Greece launches 350‑million‑euro national space programme Hellas‑Space 2.0

The Greek Ministry of Digital Governance and Artificial Intelligence announced the "HELLAS‑SPACE 2.0" national space programme, a four‑year plan funded with about €350 million from the EU Recovery and Resilience Fund. The launch was made in the presence of Deputy Prime Minister and Digital Minister Dimitris Papastergiou and Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis at the "Greece in Orbit – Η Ελλάδα σε Τροχιά" event.

Key objectives include strengthening civil‑protective capabilities against wildfires and floods, enhancing maritime surveillance, supporting the Coast Guard, improving precision agriculture for farmers and the Hellenic Agricultural Organization (AADE), bolstering border security, defence, and reliable communications for islands and remote areas. The programme also aims to develop Greece’s aerospace industry and export space‑related technologies.

In parallel, a national student satellite initiative will let secondary‑school teams design, build and launch PocketQube nanosatellites, creating a small constellation managed by the students. The effort is linked with the European Space Agency (ESA) and the Hellenic Space Center. The launch was accompanied by a discussion of the first Greek astronaut‑candidate, Adrianos Golemios, who is training with ESA, underscoring the programme’s ambition to inspire a new generation of Greek space professionals.