New Generation of Miniature Satellites Brings Connectivity to Remote Areas
When you look up at a sky at night, you may notice bright moving dots. These are not shooting stars; they are satellites orbiting close enough to the Earth to be seen with the naked eye. While we take mobile coverage for granted, it is still impossible to get network coverage in many locations around the world. Spanish picosatellite company, FOSSA Systems SL, is tackling this problem with its low-cost, miniature satellites that enable data exchange and smart device connectivity in previously unconnected locations.
There are still places on Earth without access to mobile connectivity. Many companies operating in these remote areas need connectivity to collect business-critical information. For example, a shipping company needs to be able to monitor the temperature of a refrigerator in a container on a cargo ship travelling the oceans. Similarly, farmers and agribusinesses need to be able to monitor the pH of soil (its acidity or alkalinity) to manage crop health and yields effectively.
The Spanish startup FOSSA Systems, established during the COVID-19 pandemic, is addressing this connectivity gap. “We realized there was a connectivity gap and that there are many remote areas, for example, in the middle of the ocean or in the heart of a rainforest, where there is no mobile connectivity,” explain Julián Fernández Barcellona and Vicente González Negro, co-founders of the startup.
FOSSA Systems is creating an ecosystem of low-power picosatellites capable of sensing, interconnecting, and optimizing data collection for businesses operating in areas without terrestrial coverage. In practice, these miniature satellites are helping a wide range of companies, from agribusiness and energy to transport and cybersecurity, to monitor their activities.
Expanding connectivity with picosatellites
Picosatellites, also known as IoT picosatellites, are used to exchange data with other systems and devices through Internet networks. These miniature satellites are incredibly light and small – they weigh no more than 1 kilogram and are no bigger than a shoe. The first picosatellite, the CubeSat, was created by a team of space engineering students at the University of Michigan in the United States. The CubeSat measures just 10 x 10 x 10 centimeters and is now being used for interplanetary missions.
In January 2022, FOSSA Systems made history in the field of Spanish space technology when it launched its first six picosatellites (FOSSASat-2E) into space from the Kennedy Space Center, in Florida, USA.
With a current count of 13 picosatellites in orbit, the company has ambitions to launch 80 more by 2024, creating a constellation that will allow for real-time intelligent connectivity. “IoT picosatellites collect information to optimize the resources and processes of the company using them. They are equipped with an integrated hyperspectral camera, which collects and processes information from across the electromagnetic spectrum. The camera can send up to 400,000 messages daily, and has up to three years of operational life in orbit,” says Fernández Barcellona.
"By using picosatellites to monitor assets, situations such as the loss of raw materials, lack of information about workers' location, or machinery's desynchronization, can be easily solved, reducing undesired situations," Fernández Barcellona and González Negro explain, noting that such information can improve the economic and environmental sustainability of companies.
FOSSA Systems offers a vertically integrated service. "We design, manufacture and test the satellite, as well as the legislative processes, licenses, the launch, with a fixed price," the co-founders say. The cost of these picosatellites ranges between EUR 100,000 and EUR 250,000. The startup is expanding its workforce and growing as a leader in Spain’s space ecosystem.
Funding a space business
Over the past 25 years, the space market has been developing low-cost global satellite technology for space commercialization. In 2019, Fernández Barcellona and González Negro took the first steps in this market by launching their first picosatellite for an industry that generates an estimated USD 366 billion in revenue globally.
When the two engineers founded FOSSA Systems, they had already attracted a small cluster of clients who provided the initial funding to start the company and expand their business. In 2021, FOSSA Systems raised EUR 765,000 in seed funding from WISeKey and Newmind Venture. They also secured EUR 318,648 in funding from the NEOTEC award financed by the Spanish Centre for the Development of Industrial Technology (CDTI) to advance their technology. The Award “will help us to develop our new satellite platform, and will allow us to generate sales income, double the size of our team and to launch 13 satellites in half a year,” note Fernández Barcellona and González Negro.
The company’s fortunes took a leap forward in 2021, when it obtained a license from the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Digital Transformation (MINECO) to operate a public satellite-based electronic communications data network. “This was the only license granted in Spain, meaning that the administration supports our project,” the co-founders explain, noting that the license to deploy a network of 80 picosatellites took the credibility and viability of their technology to a new level.
IP and innovation in outer Space
In the mid-2000s, the space economy shifted towards a more decentralized and market-oriented model. Paired with R&D investment, FOSSA Systems believes its intellectual property (IP) protection strategy is key to preserving both the safety and the sustainability of their technology in the picosatellite market. “IP is a fundamental factor for achieving business success, developing new products, and offering innovative services to customers. For this reason, we have first class professionals to define and implement the best protection strategies for our assets, minimizing the risk of information leaks, plagiarism, and industrial espionage,” say Fernández Barcellona and González Negro.
Space innovation backed by IP has been commercialized to expand technologies for the benefit of humankind.
The company is also actively using trade secrets to protect its confidential information. “At FOSSA Systems we work with trade secrets. All our design and development processes follow rigorous security and confidentiality agreements. Only the team involved in developing them has the knowledge,” Fernández Barcellona and González Negro explain.
on YouTube). (Photo: Courtesy of Fossa Systems)FOSSA Ad Astra Association: Growing the future Spanish NASA
The development of picosatellites began in 2000 at the University of Stanford as an educational project to involve students in a real satellite mission. Educational institutions now offer their students hands-on experience in the design and development of picosatellites.
At the age of 16, Julian Fernández Barcellona connected with university and pre-university students on Reddit to get them to join his picosatellite adventure. Thanks to a crowdfunding campaign on GoFundMe, where he raised EUR 30,000 and the help of the University Rey Juan Carlos of Madrid, Fernández Barcellona was able to put Spain’s first picosatellite, FossaSat-1, into orbit.
Fernández Barcellona then went on to create the FOSSA Ad Astra Association, in a bid to encourage young Spanish students to follow a career in space technology. “The goal of the association is to bring the space industry closer to the youngest generation; those who will be the leaders of Spain’s space agency tomorrow, and to promote space education so more is invested in space R&D,” says Fernández Barcellona.