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From 6 to 10 March 2023, the EU conducted the Space Threat Response Architecture (STRA) 2023 exercise at the European External Action Service (EEAS) Headquarters in Brussels.

The STRA exercise is a yearly exercise to test and enhance the EU´s response to threats to the systems and services deployed under the various components of the EU Space Programme. It builds on a scenario, which reflects the complexity of the current geopolitical landscape and emerging hybrid threats, ranging from cyber-attacks on space and ground segments to spoofing or jamming satellite signals, as well as disinformation campaigns.

During the STRA 2023 exercise, the EU´s space threat response mechanism was triggered by a cyber-security incident affecting Galileo. The incident was activated in EEAS HQ and involved key political, diplomatic and operational actors including Member States, the EEAS, the EU Space Programme Agency (EUSPA /Galileo Security Monitoring Centre), the Commission and the Council of the European Union. Italy and Spain as Galileo host nations activated their chain of command, involving appropriate national capabilities to address the incident and providing support to digital forensics and critical infrastructure protection measures. 

During this exercise, the Agency demonstrated that its mission in implementing the operational security of Galileo as a component of the European Union Space Programme is fulfilled. 

“EUSPA continues to take steps to ensure the security of the EU Space Programme and the confidentiality, integrity and availability of the data and services it provides,” says EUSPA Executive Director Rodrigo da Costa. 

Central to this role is the Galileo Security Monitoring Centre (GSMC). 

Around-the-clock monitoring 

The GSMC monitors and, when necessary, acts regarding security threats, security alerts and the operational status of Galileo’s various components. It operates its mission from the two facilities in Saint-Germain-en-Laye, France, and in San Martín de la Vega, Spain.  

“We provide around-the-clock monitoring of the Galileo system’s security,” explains GSMC Head Philippe Rosius. “The purpose of this monitoring is to detect accidental or deliberate security events that could cause a disruption to the programme’s services.”

In the event of a threat to the security of the system and/or its services that could affect the security of the EU, the European Council will issue specific instructions to EUSPA, which the GSMC is responsible for implementing.

Beyond its monitoring duties, the GSMC is also responsible for managing access to the Public Regulated Service (PRS) and for ensuring that sensitive information relating to its use is properly managed and protected. 

“While the GSMC is an integral part of the Galileo infrastructure, it has the competence to be extended to other components of the Union Space Programme,” adds Rosius. 

Security expertise to support EU priorities 

EUSPA’s security expertise also makes it well-positioned to support the objectives of the recently adopted European Union Space Strategy for Security and Defence. 

Proposed by EU High Representative/Vice-President for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell, Executive Vice-President for A Europe Fit for the Digital Age of the European Commission, Margrethe Vestager and European Commissioner for the Internal Market Thierry Breton, the Strategy proposes actions to strengthen the resilience and protection of space systems and services in the EU EUSPA will have a key role to play for the implementation of this strategy.  Firstly, the strategy proposes the creation of a Sharing and Analysis Centre (EU Space ISAC) to raise awareness and facilitate the exchange of best practices among commercial and relevant public entities on resilience measures for space capabilities. 

Building on its experience with Galileo, EUSPA can ensure consistent security monitoring of all EU space programmes. In close cooperation with the Commission, the Computer Security Incident Response Team of all the EU institutions (CERT-EU) and the European Union Agency for Cybersecurity (ENISA), EUSPA will play a key role as space security monitoring and operations centre in the EU. On request, we will be ready to also assist operators of essential space systems and services across the EU27.

With user needs being always the basis of the EU Space Programme, the Commission is seeking to embed military and security user requirements in the design of relevant new EU space systems and the upgrade of existing systems. Being a user-oriented agency, EUSPA will support the identification of security-related needs, and the accreditation and exploitation of dual-use systems and services. 

“Thanks to its robust security apparatus, EUSPA is an essential partner in keeping all of Europe’s space assets and the important data and services they provide safe and secure,” concludes da Costa.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European Union Agency for the Space Programme (EUSPA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the EUSPA website (http://www.euspa.europa.eu).

Graduating from university is exciting. But it can also be nerve-racking, especially if you still haven’t figured out what you like or what to do next. Do you see yourself as an administrative officer with a more back-office role? Or, do you aspire to become a c-suite executive? Do you prefer financial auditing or public procurement? Media relations or events management? Engineering or project management? Sounds familiar? 

