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European GEOfarm concept

Space logistics and global intercommunication
Short Description of the idea
The context of this proposal lies in an entirely European industry-funded
and public-sponsored high-risk/high-potential initiative.
From a technical standpoint, European GEOfarm is a pioneering modular space
platform to lead the relocation of industry in Earth geosynchronous orbit.
Basically, it is a service and production oriented space station in GEO1 orbit, mainly
providing three kinds of services:
 Assembly of large structures: multi-payloads MegaBus2, data-centres, large observation
instruments, Solar Power Stations (SPS), Moon and interplanetary vessels…
 Monitoring, maintenance, repair, assembly, upgrades of GEOsats, providing data by
laser and radio to constellations in LEO3 and MEO4, and to ground stations,
 Transportation to and from GEO.
In a second step, non-predictable activities, such as wreckage dismantle and reuse, will
be performed and will need in-orbit operators and associated manned spaceships.

The idea is to focus European effort towards space logistics in GEO orbit, where
more than 300€Billions CAPEX (mainly private) has been invested during 30 years.
1 GEO : Geostationary Earth Orbit, single and unique from laws of physics, from 3 coordinated locations it is
possible to permanently cover Earth surface.
2 MegaBus: very large satellite where the support platform (the Bus) is common to a large set of upgradable

payloads from diverse competitors, like a common pile for antennas from diverse cellular phones operators.
3 LEO : Low Earth Orbit, there is infinity of plans and altitudes of low Earth orbits, at least 20 coordinated

locations on 20 coordinated plans (i.e. 400 satellites) are needed to permanently cover Earth surface.
4 MEO : Medium Earth Orbit, same infinity than LEOs.

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GEO will remain forever a unique and privileged place above Earth, in
particular for data relay, while GEO is not currently under scrutiny by the other
spacefaring states which are primarily focused on Moon, Mars or LEO.
Manufacturing and in-space servicing makes more sense in GEO belt, as no
orbital plane changes are necessary (contrary to LEO) to populate the orbital slots after
having manufactured and assembled satellites at the GEOfarm. GEO is considered a
better5 Space Logistic node than LEO, in particular to support expansion of space
economy.
GEO allows easy step towards further locations, starting around and on the
Moon, since its high energetic orbit is favourable w.r.t. LEO to support a cis-Lunar
outpost, thus benefitting operations.
European GEOfarm will be a hub driving high yearly rate of European transportation
services, initially with monthly missions foreseen: a figure that will increase over time.
An estimation of the potential market segments would need to be performed, but
tentatively a minimum of 2 deployment and replenishment flights per year using Orbital
Transfer Vehicles (OTV) and freight could be required for addressing the batch of
services, including set-up of the new GEOsats capacity compared to an overall GEO
accessible market which was around 22 satellites per year, now dropping down.
On the long term, to have full Earth coverage, a minimum of 3 MegaBus stations would
lead to an average of at least 6 deployment and replenishment flights per year and on top
of that at least 2 manned flights (3 astronauts per spaceship) per year on the long term
could be envisioned as well.
In turn, European GEOfarm would be instrumental to the development of manned
flights, and re-boost access to GEO.
Europe already leads GEO telecom satellites market, and European
GEOfarm would secure this strategic positioning, at the same time
expanding the capabilities and diversification of activities from space.

European GEOfarm would be based on peaceful purposes, while keeping an eye on

protection and defence of assets in space to secure European sovereignty in GEO.
The European GEOfarm concept is an enabling brick for the MegaBus concept and a

5Transportation cost to GEO is 2 times more than to LEO then cutting mass by 4, thanks to in orbit
assembly, generates more savings, while 1kg in GEO generates several times more revenues than in LEO.

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Gate to Deep-Space, which address respectively Space Transportation,

Telecommunication, Integrated Applications, Human Spaceflight and Robotic
Exploration European programmes fields of ESA.

