The strategic objective of this topic is to develop capabilities to ‘Act in Space’ through demonstrating in space a pilot mission by 2030 related to ISOS. The envisaged ISOS pilot mission shall provide the necessary seed components for a future service infrastructure, available to the European in-space ecosystem (including the EU assets), driving the generation of a new in-space economy, providing enhanced in-orbit technology demonstration and maximising EU technology non-dependence.

This pilot mission will largely contribute to ensure EU’s freedom of action in space, increase the resilience and protection of EU assets in space and foster the development of the new in-space economy. A pioneering and a novel mission concept, which is unique compared to other initiatives among all space-faring nations is envisaged. The mission will build on previous R&I with an operational mission concept, focusing on application and service demonstration, with a concrete view to commercial and governmental usage. The detailed mission concept has been derived in close coordination with EU Member States and EEA countries through a dedicated Pilot Mission Advisory Group (PMAG).

This topic addresses the validation of the developed ISOS4I mission components in an integrated ground test. The setup will integrate all mission components in a suitable test environment, including necessary simulation and control of the engineering/qualification models. Furthermore, the topic will address the qualification and verification of the Universal Service Interface (USI) solution(s) identified through the consolidation work done in the CSA^[1]. Moreover, the activity shall support public outreach activities for the ISOS4I pilot mission.

Project results are expected to contribute to the following outcomes, in close and continuous coordination with the European Commission services and the EU Member States through the ISOS Expert Group^[2]:

• An in-space economy, building on innovative technologies and concepts for a sustainable infrastructure and value-adding services in space, e.g. plug-and-play spacecraft functionality introducing recycling/re-use of spacecraft modules/functionalities, and satellite upgrades and payload exchange for mission adaptivity;
• ISOS4I pilot mission preparation up to detailed mission and system detail design, and ground demonstrator, as well as promotion of the mission to the wider public.
• Consolidated and space-verified USI solution(s) for European space actors

This topic will contribute to, in the medium to long term, developing, deploying global space-based services and contribute to fostering the European space sector competitiveness, as stated in the expected impact of this destination.

Scope:

To tackle the above expected outcomes, the following R&I actions should be addressed in the shortest possible timeframe taking into account the provided technical annex^[3]:

• Supporting the ISOS Pilot mission detailed mission and system design, demonstrating in an integrated ground test (TRL6) the interoperability of the developed mission components ground prototypes (i.e., Servicing, HOST, Logistic and satAPPs) with all applicable servicing interfaces and the baseline demonstration scenarios as defined in the technical annex;
• Final maturation, verification and qualification (TRL7) of the consolidated USI solution(s) recommended by the ISOS Pilot Mission Coordination and Support Action, considering opportunities for IOD/V;
• Development of a ISOS4I promotion video and VR experience for dissemination purposes, showcasing the pilot mission concept with its baseline demonstration scenario and the evolution towards an in-space service infrastructure leading to manifold business opportunities as part of a wider in-space economy.

Proposals are expected to promote cooperation between different actors (industry, SMEs and research institutions) and consider opportunities to quickly turn technological innovation into commercial use.

Proposals should clearly describe how previous and/or ongoing R&I of the mission components and any required additional technologies for the proposed ground test will be integrated and involve entities part of the key technology and service provider group, as necessary. Moreover, proposals should clearly identify the test facility/ies to be used for the ground demonstrator. Finally, proposals should build on the outcome of the CSA activities on (1) “Proposal for an as much as possible integrated ground demonstrator bringing together the different mission components at the end of their detailed design phase” and (2) “Proposal for USIs consolidation, i.e., selection of a single USI European solution or approach allowing compatibility with multiple solutions (required for the HC)”.

Activities are expected to achieve TRL 6-7 by the end of the project. The reference TRL definition is the ISO 16290:2013 applicable to the space sector.

Proposals are expected to consider and contribute to a balanced provision of Member States’ and eligible Associated Countries’ expertise and capabilities to the overall ISOS pilot mission, to support a successful introduction of the strategic capacity ‘Act in Space’.

The project selected from this topic will be a Linked Action and is expected to closely collaborate with those selected under topics HORIZON-CL4-2025-02-SPACE-21, 22, 23, 24 and ISOS Pilot Mission Coordination and Support Action, in order to ensure interoperability and the necessary and sufficient documentation and information sharing for the implementation of the Pilot Mission, to make economies of scale in sharing best practices, defining common processes for addressing the different challenges, ensuring efficient monitoring and review, organising dissemination and communication activities, etc.

In this topic, the integration of the gender dimension (sex and gender analysis) in research and innovation content should be addressed only if relevant in relation to the objectives of the research effort.

[1] ISOS Pilot Mission Coordination and Support Action (HE CL4 Work Programme 2025)

[2] Space Policy Expert Group - sub-group on ISOS

[3] ISOS Pilot Mission Guidance Document