Danish aerospace startup Spaceline Labs has successfully launched Panthera, its next-generation stratospheric Earth observation platform, from Andøya in northern Norway.
Operating at altitudes between 18 and 50 km, Panthera delivers 10 cm/px high-resolution imagery in real time, offering a significant enhancement over traditional satellite systems that capture an image every few hours.
“This launch demonstrates a great step forward in our strategic and technical roadmap,” said Nicolai Iversen, co-founder and CEO of Spaceline Labs. “We’re now proceeding from demonstration to large-scale coverage across Europe.”
Building a system to operate reliably in the harsh conditions of near-space presented significant challenges. “The key technical challenge was designing an advanced imaging payload and a communications system that could deliver persistent 10 cm/px imagery in real time, without relying on foreign infrastructure,” Iversen added.
To do this, Spaceline developed its own dedicated downlink, enabling European-generated data to be stored, analysed, and distributed entirely within Europe. The full tech stack was also engineered for resilience in the extreme conditions of near-space, with subsystems tested in environments like the ESA Mars Simulation Laboratory in Denmark.
Coordination with authorities such as the Norwegian Civil Aviation Authority and Avinor was essential to the launch sequence due to the platform’s altitude and footprint.
Panthera has already begun delivering data to customers, where it's being integrated with satellite imagery and AI-powered analytics for actionable insights in areas such as maritime surveillance, environmental monitoring, and disaster response.
“Almost symbolically, Panthera launched just a few hundred metres from where Isar Aerospace launched Spectrum earlier this year,” said Pedersen. “It highlights how fast the European near-space sector is moving.”
Spaceline Labs is now scaling up operations, with a new 1,000 sq. m production and HQ facility under construction at Hans Christian Andersen Airport in Odense, Denmark. The facility is expected to open in early 2026.
Founded by Nicolai Iversen (CEO), Simon Vilms Pedersen (CTO), and Mads Toudal Frandsen (COO), Spaceline Labs is backed by partnerships with Airbus Space & Defence, Andøya Space, and is a named partner in ESA’s Civil Security from Space programme.
The Panthera system represents the third-generation platform from Spaceline and positions the startup as a leading European provider of stratospheric intelligence infrastructure.
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