainable space environment.”