Daily news

PLD Space launches SPARK Programme, offering free access to first two MIURA 5 flights to promote space innovation

27 June 2024

PLD Space presented its MIURA 5 SPARK Programme, which will allow educational centres, universities, institutions and companies from all over the world to access the first two MIURA 5 launches free of charge. The company is committed to covering the costs of the mission with the ultimate goal of promoting scientific and technological innovation in order to improve people's lives from space.

To this end, the initiative is backed by the institutional support of the Spanish Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities, the Spanish Space Agency (AEE), the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC) and Generalitat Valenciana, as well as the backing of the Organisation of Ibero-American States (OEI) and the European Space Education Resource Office in Spain (ESERO Spain), part of the European Space Agency (ESA).

The MIURA 5 SPARK Programme provides small satellite launch services to students, research centres, institutions, and commercial entities that submit innovative and creative proposals to address Earth's challenges from space. PLD Space will select satellites from around the globe for the two MIURA 5 demonstration flights, scheduled for the last quarter of 2025 and the first quarter of 2026, respectively. The selected satellites will receive standard launch services at no cost. 

"At PLD Space we have an unwavering commitment to encouraging society’s engagement with the space industry. The first MIURA 5 test flights offer a unique opportunity for students, researchers, institutions and companies to test their innovations in the challenging environment of space", says Raúl Verdú, Head of Business Development and co-founder at PLD Space.

"The Spanish Space Agency supports initiatives like PLD Space's MIURA 5 SPARK programme, which align with our ultimate goal of facilitating access to space and bringing space innovation closer to society," adds Juan Carlos Cortés, Director of the Spanish Space Agency.

MIURA 5 SPARK Programme Requirements

The combined mass of all the small satellites selected through this call for submissions is 450 kg per flight, which will be launched into a sun-synchronous  orbit at an altitude of 500 kilometres.

The main selection criteria include the country of origin, with priority given to Spanish entities, followed by EU Member States, NATO Member States, and major non-NATO allied states. Additionally, PLD Space will prioritize proposals from universities, research centres, and commercial entities that are willing to integrate experiments by teams of primary, secondary, and vocational training students.

Other conditions to be considered include payload mass requirements, orbit flexibility, compliance with technical standards, launch window, schedule flexibility, satellite development status, operational risks, and mission attractiveness.

The phases of the call for submissions

Following today's announcement of the open call for submissions, the preliminary application period begins and will end on July 30. The PLD Space mission management team will conduct an initial assessment and notify shortlisted applicants on August 30. Candidates whose mission proposals pass this stage will receive the MIURA 5 User Guide, detailing the expected flight and maximum activity times. They will then have one month to submit their final applications. The final selection of candidates will be announced on November 30, with the signing of the launch service contracts to be completed by December 30.

Regarding primary and secondary schools and vocational training centres, interested teams will be able to register their experiment idea to have the chance to fly alongside a commercial entity. In this case, there will be no pre-selection process, and they will have until October 31 to submit their proposals.

Mission management costs included

Under the MIURA 5 SPARK Programme, PLD Space undertakes to cover the costs related to mission management, accommodation on the MIURA 5 launcher, fuel handling, transport to the launch base, storage and handling costs, as appropriate, as well as any other operational costs related to the provision of the standard launch service. For their part, applicants will be responsible for the costs of meeting the technical requirements and any additional tests for the safety of the satellite.