Article · Wikipedia archive · Last revised May 31, 2026

IRIDE

IRIDE is an Italian Earth observation satellite programme developed under the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (PNRR) and the National Complementary Plan (NCP). Coordinated by the European Space Agency (ESA) in collaboration with the Italian Space Agency (ASI), IRIDE aims to establish a comprehensive satellite constellation for environmental monitoring, disaster management, civil protection, security, and public administration support. The programme, involving over 73 Italian companies, is set to be fully operational by June 2026 and is designed as a "constellation of constellations" with advanced sensor technologies.

Last revised
May 31, 2026
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IRIDE
Mission typeEarth observation
OperatorASI, ESA
Spacecraft properties
ManufacturerArgotec (MS2-HEO)
OHB Italia (MS1-EAGLET2)
SITAEL S.p.A (HYP-PLATINO)
Thales Alenia Space (SAR-NIMBUS & VHR-NIMBUS)
D-Orbit (SAR-NOX)
Launch mass70 kg (150 lb) (MS2-HEO)
580 kg (1,280 lb) (SAR-NOX)
Start of mission
Launch dateFirst: 14 January 2025 (IRIDE-MS2-HEO 1)
Last (recent): 3 May 2026 (IRIDE-MS2-HEO 7-15)
RocketFalcon 9 Block 5
Vega-C
Launch siteVandenberg, SLC-4E
Kourou, ELV
ContractorSpaceX
Arianespace/Avio
Orbital parameters
Reference systemGeocentric orbit
RegimeSun-synchronous orbit

IRIDE (Italian: Iniziativi di Resilienza per l'Italia Dalle Emergenze, Initiatives for Italy's Resilience from Emergencies) is an Italian Earth observation satellite programme developed under the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (PNRR) and the National Complementary Plan (NCP). Coordinated by the European Space Agency (ESA) in collaboration with the Italian Space Agency (ASI), IRIDE aims to establish a comprehensive satellite constellation for environmental monitoring, disaster management, civil protection, security, and public administration support. The programme, involving over 73 Italian companies, is set to be fully operational by June 2026 and is designed as a "constellation of constellations" with advanced sensor technologies.123

Satellite Technologies

IRIDE's constellation is built on multiple platforms, enabling high-revisit rates, all-weather/day-night imaging, and versatile applications:

1) Hawk for Earth observation (HEO) platform, developed by Argotec involved in manufacturing 25 IRIDE satellites.4

2) EAGLET2 platform, developed by OHB Italia involved in manufacturing 24 IRIDE satellites.5

3) PLATINO bus, developed by SITAEL S.p.A with Hyperspectral Imaging payloads from Leonardo involved in manufacturing 5 IRIDE Satellites.6

4) NIMBUS platform, developed by Thales Alenia Space involved in manufacturing 12 SAR and one VHR IRIDE satellite78

5) one IRIDE-SAR-NOX satellite developed by D-Orbit for the IRIDE programme910

Launch history

Name SATCAT Launch

date (UTC)

Launch

vehicle

Inclination Status
IRIDE-MS2-HEO 1111213 62697 14 January 2025 Falcon 9 Block 5
Transporter-12 		98° Operational
IRIDE-MS2-HEO 214 64569 23 June 2025 Falcon 9 Block 5
Transporter-14 		Operational
IRIDE-MS2-HEO 3 64568 Operational
IRIDE-MS2-HEO 4 64582 Operational
IRIDE-MS2-HEO 5 64571 Operational
IRIDE-MS2-HEO 6 64576 Operational
IRIDE-MS2-HEO 8 64587 Operational
IRIDE-MS2-HEO 9 64585 Operational
IRIDE-MS1-EAGLET2 115 28 November 2025 Falcon 9 Block 5
Transporter-151617 		Operational
IRIDE-MS1-EAGLET2 2 Operational
IRIDE-MS1-EAGLET2 3 Operational
IRIDE-MS1-EAGLET2 4 Operational
IRIDE-MS1-EAGLET2 5 Operational
IRIDE-MS1-EAGLET2 6 Operational
IRIDE-MS1-EAGLET2 7 Operational
IRIDE-MS1-EAGLET2 8 Operational
IRIDE-MS1-EAGLET2 9 30 March 2026 Falcon 9 Block 5
Transporter-1618192021 		Operational
IRIDE-MS1-EAGLET2 10 Operational
IRIDE-MS1-EAGLET2 11 Operational
IRIDE-MS1-EAGLET2 12 Operational
IRIDE-MS1-EAGLET2 13 Operational
IRIDE-MS1-EAGLET2 14 Operational
IRIDE-MS1-EAGLET2 15 Operational
IRIDE-MS1-EAGLET2 16 Operational
IRIDE-MS2-HEO 7 3 May 2026 Falcon 9 Block 5
CAS500-2 rideshare22232425 		98.1°23 Operational
IRIDE-MS2-HEO 10 Operational
IRIDE-MS2-HEO 11 Operational
IRIDE-MS2-HEO 12 Operational
IRIDE-MS2-HEO 13 Operational
IRIDE-MS2-HEO 14 Operational
IRIDE-MS2-HEO 15 Operational
See also

