Open Cosmos kicks off first Rideshare mission for the European Commission’s IOD/IOV programme

Open Cosmos was selected as one of six European providers for this Frame Contract in January 2025, as announced by the European Space Agency. Marking a major milestone for European innovation, the European Commission and ESA established a pool of rideshare providers to accelerate access to space for groundbreaking technologies. Open Cosmos is thrilled to move from selection to execution, officially starting its first rideshare service under this programme.

Under this contract, Open Cosmos will deliver the first rideshare service to Luso Space, providing end-to-end support to the company on demonstrating and validating in-orbit new satellite technologies.

Proven capabilities to operate space missions
This contract recognises Open Cosmos's proven capability in designing, manufacturing, and operating space missions, with a 100% success rate in orbit. The company has demonstrated its readiness to offer comprehensive rideshare services, leveraging its flight-proven architecture compatible with a range of satellite form factors up to 500 kg microsats.

With six satellites currently in orbit under Spanish ITU filing and an additional four under design and manufacturing from Spain, alongside contributions to 22 more satellites contracted from other Open Cosmos subsidiaries, Open Cosmos is rapidly expanding its in-orbit infrastructure. This growth, coupled with its Open Constellation initiative, which aggregates heterogeneous space infrastructure for hosting additional payloads, highlights the company's commitment to providing continuous and regular rideshare opportunities.