A delegation from Spain is in the Azores to deepen institutional and scientific cooperation around the Atlantic Geodynamic and Space Station Network (RAEGE) with the Government of the Azores.
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27/10/2026
by
Lusa
Uthe Spanish delegation is in the Azores as part of the deepening of institutional and scientific cooperation developed around the Atlantic Geodynamic and Space Station Network (RAEGE) with the Government of the Azores.
The Spanish entourage, headed by the Undersecretary of the Ministry of Transport and Sustainable Mobility, Rafael Guerra Posadas, also includes the Director-General of the National Geographic Institute (IGN), Laura Barbas Calvo, and the Director of RAEGE, José Antonio López Pérez, according to a note from the Government of the Azores.
The visit aims to evaluate bilateral cooperation and to explore the future of space infrastructure in the region.
The partnership under RAEGE, initially formalized through a memorandum of understanding in 2010, materializes in the Geodetic Station of Santa Maria.
Equipped with cutting-edge technology – which includes a VGOS technology radio telescope, satellite positioning systems (GNSS), gravimetry instruments and high time precision equipment – this scientific infrastructure integrates international observation networks for the study of terrestrial dynamics, geophysics and radio astronomy.
As part of a meeting with the Regional Secretary of Parliamentary Affairs and Communities, Paulo Estêvão, the “decisive role that the Azores play in the European space sector, taking advantage of their unique geostrategic position in the North Atlantic to generate high-value scientific knowledge and attract qualified human resources” was underlined.
During the visit and technical work, the future development perspective of the Network was also addressed, highlighting the possible implementation of the future season planned for Flores Island, which is part of the original design of the project.
The Government of the Azores expressed “total readiness to continue the technical and institutional dialogue with the IGN, assessing the conditions necessary to enhance new opportunities for cooperation”.
With this displacement of the Spanish delegation, the Azorean executive “reaffirms the commitment to consolidate the archipelago as an Atlantic platform of reference in science, innovation and space technologies”.