While in our first article we introduced several crucial points about opportunities in the space sector as well as the role that cloud technology can play in it, we thought it would be even better illustrated with some very real use cases from the OVHcloud ecosystem­–or universe if we stick to starry metaphors.

Copernicus satellite data

First up, we wanted to highlight Werum, one of the longest-established independent software companies in Germany, who set up a Copernicus long-term archiving service with OVHcloud. The service includes level 0 and auxiliary data from Earth observation satellites: Sentinel-1, Sentinel-2, and Sentinel-3. Since its launch in October 2020, around 220 million data records, weighing over 9 petabytes, have been loaded into OVHcloud’s Public Cloud Archive solution. About 110 terabytes will continue to be added monthly!

The correct provisioning and choice of storage solutions and volumes was key in the success of this project. The archive operation in the cloud was extended after the first project phase and will continue to provide the European Space Agency’s (ESA) user community with large amounts of data from the satellite missions beyond 2022.

Smarter farming

Second is another German example, but this time in conjunction with a member of OVHcloud’s Startup Program, Green spin and its application Mofato. In this instance, it is the agriculture sector that takes advantage of the concrete benefits.

To know when to sow and harvest or how much fertilizer is required, Mofato optimizes farmers’ work by providing recommendations at the field level. Furthermore, its algorithms, which analyze satellite images and meteorological data from the past 15 years, are not just useful to farmers, by limiting soil pollution; they are also good for the planet.

As co-founder Sebastian Fritsch stated, scalability and a hybrid cloud approach were key, “We migrated our infrastructure to OVHcloud dedicated servers, which we now complement with Public Cloud instances. These allow us to run calculations in parallel, to show our recommendations to our users faster, and to upscale more easily. “

Real time atmosphere analysis for telecommunications

Amongst other drastic changes to our planet, global warming is causing increased temperature and cloud coverage, evaporation, as well as atmospheric instability. But we can get help from the skies. A bit like meteorological stations or automated observation towers, a Startup Program member from France measures these indicators gathering, in real time, high precision and high-resolution data.

As Miratlas’s CEO states, “In the face of the rapid developments of climate and technological challenges, we are convinced that improving our understanding of the atmosphere is a key enabler for direct to earth free space optical telecommunications.”

The startup needs to store high volumes of data and process them in a secure and sovereign way. With an eye to the future of new space, the Miratlas team joined OVHcloud at VivaTech 2022 where they shared their long term ambitions to develop technology that will allow highly efficient laser communication between space and earth.

Ecological transition

And it’s not just OVHcloud who likes to shout about the space sector’s opportunities. Throughout the year, our partners, customers, and startups have acknowledged our humble contribution, which makes us especially proud.

Such is the case of Kermap, who raised a first round of 1.2M€ in 2022. This recent member of France’s major tech program DeepNum20 is also using satellite imagery, processed by intensive calculations performed by GPU instances, to map the evolution of rural fields as well as urban settings day after day, year after year.

For those fully committed to the ecological transition, Kermap’s tool will provide the necessary metrics to confirm their efforts, from farmers to city mayors. As the startup stated, when describing their efforts to grow from a European perimeter to a global scale, “This technical feat was made possible in part by our partnership with OVHcloud to produce, manage, and distribute our data in a secure, reliable, and sovereign digital environment.”

In conclusion

Space technology is a passionate geek’s dream come true, stimulating and enlightening, innovating today on the edge of tomorrow. It can also be a force for good, as all these stories have highlighted. Indeed, adopting the new frontiers of space and technology is beyond an exciting challenge. The positive impact can be felt back here on Earth, providing hope and enthusiasm to many communities for climate change solutions. These examples were but a few of the existing use cases and as all things “tech”, acceleration is around the corner. OVHcloud’s founder, Octave Klaba, recently invested in quantum and space startups, mirroring the company’s efforts to highlight and support the growth of these ecosystems globally. Pardon the pun, but you should watch this “space”.

