The system is intended to protect satellites that support emergency services, military operations and British businesses. The government said satellite services underpin nearly 20% of UK GDP and are essential for military operations, navigation, money transfers, global communications and weather forecasting.
Borealis rapidly compiles, fuses and analyses data from multiple sources to give the National Space Operations Centre a faster and more accurate picture of space. The system will help monitor debris and satellites from adversaries that could pose a threat to UK space assets.
The UK also released first-time imagery captured by Noctis-1, the country’s military space telescope formerly known as Nyx-Alpha. The images show objects including the International Space Station, the UK’s SKYNET military communications satellites and other satellites operated by nations around the world.
Noctis-1 monitors objects in Earth’s orbit and provides position information on UK satellites. Its imagery and data are fed into Borealis to support the UK’s wider space awareness mission and help prevent collisions.
“Space is now a contested domain. Protecting our satellites from adversaries keeps our economy moving and keeps us all safe,” said Luke Pollard MP, Minister for Defence Readiness and Industry.
“As we increase defence spending we are investing in new defensive capabilities in all domains, including UK space-based capabilities,” Pollard said.
The software is being delivered under a £65 million, five-year contract with CGI UK. The programme supports 100 skilled jobs in Leatherhead, Reading and Bristol.
The investment forms part of the government’s plan to increase defence spending to 2.6% of GDP from 2027. The Ministry of Defence said the system will enhance the UK’s ability to monitor and safeguard critical national space assets.
Space Minister Liz Lloyd MP said Borealis marked an important improvement in national space protection. “Borealis represents a significant step forward in the UK’s ability to monitor, protect and defend the critical space capabilities,” she said.
“This joint investment by the UK Space Agency and Space Command, backed by British expertise and jobs, ensures the UK remains a world leader in understanding and protecting the space environment for generations to come,” Lloyd said.
Major General Paul Tedman, Commander of UK Space Command, said the ability to understand activity in orbit is central to protecting UK interests. “Protecting and defending the invisible front line in space requires us to see and understand what is happening in orbit and then make decisions at machine speed,” he said.
“Noctis-1, with Noctis-2 swifty to follow, will provide us the sovereign eyes we need to augment our space domain awareness. Data is the coin of the realm in space operations,” Tedman said.
“Borealis exploits edge software to make sense of the vast amounts of information we ingest and then model actionable choices to my operators in the National Space Operations Centre. Together, they represent a significant enhancement to the UK’s space capability,” Tedman added.
Borealis is a UK-made system that underpins military operations around the world. It is being deployed in the National Space Operations Centre, which delivers the UK’s space surveillance and protection mission.
Neil Timms, Senior Vice President of Space, Defence & Intelligence UK & Australia at CGI, said early delivery reflected the company’s experience in secure space systems. “Delivering Borealis to operational readiness half a year early highlights CGI’s track record in delivering complex, secure space systems,” he said.
“By combining deep domain expertise with modern engineering practices, we’ve provided a scalable capability that can adapt as mission demands and the threat landscape continue to evolve,” Timms said.
The system will monitor environmental conditions and objects in space, including debris and active satellites. It will also compile data related to UK satellites so they can be better protected and provide timely information to government and military commanders.
The investment builds on cooperation between UK Space Command and the UK Space Agency. The Ministry of Defence said the partnership combines defence and civil expertise to strengthen national resilience, improve space safety and support the UK’s role as a responsible spacefaring nation.
