Country dossier · ESP

Spain

Advanced space-faring nation

A sourced snapshot of Spain's posture in space — capability, institutions, orbital assets, law and people. Every figure carries its primary source; gaps are shown honestly, never filled with invented data.

Open Spain in the interactive workspace →

Capability tier

Advanced space-faring nation

Launches to orbit from its own territory: noLaunch sites on record: 2Nationals who have flown: 3

Source: ALL IN SPACE capability ladder · see methodology

Space agency

AEE (Agencia Espacial Española)

National space agency · established 2023 · two-source verified

Source: UNOOSA · Worldwide Space Agencies directory

Satellites (owner state)

47

Counted from the GCAT May 2026 snapshot. The interactive workspace shows a live CelesTrak figure, which uses different owner-attribution rules and will differ.

Source: GCAT · General Catalog of Artificial Space Objects (J. McDowell) · May 2026 snapshot

Ground stations

15

Source: ALL IN SPACE curated ground-station dataset (operator-sourced)

Space budget

$700M

Developing spender · 2026 · Spanish Space Agency

Source: Agencia Espacial Española

National strategy

Estrategia de Seguridad Aeroespacial Nacional (ESAN 2025) (2025)

Coordinated national strategy under the new Spanish Space Agency (AEE), supported by PEICTI 2024-2027 with EUR 2.4 billion in space funding

Source: Published national space strategies and policies

International space law

InstrumentStatus
Outer Space Treaty 1967Ratified
Rescue Agreement 1968Ratified
Liability Convention 1972Ratified
Registration Convention 1975Ratified
Moon Agreement 1979Not a party
Artemis Accords 2020Signatory (2023-05-30)

Source: Status of international agreements relating to activities in outer space (1 January 2026)

Launch sites

  • El Arenosillo (CEDEA)INTA (Instituto Nacional de Tecnica Aeroespacial) · Mazagon, Huelva · suborbital · since 1966
  • PLD Space test facility, Teruel AirportPLD Space · Teruel, Aragon · test facility · since 2020

Source: National launch site roster · ALL IN SPACE compilation

Astronauts

  • Pedro DuqueESA · first flight 1998 · First Spaniard in space; later Minister of Science 2018-2021
  • Pablo Alvarez FernandezESA · first flight 2022 · Selected 2022; not yet flown
  • Sara Garcia AlonsoESA · first flight 2022 · ESA reserve astronaut (2022); not yet flown

Source: Astronaut biographies

Milestones

  • 1966First orbital launch from national soil
  • 1998First national in space
  • 2023AEE (Agencia Espacial Española) established

Notable missions and contributions

  • AEE coordinates space efforts since 2023
  • ESA founding member (since 1975)
  • Pedro Duque — astronaut (ISS 2003), Minister of Science 2018-2021
  • GTC (10.4m) — world largest single-aperture optical telescope
  • NASA Robledo DSN station (MDSCC)
  • PLD Space MIURA 1 (2023) — first European private launcher test
  • Hispasat — national telecom satellite operator