Sources

• https://incubed.phi.esa.int/esa-strengthens-its-support-to-start-ups-with-free-cloud-services-from-ovhcloud/
• https://www.asp-public.fr/actualites/pac-2023-lancement-de-lapplication-mobile-telepac-geophotos
• https://www.ovhcloud.com/de/case-studies/werum/
• https://www.ovhcloud.com/en-ie/case-studies/green-spin/
• https://kermap.com/kermap-levee-fonds-2022/

Opportunities and challenges

Of course, many may be captivated by exploration to Mars with Space-X, or recent cosmic pictures taken by the James Webb Telescope, or even space tourism (a market expected to grow to $3B by 2030). In fact, the big headliners hide a wonderful world full of opportunities and challenges, from managing satellite waste to fighting climate change with AI-enhanced satellite imagery. Pushing back the limits of space technology can expand our horizons but also improve our lives back on Earth.

In its latest edition, Euroconsult estimated that the global space economy totaled $370B in 2021. Global trends across the entire space value chain continue to rise year on year. While this includes hardware intensive initiatives such as satellite manufacturing or launch services, it also includes many data-intensive challenges linked to satellite communications and navigation or earth observation, to name but a few.

There are concerns, amid the same economic context that is currently impacting most sectors, of a bubble or even a crash landing (back to Earth), but the recent strengthening of institutions such as NASA in the USA, ESA in Europe or CNES in France, are sure signs of a stable ecosystem. The role of each of these components, from fledging startups to governments, as well as their capacity to interact, remains crucial.

The role of European actors

Strategically, China and the USA lead the investment panorama, while the UK and France are the first in Europe with their own roadmaps. New Space has been identified as a key innovative focal point by European nations to avoid hegemonies from external actors as well as protect Europe and its citizen’s interests. Getting to space is one thing, while making the most of the data that is transmitted back to us is a source of significant added value as well as a competitive advantage at a global scale. As the uses for space data become more diverse, valuable, and plentiful, offering a strong sovereign option from Europe grows in proportionate importance.

To name one example, satellites play a crucial role in the new space ecosystem. While they increasingly clutter our skies, they also provide the means to increase access to internet, improve video streaming, and most importantly transmit data to monitor what is happening on our beloved planet. Accessing, storing, processing, protecting these terabytes of data is a key opportunity which OVHcloud is addressing, notably via its Public Cloud solutions.

Globally speaking, OVHcloud has recently strengthened its partnerships and cloud offering to support the space economy. As the European leader in cloud technology, the company is fully supportive of the European Union´s space ambitions. The European cloud company has signed new partnerships with historical partners such as Italy’s SERCO, with its deep experience in the multiple uses of data from the Copernicus programs. Other key examples of innovation include the application of AI to improve the data provided by Sentinel, such as optical satellite imagery of agricultural land in real time, as well as using cognitive cloud computing to reduce latency and increase fast data delivery to end users on Earth.

Finally, and perhaps not surprisingly, the startup ecosystem is leading this innovative trajectory. Last year alone, venture capitalists (VCs) invested $17B into space projects and OVHcloud, via its Startup Program, has been able to support space startups such as Gisky and EarthPulse. To that effect, a crucial milestone was reached in April 2022, when OVHcloud and its Startup Program became the first official cloud partner for ESA’s Incubed program as well as its 23 Business Incubation Centres. These represent a relevant example of the ongoing efforts to bolster startups and New Space innovation across 70 locations in Europe!

Opportunities are plentiful, as are the related challenges. This means cloud technology’s collaboration with space initiatives at a European and global level become more relevant with every passing year. In our follow-up article, we will share use cases taken from OVHcloud’s ecosystem to highlight precisely how cloud technology’s support to space innovation applies to very real solutions with very real impact.

Sources

• https://www.spacecapital.com/quarterly
• https://www.nytimes.com/2022/05/07/travel/space-travel-tourism.html
• https://www.euroconsult-ec.com/press-release/euroconsult-estimates-that-the-global-space-economy-totaled-370-billion-in-2021
• https://incubed.phi.esa.int/esa-strengthens-its-support-to-start-ups-with-free-cloud-services-from-ovhcloud/
• https://www.asp-public.fr/actualites/pac-2023-lancement-de-lapplication-mobile-telepac-geophotos