SAGA Space Architects, The Exploration Company, and Space Applications Services will work on the Lunar Remote Camp Study
SAGA has been awarded a contract for the European Space Agency's Lunar Remote Camp Study, along with The Exploration Company and Space Applications Services.
To support ESA’s lunar surface operations, the consortium will deliver a concept study defining a robotic-first surface shelter which could later be adapted to support short-duration crew use. The study will develop a deployable shelter approach intended to protect surface equipment and extend robotic mission capabilities in the challenging lunar environment.
The project focuses on a deployable shelter concept that protects lunar equipment from key hazards such as extreme temperature swings, abrasive dust, radiation, and micrometeoroids. It is designed as a protected service hub for robotic operations to store equipment and spares, keep hardware within safe temperature limits, and provide basic infrastructure functions such as power distribution, data links, and local communications support.
We are excited that this research further builds on our LUNARK mission, where we field-tested the deployable habitat prototype in Greenland. The operational learnings and datasets from LUNARK will provide practical input to the Lunar Remote Camp Study, setting base for deployment and operational considerations.
With the experience in space systems, architecture and technologies among the partners, we are thrilled to be part of this important research for the future of space exploration!
About The Exploration Company
Founded in 2021, The Exploration Company (TEC) develops, manufactures, and operates modular, reusable spacecraft to make space logistics more accessible, sustainable, and cooperative. The flagship Nyx spacecraft family is designed for cargo missions to low Earth orbit and the lunar vicinity, with a long-term roadmap toward human-rated missions. TEC’s centres of excellence include Bordeaux (systems, propulsion, thermal protection), Munich (avionics, software, GNC, integration), and Turin (mechanisms, robotics, backup mission control), complemented by operations in Houston US, expansion sites for lunar programs in the UAE and cryogenic capabilities in Luxembourg. TEC has been the fastest-growing space tech company in Europe in 2023, 2024 and 2025 (as per its turnover; Financial Times / Sifted ranking). Since its inception in Q3-2021, TEC has grown to +400 people, has signed €800 million in contracts, and raised €300 million from tier-1 VCs (Bessemer Ventures Capital, EQT Ventures, Balderton, Cherry Ventures, etc.).
About Space Applications Services
Space Applications Services has been advancing technologies for planetary exploration for more than thirty years, contributing to a wide range of ESA missions and development programmes. The company applies its long-standing expertise in lunar surface systems and mission operations to the Lunar Remote
Camp Study, helping shape the shelter concept and its operational approach. This work builds on decades of engineering and exploration heritage and represents an important step in Space Applications Services’ continued support to Europe’s ambitions for sustainable activities on the lunar surface.
*The cover image is a preliminary artistic representation of a robotic asset shelter with potential extension to a crew shelter. This is not a depiction of the study’s final outcome.
You can find the press kit here.
For press inquiries, please reach out:
SAGA Space Architects: [email protected].
The Exploration Company: Riccardo Puglia [email protected]
Space Applications Services: Jeremi Gancet [email protected]