"When I first graduated from university with a degree in media and journalism, I was unsure if I wanted to work as a communications professional or do something more artistic. Thanks to my traineeship at EUSPA I worked on my first graphic design project, which allowed me to connect to explore the latter. I am now finishing a master’s degree in Strategic Design and Entrepreneurship at Copenhagen Business School, while as a Student Assistant in Architecture" says former EUSPA trainee Pedro Granacha from Lisbon, Portugal

Since its inception, EUSPA has been offering both undergraduates and graduates the opportunity to get a hands-on experience on the Union’s most ambitious industrial project. More than 150 young professionals have kickstarted their careers thanks to their traineeship. It gave them the final push to be recruited quickly with some experience in various areas, including consulting, engineering, legal & procurement matters, IT, public relations, EU affairs, and more. 

We call them traineeships for a reason!

The EUSPA traineeship scheme is a development programme aimed at providing young graduates with the soft and hard skills necessary for a successful career both in the private and public sectors. EUSPA trainees have the opportunity to work on projects related to their field of study and gain a better understanding of the EU’s policies and decision-making processes as well as the EU Space Programme.

"While trainees must have a degree (bachelor’s or master’s) related to the post they have applied for, they are not expected to master any task from the beginning. We’re here to train them, share our knowledge and help them bring out hidden talents" says the Head of Administration at EUSPA, Patrick Hamilton.

As a trainee at EUSPA, you will start with basic induction training to familiarise yourself with the mission of the Agency and its procedures before diving into deep and carrying out work-related tasks. All trainees are assigned a project officer not only as a supervisor but also as a mentor. Supervisors meet with trainees weekly to assign projects, debrief and share concerns. This allows project officers to see weaknesses and strengths and give and receive constructive feedback. 

Additionally, trainees can benefit from seminars, and on-site events, participate in workshops, and even participate to language lunches.

Helping you discover what you like the most!

"As cliché as it may sound, employees who love what they do, almost always excel in it, and this is what we incentivise our trainees to do" continues Hamilton.

Task rotation is an important element of the EUSPA traineeship scheme because it allows graduates to view different aspects of their field, discover their strengths and cultivate new abilities. A trainee in the Market Downstream and Innovation Department will be helping start-ups become more innovative through space, while also monitoring market trends to identify new opportunities. The same applies to a trainee in finance, who will assist in the financial implementation of EU grants but also support in accounting, monitoring KPIs and more. 

With the EU Space Programme having a direct application across various industry sectors, trainees will have to get out of their comfort zone and expand their knowledge fields such as maritime, agriculture, aviation and climate change, just to name a few.

"When I was a trainee in communications, I was tasked with media monitoring, and press relations for campaigns that needed press releases. Together with social media copywriting, I had to be constantly in touch with topics I was not familiar with, such as precision farming or the uses of Earth Observation. At first it was tough, and it required extensive desk research to see the full picture. Thanks to the input from my colleagues and the unlimited resources the agency offers, communicating about complex scientific topics became my favourite task" says Cristina Garcia.

Be part of a bigger EU family

What about having fun? Being a EUSPA trainee doesn’t necessarily mean getting your work done and going to sleep. When you set foot to EUSPA, you will be joined by fellow graduates from across the EU and engage in tons of activities like hiking in the scenic Bohemian Switzerland, partying or blending with the locals.

"It is really an amazing opportunity to put in practice what I learnt in a fascinating multicultural environment, participating to the EU involvement in space activities", confirmed Lorenzo Miccinesi, previous trainee in the Legal Department.

With the goal of boosting competitiveness and supporting skill development, the EU has named 2023 the ‘European Year of Skills’ – an initiative EUSPA is clearly supporting through its fully fledged traineeship scheme.

Still not convinced? Hear from our past trainees

Tips on how to ace your interview.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European Union Agency for the Space Programme (EUSPA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the EUSPA website (http://www.euspa.europa.eu).

Graduating from university is exciting. But it can also be nerve-racking, especially if you still haven’t figured out what you like or what to do next. Do you see yourself as an administrative officer with a more back-office role? Or, do you aspire to become a c-suite executive? Do you prefer financial auditing or public procurement? Media relations or events management? Engineering or project management? Sounds familiar? 

