ESA BIC Portugal – Establishing a Deep-Space Radar Business in Europe

Under the ESA Business Incubation Centre (ESA BIC) Portugal programme, ThothX Meridian took its first steps towards establishing a European deep-space radar business. Originally conceived around the deployment of Earthfence in the Azores, the project evolved towards an initial implementation near Sintra, on mainland Portugal, in response to technical and strategic considerations. Beyond supporting the early development of the company, ESA BIC provided a framework for business and market validation, customer engagement, access to funding opportunities and the establishment of R&D partnerships. The incubation programme laid the foundations for ThothX Meridian’s subsequent technological development and commercial positioning as a European provider of radar data for Space Domain Awareness.