The synergies of two Spanish startups, Usyncro and Hydra Space, have opened a door for the creation, even in a future that is difficult to limit in time, of the first ‘space customs’, an institution aimed at ‘inspecting’ all the material that it leaves and enters the space for whose implementation new technologies such as the ‘blockchain’ will be decisive.

Contemplating this possibility today might sound utopian, but the rapid advance of technology and the potential of digital transformation are taking steps in the right direction and, most importantly, Spanish companies are taking the initiative in this field.

The latest confirmation of this reality occurred on January 13, when the launch of SpaceX from Cape Canaveral was destined to have much more significance for the Spanish technology and disruptor sector than was initially thought.

Hydra Space picosatellites were also successfully launched into orbit on January 13 in the SpaceX launch in which FOSSA Systems participated.
Hydra Space picosatellites were also successfully launched into orbit on January 13 in the SpaceX launch in which FOSSA Systems participated.

The space sector has undergone a major transformation in recent years. New technologies and models have appeared that allow a satellite to be manufactured and launched with significant reductions in complexity and cost.

Hydra Space is part of this trend with its development of small satellites for IoT communications, as is FOSSA Systems, another of the leading exponents of the sector in the Spanish aerospace industry.

Both companies -Usyncro and Hydra Space- have joined synergies to try to achieve with the launch of last day 13 a milestone that lays the foundations for that future ‘space customs’ and that has the blockchain at the base of the entire disruptive project.

The Hydra Space picosatellites that were put into orbit had Usyncro’s blockchain technology to certify all the traceability of the devices from their departure from the factory in Spain until they entered orbit and began to broadcast correctly.

In this way, the monitoring and logistics management of the journey to the launcher was carried out via blockchain with the Usyncro solution, as if it were any other type of merchandise with intermodal transport. This pioneering process has been the first of many that the company hopes to include in its new Usyncro Space business area.

“There is a body that regulates the documentation that you must have for this transit of objects in space, but it is very manual and with a clear predominance of paper. We want to take everything to blockchain and artificial intelligence. We really have an opportunity to build something new “, tells D+I the CEO of Usyncro, Cristina Martín.

“As happens with the management of goods on Earth, we find that the bureaucracy and documentation necessary to send an object to space, as well as the international agents and authorities involved, need automatic tools that provide agility and security to the process” Martin insists.

Usyncro Space is born
“It has been the first interplanetary multimodal shipment, because we carry out all the traceability of its picosatellites since they left the factory by plane to the United States, then they traveled by truck to Cape Canaveral and, finally, they boarded the shuttle until they got to orbit,” explains Martín.

Along these lines, the partner of Hydra Space, Pablo Durban, adds: “Regulatory and logistics processes have probably not evolved at the same speed as aerospace technology. The application of solutions such as blockchain can be an important lever for improvement.”

“Our goal is to seek these improvements jointly with Usyncro, combining the experience and capabilities of both companies,” adds Durban.

In this way, Usyncro and Hydra Space have signed a collaboration agreement with the aim of defining lines of business, developing synergies and use cases by unifying the services of both companies.

Open funding round
But to grow and achieve projects with greater impact, financing continues to be one of the main obstacles for startups. “We have shown that two companies from Madrid, without public resources, have been able to do this. With aid we would go faster, but we are going to go step by step,” adds Martín.