"When I first graduated from university with a degree in media and journalism, I was unsure if I wanted to work as a communications professional or do something more artistic. Thanks to my traineeship at EUSPA I worked on my first graphic design project, which allowed me to connect to explore the latter. I am now finishing a master’s degree in Strategic Design and Entrepreneurship at Copenhagen Business School, while as a Student Assistant in Architecture" says former EUSPA trainee Pedro Granacha from Lisbon, Portugal

Since its inception, EUSPA has been offering both undergraduates and graduates the opportunity to get a hands-on experience on the Union’s most ambitious industrial project. More than 150 young professionals have kickstarted their careers thanks to their traineeship. It gave them the final push to be recruited quickly with some experience in various areas, including consulting, engineering, legal & procurement matters, IT, public relations, EU affairs, and more. 

We call them traineeships for a reason!

The EUSPA traineeship scheme is a development programme aimed at providing young graduates with the soft and hard skills necessary for a successful career both in the private and public sectors. EUSPA trainees have the opportunity to work on projects related to their field of study and gain a better understanding of the EU’s policies and decision-making processes as well as the EU Space Programme.

"While trainees must have a degree (bachelor’s or master’s) related to the post they have applied for, they are not expected to master any task from the beginning. We’re here to train them, share our knowledge and help them bring out hidden talents" says the Head of Administration at EUSPA, Patrick Hamilton.

As a trainee at EUSPA, you will start with basic induction training to familiarise yourself with the mission of the Agency and its procedures before diving into deep and carrying out work-related tasks. All trainees are assigned a project officer not only as a supervisor but also as a mentor. Supervisors meet with trainees weekly to assign projects, debrief and share concerns. This allows project officers to see weaknesses and strengths and give and receive constructive feedback. 

Additionally, trainees can benefit from seminars, and on-site events, participate in workshops, and even participate to language lunches.

Helping you discover what you like the most!

"As cliché as it may sound, employees who love what they do, almost always excel in it, and this is what we incentivise our trainees to do" continues Hamilton.

Task rotation is an important element of the EUSPA traineeship scheme because it allows graduates to view different aspects of their field, discover their strengths and cultivate new abilities. A trainee in the Market Downstream and Innovation Department will be helping start-ups become more innovative through space, while also monitoring market trends to identify new opportunities. The same applies to a trainee in finance, who will assist in the financial implementation of EU grants but also support in accounting, monitoring KPIs and more. 

With the EU Space Programme having a direct application across various industry sectors, trainees will have to get out of their comfort zone and expand their knowledge fields such as maritime, agriculture, aviation and climate change, just to name a few.

"When I was a trainee in communications, I was tasked with monitoring the media and press relations for campaigns that needed Press releases. Together with social media copywriting, I had to be constantly in touch with topics I was not familiar with such as precision farming or the uses of Earth Observation. At first, it was tough, and it required extensive desk research to see the full picture. Thanks to input from my colleagues and the unlimited sources the agency offers, communicating about complex scientific topics became my favourite task" says Cristina Garcia.

Be part of a bigger EU family

What about having fun? Being a EUSPA trainee doesn’t necessarily mean getting your work done and going to sleep. When you set foot to EUSPA, you will be joined by fellow graduates from across the EU and engage in tons of activities like hiking in the scenic Bohemian Switzerland, partying or blending with the locals.

"It is really an amazing opportunity to put in practice what I learnt in a fascinating multicultural environment, participating to the EU involvement in space activities", confirmed Lorenzo Miccinesi, previous trainee in the Legal Department.

With the goal of boosting competitiveness and supporting skill development, the EU has named 2023 the ‘European Year of Skills’ – an initiative EUSPA is clearly supporting through its fully fledged traineeship scheme.

Still not convinced? Hear from our past trainees

Tips on how to ace your interview.

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European Union Agency for the Space Programme (EUSPA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the EUSPA website (http://www.euspa.europa.eu).

The link between space technology and user needs is innovation – innovation that’s happening at companies across Europe. 

As the go-to-source for all things EU Space, EUSPA has played – and continues to play – a big role in supporting this innovation. “We have built a reputation for being the single point of information, expertise and market intelligence that companies of all sizes depend on when integrating European space solutions into their business solutions,” adds EUSPA Executive Director Rodrigo da Costa.  

So, how can EUSPA help turn your innovative idea into a space-based success story? Let us count the ways!

1. Funding Initiatives

As any start-up knows all-too-well, the biggest challenge to innovation is funding. Based on the conversations our Market Development team have had with entrepreneurs, there’s a clear gap in what businesses need to innovate at their full potential and the funding and support that is currently available to them. The result is that some European companies struggle to get their innovations from drawing board to prototype, let alone to market. 

