Name

CyberCUBE

Satellite ID

AHJK-2521-3526-2646-5537

Temporary NORAD ID

98277

Followed NORAD ID

None

Website

https://www.linkedin.com/posts/alenspace_cybercube-spacecybersecurity-activity-7477616998152290304-AbXk

Countries of Origin

Spain

France

Launch Date

2026-07-07T07:10:00+00:00

CyberCUBE, the first European satellite designed exclusively for cybersecurity experiments in orbit, is ready to fly.

On 21 April, the GMV and Alén Space teams, together with the technical staff of the European Space Agency (ESA) and thanks to the support of the company Exolaunch, successfully completed the integration of the satellite into the EXOpod Nova dispenser, in the facilities that Exolaunch has in Berlin.

This step represents a decisive step in the preparations for the launch, which is scheduled for July this year as part of SpaceX's Transporter-17 (shared cargo) rideshare missionSpaceX.

The takeoff will take place from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California aboard a Falcon 9 rocket. Integration in the EXOpod Nova ensures the correct grip and separation of the CubeSat during the orbital injection phase, a critical process for the success of any mission of this type.

CyberCUBE is a 3U-format CubeSat developed under contract with ESA, and is a step forward in protecting space infrastructure from growing cyber threats. The mission has been executed from beginning to end by GMV, which assumes responsibility for both the flight segment and the ground segment. The satellite platform has been designed and built by Alén Space, while mission control systems integrate focussuite software, also developed by GMV.

Once in orbit, CyberCUBE will behave like a live space lab, designed to validate radio frequency capabilities (RF), advanced data analytics tools and cryptographic technologies in a real operating environment. As GMV points out, its goal "is to strengthen the resilience of space systems to increasingly sophisticated threats, testing countermeasures and defense techniques that cannot be tested with the same ground fidelity."

Prior to the integration of the satellite, the consortium had already completed the installation of the ground segment infrastructure at ESA's European Space Astronautics Centre (ESEC) facility in Belgium.

This infrastructure will be used during the phases of LEOP (launch and Initial Orbit), start-up and routine operations of the mission, which ensures that the control equipment will be fully operational from the moment of take-off.

With this integration, CyberCUBE is placed in the final straight towards its launch, consolidating Europe as a relevant actor in the cyber protection of space, a strategic area that gains prominence in the face of the critical dependence of satellites for communications, navigation and defense.