Preliminary business case elements

European GEOfarm has the objective to achieve commercial viability and is
oriented towards private sector customers. The goal is to raise interest in
non-space actors for long-term sustainability of business.
The European GEOfarm would be built up incrementally enabling early
return on investments on various market segments:
a. Telecommunication application (e.g. extended EDRS6 incl. local data processing,
laser data links, broadband hotspot, etc) with fast ROI7 (ie. through partnership
with operators), estimated worldwide market in 2025: 1,100 €Billions,
b. Permanent real time video of Earth surface,
c. Robotics application (e.g. repair, assembly, construction, manufacturing)
d. Refuelling station for servicing vehicles,
e. Space surveillance,
f. Human activities and permanent presence.
It is worth highlighting that business sustainability of GEOfarm mainly relies on
commercial activities more than on research (scientific) activities, while still being
available as test-bed for deep space exploration/simulation.
European GEOfarm concept allows valuable use of European access to space systems
and their improvements towards reusability and human rated flights, altogether with
settlement of European resilient and sovereign new generation of data-centres.
The access to space ecosystem which is addressed is segmented in several markets,
interesting several actors proposing the idea, where the space transportation items are:
 Launchers (Ariane 6, Ariane Next), transporting, directly to GEO or via OTV, the
parts of new generation GEOsats, items of the GEOfarm, OTVs, Space Planes …
 OTVs (upgraded SpaceRider, SpaceTug, kick stages),
 Reusable Space Planes, unmanned cargo and manned crew vehicles.
New services, dedicated to laser links among lower orbits constellations, HAPS8,
aircraft…, and related to secured, independent and sovereign data-centres, will be
developed in addition to expansion of Internet of Things (IoT) and its downstream
applications.
European GEOfarm can also deliver similar and derived services to public
administrations: satellite survey, data relay, data centres, Earth
observation...
A part of the huge CAPEX sleeping in GEO vicinity (> 2000 satellites already launched to
GEO) can be used in situ for spare parts. Even a tiny part of it has great value to kick-
start in orbit manufacturing business model.
The start of commercial operation could begin in early stage of GEOfarm
settlement, well before operations requiring manned intervention (which are also a
potential development).
Human flights are expected to become a real business, even for private purpose, when
local human agility is needed in front of non-predictable activities.

6 European Data Relay Satellite system

7 Return on Investment
8 High Altitude Platform Stations : stationary balloon or aircraft covering around 60km radius on Earth

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The business plan is based on the hypothesis that the top of value chain is
funded by telecom operators and private internet service providers,
supported by public entities for some sovereign services. Assumption is that in such
conditions more than 2% of total global telecom business continues to transit through
GEO, and that European GEOfarm and its MegaBus and DataCenters, 10 years after start
of operation, captures 25% of those 2 to 5%, that is to say 5 to 10€Billions/year in 2035.
Estimated project cost up to commercialisation is 15€Billions, including deployment and
replenishment flights at 100€Millions each, where 8€Billions for GEOfarm orbital items,
1€Billion for 3 MegaBus, 1€Billion for 1 dataCenter, 1€Billion for reusable OTVs,
1€Billion for cargo SpacePlane, additional 2€Billions for crew SpacePlane and 1€Billion
for other human spaceflight capabilities.
Estimated global recurring cost is 2€Billions/year.
In worst case of 25% capture of “by space” 2% of global intercommunication, the
estimated break-even is reached in 2033 and estimated ROI is 13 years.
Nevertheless, even in such worst case, as revenues start in 2025 the negative cash flow
remains below 2€Billions which eases dramatically the financing plan.
In addition, the European GEOfarm concept goes with a full ecosystem in
which the value chain allows each brick to generate its own value and
revenues, and where it is strategic to secure European opportunities for its
actors (public or private).
Private economic operators from France and Italy are already on-board, setting up their
business cases based on a private funding scheme, and there is room for all major actors
within the European space framework.

Expected benefits for the European Space sector:

Main expected benefits are:
 Anchoring of European “dominance” in GEO, through developing of GEO
applications and new space logistics in order to develop the volume of business in
GEO, first for European citizens and second for the worldwide market,
 Improvement of European space industry competitiveness,
 Contribution to boost the intercommunication with Artificial Intelligence,
robotics, delivering autonomous and sovereign infrastructures to Europe,
 To bring forth socio-economic benefits that will be developed by the activity
and its effects on the economy (e.g. highly qualified employment, education needs,
economic growth, etc….).

