Danish satellite manufacturer, Space Inventor, is partnering with Austrian propulsion specialist GATE Space on Austria’s largest domestically-developed satellite and the country’s first military satellite, BEACONSAT. Space Inventor will deliver the complete satellite platform and core mission engineering required to bring the satellite safely into orbit and ensure long-term operational performance.
BEACONSAT is designed to detect and analyse interference with Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS), including jamming and spoofing. The mission directly addresses the growing security challenge often referred to as “navigation warfare” and contributes to European resilience, defence readiness and technological sovereignty.
Commissioned by the Austrian Federal Ministry of Defence and supported at European level through ESA’s Marketplace programme as a dual-use technology demonstration mission, BEACONSAT will provide critical data on GNSS interference to support both military and civilian situational awareness.
In addition to advancing GNSS intelligence capabilities, BEACONSAT will demonstrate an in-orbit chemical propulsion system developed by GATE Space. The Austrian company is responsible for the overall mission and is developing the satellite’s chemical propulsion system, thermal control system and structural subsystem. Space Inventor is responsible for all satellite-related systems and mission engineering. The company has adapted its platform to accommodate propulsion components positioned externally in non-traditional configurations and has developed control algorithms capable of maintaining precise attitude control despite moving liquid mass within the spacecraft.
From a satellite engineering perspective, BEACONSAT presents significant technical challenges. Integrating a liquid-fuel propulsion system into a compact small satellite platform introduces complex dynamic and structural considerations.
“Space-based infrastructure is fundamental to national security and strategic autonomy. BEACONSAT helps strengthen Europe’s ability to detect and respond to navigation interference – a threat that is growing in both scale and sophistication. Just as importantly, this mission proves that European industry has the capability to design, build and operate advanced defence space systems independently. BEACONSAT is a clear demonstration of sovereign European space capacity in action – operationally ready, technologically advanced and built in Europe for Europe,” said Jan Smolders, Chief Commercial Officer at Space Inventor.
