The head of the Polish Space Agency (POLSA) Prof. Grzegorz Wrochna said that Polish companies and institutes are actively operating within the European Space Agency (ESA). The Polish presence in space began with the construction of various research, measurement and robotic instruments that were launched into space on over 80 missions.
According to POLSA, the Polish space market includes approximately 400 companies and scientific institutions that employ about 12 thousand people.
“We want to increase the chances of Polish companies in obtaining money from the European Space Agency. It will help them advance in the space supply chain and deliver not only individual components, but entire systems for the needs of the space missions”, said the president of POLSA.
The President noted that the contribution of EUR 40 million paid to the ESA per year seems a large amount, but it is only 1 % of its budget that allows Poland to have access to technologies developed by all of Europe. In addition, this money mostly returns to the Polish market in the form of orders sent to Polish companies and scientific institutions.
According to Prof. Wrochna, it is difficult to identify specific Polish space specialities that would be leading skills in Europe. He made the reservation that the Polish space industry was just developing.
“Hence, our presence in space began with the construction of various research, measurement and robotic instruments that were launched into space in over 80 missions. Such devices stuck into a comet, drilled into Mars, and recorded the radiation off very distant phenomena. Today, this experience is used by companies developing commercially technologies for utility purposes”, reported Wrochna.
“Our strong point is also collecting satellite data. The Polish company runs one of the four recognized ESA data centers belonging to the EU Copernicus system. We are already starting to provide this type of service to other countries”, emphasized Prof. Wrochna and added that it is not only about the collection, storage and sharing of data, but it also includes products and services based on them: satellite maps, monitoring the condition of crops, water, atmosphere and the state of the sea.
Large ESA projects are coordinated by experienced concerns that invite sub-suppliers from various countries, including Poland. These activities allowed to launch of a special, worth EUR 6 million ESA program for Polish companies.
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