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Other benefits are:

 In-orbit Assembly of very light and simplified satellites, focused on the
most valuable payload and whose design is free from the need of propulsion to
GEO, free from the burden to sustain launch vehicles flight environment and free
from volume constraints imposed by the sizing of the fairings,
 Short lead-time response and low cost incremental and disruptive upgrades of
GEOsats,
 Economy of scales by merging bus functions (power, propulsion, thermal
control, command-control-communication) for several, indeed competitive,
payloads gathered in a MegaBus,
 Settling up a fleet of sovereign and secured data-centres based on MegaBus,
optimized for data generated in space, enabling control of the data flow by Europe.
The European GEOfarm concept allows conjunction of extensive, intensive and smart
development of GEO orbit for private businesses.

Duration of the project

Outline of the identified required technologies

The initial assembly of GEOfarm can be carried out by means of robotic tele-operated
and autonomous spacecraft, while the final objective of the human inhabitancy would be
pursued in concurrence of the station building up. Furthermore the rationale for
development of tug-like capability would be further supported by the retrieval of GEO
assets and their relocation activities after repurposing or refurbishing.
Most of the GEOfarm technologies are already at high TRL9 and the main
bricks are already subjects of ESA programmes, at least for the first steps
(boosters, OTV, robotics, in orbit assembly, laser data link …). Transportation
capabilities shall be further developed for re-entry and cargo vehicles.

9 Technical Readiness Level

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The roadmap for European GEOfarm will have to take roadmaps for SpaceRider,
Cygnus, Orion-ESM, SpaceTug into account. What is currently missing is related to
reusability.
For the second step of GEOfarm development related to human activities and permanent
presence, some blocks need delta activities to reach man-rated operations:
 i.e Ariane family shall be qualified for human spaceflight,
 Man-rated re-entry system shall be completed.
Plus, some works needs to be done to develop a European spacesuit and radiation
shielding.
This could give new momentum to European roadmaps for geopolitical
independence of its robotic and human spaceflight activities.
The European GEOfarm concept benefits from several studies performed in Europe
(Hermes, IXV, SpaceRider, Cygnus and other non-disclosed) or publicly advertised
concepts (SpaceTug, GeoHub, FISO, SpiderFab, Kineis …).

Expected support from European Commission

Industry is expecting:
 Political recognition and support as a European common vision,
including the strategically important aspects for Europe,
 An “European Commission Merit Stamp” in order to ease fundraising from
players which are outside of space business,
 Support in building up related laws and regulations,
 Social promotion, advertising in all media including movies,
 New governance test case for a new way to build and carry on a very big
European program (even larger than Galileo) in PPP, involving EC (out of space
domain) + ESA + bodies interested in internet, IoT, data, cyber, logistics,
 R&D programs to support technologies valuable in space logistics applications,
 R&D programs to support human in space related technologies.

Other aspects to be reported

The concept relies on the following definitions:
 Regarding maturing market for operations of New Orbital economy:
1. Servicing of telecommunication assets = refuelling, refurbishing and
upgrading existing – possibly modular – buses. The end goal is to dedicate
launch mass mainly to new payloads, while neglecting service modules. This
enables more flexible and faster paced activities, offering in-orbit propulsive
platforms and debris removal services.
2. Data broadcasting and relay: moving to “satellite-enabled internet”,
3. Space-based cybersecured data centres: capturing the need for safe data
storage and solving energy sustainability issues of Earth-based data centres.
4. Space-based power generation: harvesting energy in GEO is gaining
traction, with the aim to supply both large space infrastructure and Earth.
 Regarding emerging market for novel infrastructures impossible to launch from
Earth:
1. In-space assembly and servicing = launching “collapsed” structures and
deploying them in orbit (to optimize launch mass and volume) or assembling
very large systems out of smaller parts (to enable totally new applications by
circumventing the limitation imposed by launcher fairing diameter).
2. Huge infrastructures = very large optical and radio arrays can be created or
integrated, providing a benefit to the public sector for institutional mission.

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