Sateliot Selected for ESA Study Supporting IRIS² Low-LEO Connectivity Layer

Sateliot has been selected by the European Space Agency to contribute to preparatory work for the Low-LEO layer of IRIS², examining how direct-to-device and satellite IoT services could support secure European government communications.

The Barcelona-based operator will participate through RESCUE-NET (Resilient European Sovereign Communications Unified Ecosystem – NTN), part of ESA's IRIS² Low-LEO Pre-Operational and De-Risk Activities. The work is currently at the Consolidation Phase and will focus on defining potential services and network concepts rather than deploying operational IRIS² infrastructure.

Sateliot will study 3GPP standards-based NTN connectivity for applications including continuity of government communications, emergency response and connectivity in remote areas or during terrestrial network outages. The objective is to assess how D2D and secure IoT capabilities could complement the wider IRIS² architecture while meeting requirements around resilience, security and European control of communications infrastructure.

The Low-LEO component is a specialised part of the broader IRIS² multi-orbit architecture, which is being developed around 330 principal LEO satellites and 18 MEO satellites. Hispasat has previously been assigned a leading role in developing the Low-LEO layer, with D2D and IoT among its intended applications.

For Sateliot, the ESA selection provides an opportunity to apply its existing 3GPP NTN IoT experience to the development of Europe's sovereign connectivity programme as it prepares its next-generation Tritó satellites for launch from 2027.