See also

References

References

  1. "IRIDE". www.telespazio.com. Retrieved 18 September 2025.
  2. "Moving ahead with Italy's constellation of Earth observation satellites". www.esa.int. Retrieved 18 September 2025.
  3. Parsonson, Andrew (14 April 2025). "Italy Moves Ahead With Study for 100-Satellite Constellation". European Spaceflight. Retrieved 18 September 2025.
  4. "IRIDE-MS2-HEO 1, ..., 25". Gunter's Space Page. Retrieved 18 September 2025.
  5. "IRIDE-MS1-EAGLET2 1, ..., 25". Gunter's Space Page. Retrieved 18 September 2025.
  6. "IRIDE-HYP-PLATINO 1, ..., 5". Gunter's Space Page. Retrieved 18 September 2025.
  7. "IRIDE-SAR-NIMBUS 1, ..., 12". Gunter's Space Page. Retrieved 18 September 2025.
  8. "IRIDE-VHR-NIMBUS 1". Gunter's Space Page. Retrieved 18 September 2025.
  9. "IRIDE-SAR-NOX 1". Gunter's Space Page. Retrieved 18 September 2025.
  10. "ESA orders 6 additional radar-based satellites to Thales Alenia Space for IRIDE Earth observation constellation | Thales Alenia Space". www.thalesaleniaspace.com. 16 October 2024. Retrieved 18 September 2025.
  11. "Italy's IRIDE programme marks major step with first satellite constellation". www.esa.int. Retrieved 18 September 2025.
  12. Parsonson, Andrew (28 March 2025). "Italy's IRIDE Pathfinder Satellite Beams Back First Views of Earth". European Spaceflight. Retrieved 18 September 2025.
  13. "Falcon 9 Block 5 | Transporter 12". nextspaceflight.com. Retrieved 18 September 2025.
  14. "Falcon 9 Block 5 | Transporter 14". nextspaceflight.com. Retrieved 18 September 2025.
  15. "Falcon 9 Block 5 | Transporter 15". nextspaceflight.com. Retrieved 18 September 2025.
  16. "Italian mission adds to growing IRIDE space fleet". www.esa.int. Retrieved 29 November 2025.
  17. "Watch: HydroGNSS, IRIDE and Greek mission satellites launch". www.esa.int. Retrieved 18 November 2025.
  18. "Eight more satellites added to IRIDE space programme". www.esa.int. Retrieved 31 March 2026.
  19. "SpaceX". SpaceX. Retrieved 28 March 2026.
  20. Gorman, Douglas (30 March 2026). "Transporter-16 Sends 119 Payloads to Orbit". Payload. Retrieved 30 March 2026.
  21. D'Urso, Andrea (30 March 2026). "Partita la missione Transporter-16. A bordo, anche altri 8 satelliti italiani IRIDE". AstroSpace (in Italian). Retrieved 30 March 2026.
  22. Piccin, Stefano (3 May 2026). "In orbita altri 7 satelliti della costellazione HEO di IRIDE". AstroSpace (in Italian). Retrieved 3 May 2026.
  23. Day, Eleanor (3 May 2026). "SpaceX launches CAS500-2 and 45 other payloads to Sun-synchronous orbit". NASASpaceFlight.com. Retrieved 3 May 2026.
  24. "Launch boosts European Earth monitoring and connectivity". www.esa.int. Retrieved 4 May 2026.
  25. "Italy's Earth monitoring programme reaches new milestone". www.esa.int. Retrieved 4 May 2026.