The European Space Agency (ESA) has signed a €50 million ($58.6 million USD) contract with Thales Alenia Space for the preliminary design phase of the Security And cryptoGrAphic (SAGA) mission. The mission is intended to demonstrate satellite-based quantum key distribution (QKD) to complement existing ground quantum encryption networks, strengthening Europe’s digital infrastructure.
The SAGA mission, a part of the European Quantum Communication Infrastructure (EuroQCI), aims to provide a sovereign QKD service for European governments. The system will consist of a single Low Earth Orbit (LEO) QKD satellite, an Access Segment with four ground nodes, and a Control Segment. The contract, which covers the system definition and preliminary design phase (Phase B2), will support the development and testing of key technologies for the satellite.
This mission is tailored to support classified and critical data flows for governments and is intended to strengthen Europe’s technological independence and cybersecurity. The preliminary design review is expected within two years, after which ESA will move on to the manufacturing phase. The collaboration, which builds on Thales Alenia Space’s expertise in secure space communications, is supported by multiple European space agencies.
Read the full announcement from the European Space Agency here, a related press release from the Thales Group here, and from ESA’s Connectivity and Secure Communications division here.
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