Deimos Selected by ESA to Develop DRACO Demonstration Mission

On Sept. 24, the European Space Agency (ESA) awarded the company Deimos Space a contract, worth €17 million, for the DRACO (Destructive Re-entry Assessment Container Object) mission. As part of the agreement, Deimos will develop a satellite to demonstrate a controlled break-up process during atmospheric re-entry and collect key data. The launch of the mission is scheduled for 2027.

From left to right: Simone Centuori, Deimos CEO, Juan Carlos Cortés, Director Spanish Space Agency, Holger Krag, Head of ESA's Space Safety Programme. Credits: ESA — *From left to right: Simone Centuori, Deimos CEO, Juan Carlos Cortés, Director Spanish Space Agency, Holger Krag, Head of ESA’s Space Safety Programme. Credits: ESA*

In the first phase of the mission development, worth €3 million, Deimos will lead an industrial consortium including the Von Karman Institute in Belgium, Fluid Gravity Engineering, Belstead Research, Vorticity and Dial from the UK, and the Hyperschall Technologie Göttingen from Germany.

“Securing the initial phase of the DRACO contract is a major milestone for Deimos. We are honored to lead this critical mission, and we look forward to working closely with our partners to achieve its objectives.”
— Simone Centuori, CEO of Deimos

DRACO

ESA’s DRACO will have the ambitious goal of studying, directly from within a spacecraft, the physical and structural processes that lead to the fragmentation of a satellite during its re-entry into Earth’s atmosphere.

The 150kg satellite will consist of an aluminum structure and a capsule. At approximately 120 km altitude, the Demise Data Collection Unit will gather data from numerous sensors and cameras aboard the main structure, which will gradually disintegrate due to the high temperature (up to 1730 C°). The data will be continuously transmitted to the capsule, which will separate at 60 km altitude to send all the information collected during the communication blackout phase. A controlled parachute descent will give it enough time to transmit all the precious data before falling into the ocean.

The DRACO demonstration mission is a key step for developing new technologies and design solutions as part of ESA’s ‘Zero Debris Approach’. The Agency is implementing a series of mitigation requirements and programs to significantly enhance the sustainability of space operations by 2030.

Holger Krag, ESA head of Space Safety, stated: “We need to gain more insight into what happens when satellites burn up in the atmosphere as well as validate our re-entry models. We look forward to making the mission a reality together with Deimos as our prime contractor.”

About Deimos Space

Founded in 2001, Deimos is a technology group that provides advanced solutions and services for various sectors such as Space, Defense, Aeronautics, and Telecommunications.

Thanks to its extensive experience in the space sector, the company has developed capabilities in all phases of space missions, from the design of hardware and software technologies to the development of complete satellite missions. In 20 years Deimos took part in many major ESA missions, carrying out activities in mission analysis, system engineering, guidance, navigation and control (GNC), attitude and orbit control (AOCS), ground segment, and onboard software.

*Deimos Sky Survey (DESS) complex. Credits: Luca Locatelli/National Geographic Magazine*

Furthermore, Deimos provides Space Situational Awareness (SSA) services across Europe. In particular, the company operates ESA’s Near Earth Object (NEO) center, and many SST activities are carried out from the Deimos Sky Survey (DESS) complex, located in south Spain.

_{*Cover image credits: ESA}