Isar Aerospace and OroraTech announce partnership to launch satellites for tackling global wildfire crises

07 September 2021

Isar Aerospace has entered into a firm launch service agreement with the pioneering NewSpace startup OroraTech to launch the company’s satellites into space. OroraTech’s nanosatellites are geared towards tackling the global wildfire and climate crises with satellite-based wildfire detection and monitoring services.

With this agreement, Isar Aerospace adds another company to its launch manifest and strengthens satellite-based applications that focus on improving life on earth. The launches will take place between 2022 and 2026 and will bring OroraTech’s satellites to Sun-Synchronous Orbit. The agreement includes the launch of more than ten small satellites, and an option to extend the service agreement to the entire OroraTech satellite constellation consisting of hundreds of satellites.

OroraTechs’s technology combines a patent-pending thermal-infrared imager optimized for applications on CubeSats and real-time processing of acquired data on board the satellite. By transferring the information via a relay network, the company can cut the delay from fire detection to the user from hours to minutes. Next to wildfire detection, the technology will be utilized for other climate-related use cases such as urban heat monitoring, severe weather modelling and gas flare tracking.

The agreement between Isar Aerospace and OroraTech is a strong sign of the development and rising demand of companies implementing a flexible, cost-efficient solution to bring satellites into low earth orbit. While the commercial space ecosystem is seeing a sizeable momentum, Isar Aerospace aims to provide emerging, highly innovative high-tech startups like OroraTech cost-efficient and flexible access to space. With both companies having their origin at the Technical University of Munich, this partnership underlines the growing strength of the European NewSpace ecosystem and progress of the commercial European space industry.

“The agreement with OroraTech is a strong sign of the industry’s interest and trust into Isar Aerospace’s technology and unrivalled expertise. With technologies in space, we can improve life on earth and tackle global climate change based on data. We are looking forward to collaborating with OroraTech and supporting them on their important mission to better monitor the effects of global warming and to detect danger, such as wildfires, for better protecting people and our environment”, says Daniel Metzler, Co-Founder and CEO of Isar Aerospace.

Thomas Grübler, Co-Founder and CEO at OroraTech, adds: “Access to the right orbit is of crucial importance to fit our customer needs. In Isar Aerospace we have found a flexible launch service provider enabling us to significantly improve global wildfire detection compared to traditional ride-sharing options which are tight to specific orbits. We are looking forward to further drive innovation in the space ecosystem and offer the best service to tackle the global wildfire and climate crisis.”

With the OroraTech partnership, Isar Aerospace’s strengthens satellite-based applications that focus on improving life on earth. Founders from both companies are graduates of the prestigious space program and research group at the Technical University of Munich, where the seeds for many highly successful German space startups were planted.