On March 28, Exolaunch successfully deployed 2 satellites built by Thales Alenia Space and GMV, respectively, for ESA's Celeste mission aboard Rocket Lab's Electron.

Exolaunch provided its flight-proven separation systems, deployment and integration services to ensure mission success for the inaugural launch of ESA's Celeste demonstrator mission. This initial mission phase consists of two CubeSats, IOD-1 built by GMV and IOD-2 built by Thales Alenia Space, designed to validate the system definition and early signal broadcasting, de-risk and demonstrate technology for the core elements for succeeding Celeste satellites.

The integration of the two IOD satellites into the EXOpod Nova deployers was completed successfully at Exolaunch's headquarters in Berlin. This achievement highlights Exolaunch's commitment to excellence and its proven capability to deliver reliable separation systems, high-precision integration and deployment services, supporting the development of a competitive and sovereign European space ecosystem.

This was the 43rd mission in the company's flight heritage.

• Mission

  Celeste

• Launch vehicle

  Electron

• Launch site

  Rocket Lab Launch Complex 1 - Mahia, New Zealand

• Launch date

  March 28, 2026