The imagery was presented at the MSPO 2026 defence exhibition in Kielce in the presence of Polish Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz. EYCORE said the achievement makes it the second private European company to demonstrate its own SAR technology in orbit.
EYCORE-1 launched from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California on 3 May 2026 aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket. It collected the radar data after completing its commissioning and calibration phase.
“The acquisition of the first imagery from a Polish SAR satellite confirms that Poland is capable of developing advanced Earth observation technologies,” Kosiniak-Kamysz said. “I am particularly pleased that this is the success of a Polish company that is successfully building capabilities important for national defence and security, the protection of critical infrastructure and our technological sovereignty.”
The imagery confirms the operation of the satellite’s radar, deployable antenna and supporting subsystems. It also validates the transmission, ground reception and processing of data across the full operational chain.
“Today, I am proud to announce that Polish radar technology is operating in space,” said Dr Maciej Klemm, co-founder and chief executive of EYCORE. “We are the second private company in Europe to have demonstrated our own SAR technology in orbit.”
EYCORE-1 was built to test the company’s radar technology in space rather than serve as a full operational constellation. Its performance gives EYCORE flight heritage that can support future contracts and reduce risk in later satellite programmes.
“The first imagery is the most important confirmation for us that the technology developed by the Polish team works in orbit,” Klemm said. “EYCORE-1 has accomplished the task for which it was built as a demonstrator.”
Synthetic aperture radar sends electromagnetic signals towards the Earth and analyses their reflections from the surface. Unlike optical imaging, it can operate at night and in conditions that restrict conventional satellite observation.
Kongsberg NanoAvionics supplied the EYCORE-1 satellite platform, while EYCORE developed and manufactured the radar payload and SAR antenna. The modular design allows the company’s sensors to be integrated with microsatellite platforms from different suppliers.
Experience from EYCORE-1 is now feeding into CAMILA, or Country Awareness Mission in Land Analysis. The European Space Agency-backed programme is intended to create a Polish national satellite constellation.
Creotech Instruments is the prime contractor for CAMILA, with EYCORE responsible for developing and supplying the SAR radar. The operational experience from EYCORE-1 is expected to help lower technical risk and refine future generations of the technology.
EYCORE is expanding its engineering and production capacity in Gdynia and Kraków. In March 2026, the company signed a declaration with Poland’s Defence Ministry covering its role in the Kaszubia Green Industrial District and planned investments of PLN 50 million.
