PIAST satellites obtained Norad ID identifiers and sent respective twelve test photos

polska-zbrojna.pl 2 weeks ago

PIAST satellites have obtained identifiers in the American Norad ID system. They were so catalogued as further artificial objects in space with assigned numbers and names PYAST-S1, PYAST-S2 and PYAST-M. So far, they've sent dozens of photos to Earth.

"It's a good time to thank on behalf of the PIAST squad the employees of the ARGUS Satellite Operations Centre of the Geospatial designation and Satellite Services Agency and Sybilla Technologies, who supported us in a very hard time immediately after the separation of satellites from the Falcon 9 carrier rocket," says the task manager, Brig. Gen. Gen. Adam Sowa.

"It was easier to find and identify our satellites after separation and to find their orbital parameters under time force by obtaining precise reflection data from respective independent sources," he adds.

The ground-based network of optical sensors from Sybilla Technologies besides made footage of Earth's M satellite flight in orbit. It shows a PIAST-M satellite registered in the early orbital phase. Data have been collected under the European Space Agency – Competition section of ESA’s Space Safety Programme.

RECLAMA

Currently, according to the plan of the mission of PIAST, the period of launch and investigating of individual satellite subsystems, the alleged commissioning phase, is underway. After its completion at the turn of January and February 2026, satellites will be ready to carry out nominal tasks, i.e. to test operational concepts and Polish subsystems and cargoes of useful satellites according to mission plan. The quality and resolution of satellite images will be improved in the postprocessing process utilizing artificial intelligence algorithms.

The Management Board of Creotech Instruments S.A. reported that on 11 January 2026 the launch phase (commissioning) of the satellite platform PJAST-M was completed. All elements of the platform behave as expected and are full functional. Cooperation with the main useful cargo – optical telescope developed by the Centre for Space investigation PAS was besides tested. respective twelve photographs were taken and sent to Earth. In addition, the PIAST-S1 and S2 satellites presently in the commissioning phase are full stabilised.

"The first photograph shows the city of Houston in the USA, and in peculiar the area of Astrodome Stadium. It was taken on 10 December, so only 4 days after the first image we presented. The another 2 photos are already Poland, the area of the Dead Vistula River in Gdańsk and the Astrogeodynamic Observatory in Borówec Centre for Space investigation of the Polish Academy of Sciences (K. Poznań). Both photos of Poland were taken on 19 December during the same satellite flight over our country, little than 1 minute apart. So the satellite had to first follow the telescope around Gdańsk and then rapidly rotated and started tracking the Poznań area," explains the task manager, Brig. Gen. Gen. Adam Sowa.

The presented test images in the scope of visible electromagnetic radiation were obtained even before calibration of the optical strategy and before improving the image parameters, so they have lower resolution compared to mark imaging. The quality and resolution of the images presented by the PIAST satellites will so be further improved optically, as well as in the postprocessing process utilizing artificial intelligence algorithms.

PIAST is simply a investigation and improvement task implemented on the basis of an agreement with the National Centre for investigation and Development, which serves to build comprehensive, autonomous Polish satellite capabilities of dual usage based on Polish technologies. The task is intended to make national competences in both space and ground section and in conducting satellite operations from Mission Control Centre located at the Military method Academy. WAT is the leader of the consortium that co-creates the Creotech Instruments, Scanway and PCO and the Centre for Space investigation of the Polish Academy of Sciences and the Łukasiewicz-Institute of Aviation Research.

The task is co-financed by the NCBR under the SZAFIR programme initiated by the Ministry of Defence. The consortium thanks MON and NCBR for their very good cooperation.

The constellation of 3 tiny satellites carries out a mission investigating technologies developed in Poland, related to the satellite platform itself, as well as to useful loads (e.g. telescopes or laser systems performing distance measurement and laser communication).

Text: Ewa Śmach

ed. PZ

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