Axelspace receives first signals from all seven GRUS-3 satellites

Axelspace launched seven GRUS-3 next-generation Earth observation microsatellites and received first radio signals from all seven spacecraft.

The launch took place on 7th July 2026 at 07:12 UTC aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California, United States.

GRUS-3 flew on the Transporter-17 rideshare mission, while Exolaunch handled satellite integration before liftoff.

After launch, the seven satellites reached their intended orbit, and Axelspace received radio signals from each one in space.

Earth observation services and AxelGlobe

Axelspace is now carrying out critical early operations to confirm each GRUS-3 microsatellite functions properly in orbit.

Those checks prepare the company for future services based on Earth observation data gathered by the new satellites.

Axelspace announced the mission under its vision, “Space within Your Reach,” and the company has operated in microsatellites since 2008.

Its two main businesses are AxelLiner and AxelGlobe. AxelLiner provides satellite development and operation services for customer missions.

Meanwhile, AxelGlobe delivers Earth observation data through Axelspace’s proprietary optical satellite constellation, so GRUS-3 adds capacity to that service.

NEDO and METI support

The versatile satellite bus system for GRUS-3 draws on results from a NEDO-subsidised project called “Development and Demonstration of General-Purpose CubeSat and Microsatellite Buses.”

That NEDO project ran from fiscal year 2023 to fiscal year 2026.

Before that, Japan’s Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry supported the work in fiscal years 2021 to 2022.

Earlier Axelspace updates covered a confirmed launch date, Nikon telescopes for the seven GRUS-3 satellites, and a launch timing of no earlier than July 2026.

Following the 7th July 2026 launch, Axelspace will complete on-orbit commissioning before using GRUS-3 data in future Earth observation services.