The Czech Republic has been successfully promoting itself in European Space Agency for 15 years27/11/2023|Press releasesThis year marks 15 years since the Czech Republic joined the European Space Agency (ESA). Agencies focusing on cooperation between members on space missions, launch vehicles, research and many other areas in which Czech businesses, research institutes and academic entities also participate. Czech companies and academic institutions have been or are still involved in more than 600 technologically challenging projects in ESA; more than 60 Czech companies are directly involved in ESA projects and dozens more have an important role in supply chains. More than 20 Czech academic institutions and centres doing space research cooperate with ESA. "Czech companies and academic institutions have made good use of the Czech Republic's accession to ESA. Over the past 15 years, we have established ourselves as one of the leading countries dedicated to innovative and progressive solutions that have a wide range of applications not only in industry, but also in everyone's daily lives. Those who use smartphones will certainly agree with us," says Transport Minister Martin Kupka. The Czech Republic invests more than CZK 1.5 billion annually in ESA. "However, every crown spent on space activities brings 7 to 8 crowns back to our economy. Investing in space activities in ESA has been definitely paying off," minister Kupka reminds us. Membership in the European Space Agency is also important for geopolitical footing and security of our country. "Czech foreign policy advocates peaceful, transparent and responsible behaviour in the exploration and use of space. Recently, the Czech Republic also acceded to the Artemis Arrangements, which set out principles for peaceful exploration of space. We also supported the opening of the UN Open Working Group on Space Threat Reduction," explained Foreign Minister Jan Lipavský. Czech businesses have been working on a number of promising technological solutions such as flexible solar panels, high-precision optics including the growing of single crystals with special properties, thin-film optics, special materials, radiation monitors and shielding, thermal and structural analysis, cryogenics as well as satellite image processing using machine learning and artificial intelligence, high-security satellite communications, and the use of satellite navigation in precision agriculture, aviation and rail. Czech research institutes participate in a number of important missions such as the eUCLID space telescope, the solar mission Solar Orbiter or the mission to Jupiter's icy moons JUICE. The business incubator ESA BIC has also been very beneficial, spawning over 50 start-ups in Prague and Brno, some of which have already received hundreds of millions in investment from private investors. Equally important has been the establishment of a technology broker, which seeks applications of space technologies in the non-space sector, and the ESA ESERO Education Centre, which has trained and supplied teaching materials to more than 10 000 teachers. Individual missions are the future Preparations for two Czech space missions AMBIC and QUVIK are also currently under way. A number of Czech companies will participate in them under the auspices of the Research and Test Aviation Institute (VZLÚ). The aim of both these ambitious missions is to build a complete supply chain in the Czech Republic from design through production to mission operation and demonstrate the technological capabilities of Czech companies directly in orbit. The AMBIC mission will provide satellite imagery for government purposes. However, most of the data will also be available to the private sector. QUVIK is an ultraviolet cosmic telescope that will focus on observing short-lived high-energy events in the universe such as collisions of neutron stars or black holes. The satellite's mastery of fast and highly accurate targeting and stabilisation, which are key to its success, will have wide applications in both the space and defence industries. ABOUT ESA The European Space Agency (ESA) is an independent international organization founded in 1975 and now has 22 member states. ESA aims to push the boundaries of existing knowledge through industrial and scientific cooperation between its member states; to develop technologies for satellites and complete satellite systems with applications in science and everyday life. ESA seeks in its programmes to develop cutting-edge space technologies, which are usually also used down on Earth, transferring scientific knowledge into practice and using data and services from satellite systems in everyday life. ESA's annual budget amounts to almost €6.5 billion. It consists of contributions from the member states and the European Union.