Polish defense firms ink deals for new satellite reconnaissance capability

ICEYE 25cm SAR satellite image of oil tanks in Rotterdam, the Netherlands (ICEYE)

MSPO 2024 — Poland’s defense industry is looking to sharpen its view of the earth from space, as two firms recently signed a new agreement to work together on high-resolution optical satellites to provide imagery for users in Poland.

During the 32nd International Defense Industry Exhibition (MSPO) in Kielce, ICEYE Polska, the Polish arm of Finnish synthetic aperture radar (SAR) satellite firm ICEYE, and Wrocław-based optical and vision tech specialists Scanway signed a Memorandum of Understanding regarding the design of high-resolution optical satellites. The sats would initially provide imagery for Polish users, but potentially also for global customers in the future.

The document was signed on Tuesday by the president and co-founder of ICEYE, Rafał Modrzewski, and the president and founder of Scanway, Jędrzej Kowalewski.

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The new satellites are to be used for defense purposes and will have an optical resolution of around 50 cm, necessary for targets detection and identification. They will join ICEYE’s existing SAR systems, giving Polish customers access to comprehensive Earth observation data, the companies said.

ICEYE’s numerous SAR satellites can visit the same place above Earth even dozens of times a day and perform radar imaging day and night, regardless of weather conditions.

“Currently, the armed forces need optical systems with a resolution of at least 50 cm. Such systems can be installed on satellites of the 150-200 kg class, manufactured and operated by ICEYE. (…) We have already placed 38 of them in orbit,” said Modrzewski.

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“Providing customers with increasingly larger and more advanced optical instruments capable of imaging with a resolution of less than 1 meter is a strategic direction of Scanway’s development,” added Kowalewski.

The next day ICEYE Polska was party to another agreement, this one with Wojskowe Zakłady Łączności Nr 1 (WZŁ-1, Military Communications Works) and Polska Grupa Zbrojeniowa (PGZ, Polish Armament Group), to jointly develop what they called a Mobile ISR Cell (Mobilna Platforma Rozpoznania Satelitarnego ISR, MPRS ISR), adapted to cooperate with SAR satellites and satellites equipped with optical sensors.

The group said the new solution combines communication and data transmission systems, power supply unit and a specially designed antenna system, ensuring fast data transmission and its direct distribution to the appropriate recipients at any command level.

MPRS ISR is designed to provide the ability to conduct permanent operations using the ICEYE satellite constellation, collect data almost in real time and analyze it on an ongoing basis. The system is designed for cooperation at the operational level, supporting commanders in making decisions and providing situational awareness on the battlefield more efficiently and quicker.

“Satellite reconnaissance and communication systems play an important role in the functioning of the armed forces. Acquiring and processing satellite imaging data in real time can provide an advantage on the modern battlefield. These are the conclusions that can be drawn, among others, from the ongoing armed conflict in Ukraine,” said Krzysztof Trofiniak, PGZ President of the Management Board.