Alén Space completes development of the ETRISat satellite for South Korea’s ETRI

Alén Space has completed the manufacture of ETRISat, a 6U CubeSat fully developed at its facilities in Nigrán (Spain) for the Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute (ETRI), one of South Korea’s leading public research organisations.

The satellite has already been delivered to ETRI and is now in South Korea awaiting launch aboard a Nuri (KSLV-II) rocket from the Korea Aerospace Research Institute (KARI). Lift-off is scheduled for the coming days from the Naro Space Center, located in South Jeolla Province.

ETRISat’s primary objective is the in-orbit demonstration (IOD) of communications technologies, aligned with ETRI’s initiatives focused on the evolution of satellite and maritime communication networks. One of the mission’s challenges is the verification of signal transmission via ocean buoys equipped to collect data such as seawater temperature and wave height. During the mission, these signals will be relayed to ETRISat and subsequently transmitted to ground stations, enabling the evaluation of their effectiveness for real-time climate and ocean condition monitoring.

The satellite carries a payload based on TREVO, Alén Space’s high-performance software-defined radio (SDR). Two independent applications will run on this hardware: one developed by ETRI, focused on validating advanced communications solutions, and another implemented by Alén Space for the transmission of AIS (Automatic Identification System) signals used in maritime traffic management. This flexible architecture enables the customer to deploy its own solutions on a robust, flight-proven platform.

Alén Space has delivered ETRISat as a turnkey project, covering all stages from mission design and AIV to test campaigns, the implementation of its Mission Control Software (MCS), and the initial in-orbit operations (LEOP). The Alén Space team’s ability to adapt to ETRI’s specific requirements, together with the experience gained in previous missions, made it possible to accelerate the satellite’s development timeline.

International collaboration and strategic outlook

ETRISat represents a new milestone in Alén Space’s international trajectory, strengthening its experience in the development of end-to-end missions and its position as a provider of high value-added space solutions.

“Working so closely with an institution like ETRI reinforces Alén Space’s international position as a reliable technological partner for highly innovative and demanding projects,” said Guillermo Lamelas, CEO of Alén Space. “South Korea is a global benchmark in technological innovation, and we hope that ETRISat will be the first step in a long-term collaboration.”

The fourth launch of the Nuri (KSLV-II) rocket, in which ETRISat will fly alongside 12 other satellites, is the first since the establishment in 2024 of the Korea AeroSpace Administration (KASA), underscoring the country’s ambition to become one of the world’s leading space powers.