Description
The open-source approach in the space industry is of well-understood benefits in the context of small companies and new players in the space domain. Large companies are however often still hesitant to follow this route.
OHB-Hellas, a Greek company and a fully-owned subsidiary of the multinational OHB Group, was established in the country with the goal of establishing expert competence in the group, in the domain of on-board data processing. As a still small company, with a vision of being in the very front of the on-board data processing developments in Europe, OHB-Hellas has identified specific needs and trends in the domain and has laid-out a strategy of developing solutions based on an innovative approach. One of the main topics OHB-Hellas is aiming to address is the need of developing flexible satellites; flexible satellites building upon both state-of-the-art and open SW approaches as well as modern and open HW architectures. This is a competence that is planned to be built in Greece addressing both institutional and commercial markets.
In parallel, it is intended to take advantage of the developed flexibility and provide satellite-as-a-service where any kind of satellite can be connected to the proposed platform. The commercial viability of this concept will start with a CubeSat, developed with a completely open-source approach. This approach will lay the ground for further developments, cultivating the culture of a sharing-economy for owners and maximizing the use of resources in orbit.