To help, EUSPA offers a wide-range of funding opportunities serving all entrepreneurial  needs during the entire innovation cycle: from Fundamental Elements and the development of innovative chipset, antenna and receiver technologies to the very successful Horizon Calls focusing on the development of innovative space downstream applications, and finally the CASSINI activities that range from hackathons, innovation prizes and contests like the myEUspace competition that target the expansion and growth of space ventures. In addition to cash prizes, many of these initiatives come with additional perks like business support and incubation. 

Likewise, Fundamental Elements is an R&D funding mechanism designed to support the development of innovative chipset, antenna and receiver technologies that industry would not yet invest in on its own initiative. In doing so, the programme helps accelerate the integration of European GNSS into market-ready devices and solutions.

To see how 38 companies have already benefited from the initiative, be sure to download our Fundamental Elements Catalogue.     

Last but not least, the EUSPA Space Academy is your ticket to creating ground-breaking new apps and disruptive business solutions using the power of EU Space. The online training is open to all individuals, start-ups, entrepreneurs and SMEs who want to learn the ins and outs of building a space application business. There are numerous courses to choose from, all of which are taught by top academics, industry leaders and EUSPA experts. Oh, and did we mention that it’s 100% free?

2. Market intelligence

As an SME or start-up, you simply can’t afford to make decisions blindly. That’s why EUSPA should be your new best friend. 

We are well-known across the industry as a leading source of critical market intelligence, one that is regularly relied upon by policymakers, entrepreneurs and major corporations. For example, our EO and GNSS Market Report provides in-depth analyses on the latest global trends and developments, and it does so through illustrated examples and use cases.  

EUSPA’s team of market experts also carefully monitor the latest trends and developments in user technology, which we cover in our GNSS User Technology Report. Written with the advice of leading receiver and chipset manufacturers, this report serves as a valuable tool to support planning and decision-making on the development, purchasing and use of GNSS user technology.

Or maybe you want to become an active investor in the exciting field of space technology? No worries, EUSPA has you covered too. Our GNSS Investment Report, the first of its kind, quantifies the investment needs of major companies and looks at the impact the acquisition of EU companies by foreign investors has on Europe’s overall competitiveness. 

With Europe’s Green Deal opening up a plethora of opportunities for innovative companies, this year EUSPA published its EU Space for Green Transformation Report. In addition to introducing the Green Deal and its implications for companies, the report also presents detailed examples of how various industries are leveraging the power of EU Space to drive their sustainability journeys.

You can download all our market intelligence publications free of charge here. 

3. Innovation across all EU Space Programme components

Charged with promoting Copernicus’ services, data and market uptake, EUSPA is actively helping European companies embrace Earth Observation. For instance, we are in constant communication with European companies, advising them on how they can best leverage Copernicus data, information and services. 

In addition, preparing for GOVSATCOM and IRIS2, our funding opportunities focus on various areas of satellite communications. We have launched several funding opportunities for companies, including Horizon Europe calls and CASSINI initiatives covering all space programme components.

4. Promoting the EU Space brand

In addition to supporting the development of innovative chipsets and receivers, EUSPA also works tirelessly to ensure that the world’s leading chip manufacturers include Galileo in their products. As a result of this work, over 3.9 billion Galileo-enabled smartphones have been sold worldwide – which is good news for European companies developing location-based services and applications. 

5. Talent and skill development

According to European Commissioner for the Internal Market Thierry Breton, a skilled workforce is the key to sustainable growth, innovation and competitiveness. “Europe's strength resides in its talent, including engineers, researchers and entrepreneurs,” he says. “To achieve our Digital Decade and Green Deal goals, we want to support our companies, in particular SMEs, in hiring, training and keeping talent.”

Here, EUSPA offers paid traineeships where university students and graduates acquire the skills they need to enter the labour market with confidence. 

An ecosystem of starts-ups and SMEs

Thanks in part to support initiatives like these, EUSPA has built a sizeable ecosystem of start-ups and SMEs, all of whom are leveraging the benefits of EU space data and services. In fact, to date, more than 1000 companies have received support from EUSPA. 

Ready to add your company’s name to this list? 

Then contact us today at market@euspa.europa.eu and let EUSPA be your partner in innovation!

Media note: This feature can be republished without charge provided the European Union Agency for the Space Programme (EUSPA) is acknowledged as the source at the top or the bottom of the story. You must request permission before you use any of the photographs on the site. If you republish, we would be grateful if you could link back to the EUSPA website (http://www.euspa.europa.eu).