Adler-1 (LEMUR-2-KRYWE) orbit data
Longitude:
Latitude:
Height: km
Distance to Innsbruck/Austria: km

Adler-2 launched on 15 Apr 2023

SMALL

Icon Satelllite

ADLER-1 is a 30x10x10 cm small cubesat, based on the SPIRE Lemur-class satellites

FAST

Icon Rocket

ADLER-1 will demonstrate that from idea to orbit it only takes 1 year.

AUSTRIAN

Icon Flag

ADLER-1 is a project led by an Austrian CEO and funded by an Austrian company.

Following the successful ADLER-1 mission, ADLER-2 is the 2nd generation in-orbit space debris detector: Three instruments are onboard this 6U cubesat, scheduled for launch no earlier than mid-March 2023. Learn more how this successor satellite will help to increase debris detection.

ADLER-1 is an operational cubesat detecting high-velocity particles in Low Earth Orbit. It is developed and operated by the Austrian Space Forum, Spire Global and Findus, and is a contribution in red-white-red to assessing the space debris threat to spaceflight activities.

small, but fast "bullets in the dark"

Space Debris is a problem

Decades of space activity have littered Earth’s
orbit with debris; and as the world’s space-faring nations continue to increase activities in space, so does the chance for a collision. Scientific models estimate the total number of space debris objects in Earth orbit to be more than 170 million for sizes larger than 1 mm, having impact energies comparable to a gun bullet.

It is time to get more in-orbit data on this problem.

About the project

Flying an eagle

Three remarkable partners have teamed up to fly this satellite mission: Findus Venture GmbH as a funding entity, the Austrian Space Forum as a national space research organization and Spire Global Inc., a Silicon-valley based space company operating its own fleet of satellites. The mission “ADLER-1” (Austrian Debris Detection Low Earth (orbit) Reconnoiter) is a 30x10x10 cm cubesat, based on the Spire Lemur-class satellites. Its mission is to study the (micro) space debris environment in Low Earth Orbit to complement the space debris models by obtaining in-situ data. The debris particles will be measured by an active short-range radar provided by Spire, as well as a deployable piezoelectric array provided by the OeWF.

The project has four objectives:

Spire will make their global ground station network available, including flight operations and data management, as well as procure the launch operations. The scientific data will be the bases for various research and art projects. The ADLER-1 satellite is registered in Luxembourg. 

70% of all catalogued objects are in low-Earth orbit (LEO) (c) ESA
70% of all catalogued objects are in low-Earth orbit (LEO)
(c) ESA
An 2.8-mm diameter aluminium bullet moving at 7 km/s pierces through a candidate shielding for spacecraft, captured by a high-speed camera at Germany’s Fraunhofer Institute for High-Speed Dynamics. (c) Fraunhofer Institute for High-Speed Dynamics
Adler-1 Project partners from left: Gernot Groemer (OeWF), Christian Federspiel (Findus Venture Gmbh), Peter Platzer (CEO Spire Global) (c) OeWF/vog.photo
Adler-1 Project partners
from left: Gernot Groemer (OeWF), Christian Federspiel (Findus Venture Gmbh), Peter Platzer (CEO Spire Global)
(c) OeWF/vog.photo

3U

30x10x10 cubesat size

6 kg

cubesat total mass

500 km

target orbit

12

months in orbit, extendable

Austrian Particle Impact Detector

APID

APID stands for “Austrian Particle Impact Detector” and is a 0,3 m² (tbd) piezoelectric array, where a particle impact triggers an electrical current, providing a measure of the energy. This data can be correlated with velocity vector and position of the cubesat. Technically, it could be considered a “microphone” in space, as mechanical waves create an electrical signal.

The OeWF will deliver the payload and provide instrument support, but will also be responsible for the communication and education efforts of the ADLER-1 mission, as well provide administrative project services.

Selected payload testing will be conducted at the certified labs of Spire in Glasgow, UK.

Active debris detection

Short Range Radar

The second detector is based upon a continuous-wave (CW) radar with a range of approximately 100m for sub-millimetric particles. The radar reflection, including a frequency shift shall detect “near miss” debris particles. CW system is ideal for observing a large range of velocities by measuring the difference in the
frequency between the transmitted and received signals. This instrument is being built by a team under the lead of Spire Global.

With ADLER-1 we will show how an idea can be made spaceflight ready and launched into orbit in the shortest possible time. On average, it takes many years from the first blueprints to the launch of a satellite, but this can also be done much easier and less complicated.
Portrait Peter Platzer with ADLER-1 model (c) OeWF/vog.photo
Peter Platzer
CEO Spire
A technology revolution is imminent in space. Austrians and the Austrian economy are already using space technology on a daily basis, e.g. to transmit data for navigation systems or the weather forecast. Access will be even easier in future.
Portrait Christian Federspiel with ADLER-1 model (c) OeWF/vog.photo
Christian Federspiel
CEO Findus Venture
In addition to the Spire Global short-range radar, which can detect particles the size of a grain of sand, the OeWF will build another measuring instrument for even smaller particles. To put it simply, it is a microphone in earth orbit.
Portrait Gernot Groemer with ADLER-1 model (c) OeWF/vog.photo
Gernot Groemer
Director Austrian Space Forum

Spire Orbital Services

How to get into Orbit

Fast, reliable, and low-cost access to orbit. From in-orbit demonstration to full constellations.
Spire’s Orbital Service is designed to accommodate new customer payloads quickly, allowing for incredibly fast rollout of new capabilities.
Spire’s flexible and consistent launch schedule, as well as its ability to design, assemble, test and operate its LEMUR satellites in-house allows for new bespoke sensors to go from design to launch in just 6 months.

Global Network of 30+ ground stations operated by
Spire allows for incredibly low latency and bent-pipe
delivery of payload data to the customer

Press