It was a station near Robledo de Chavela that captured Neil Armstrong’s historic message in 1969, reflecting Spain’s early and vital role in space communications. Just a few kilometers away stands the Madrid Deep Space Communications Complex (MDSCC), one of only three facilities in NASA’s Deep Space Network, along with stations in California and Australia. Operated jointly by NASA and Spain’s aerospace agency INTA, the MDSCC enables continuous communication with deep space missions. Last year, Spain and the United States renewed their bilateral scientific cooperation agreement, extending MDSCC operations for another 15 years and reaffirming a long-standing alliance in space exploration.
That partnership is still reaching new milestones. On January 2025, the Spanish satellite SpainSat NG I was successfully launched from Cape Canaveral, Florida,
aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket. Weighing six tons and equipped with Europe’s most advanced active X-band antennas, the satellite will provide highly secure
communications for Spain’s Ministry of Defense and reinforce the country’s strategic position within both NATO and the European space community. A twin satellite, SpainSat NG II, is scheduled to launch later this year.
Madrid is also home to the internationally recognized Centro de Astrobiología (CAB). Since its founding, CAB has been affiliated with NASA’s Astrobiology Program and remains a pioneer in the field. This year, CAB achieved exceptional success: five projects were selected for the James Webb Space Telescope’s fourth operational cycle, with four led by CAB researchers—placing the center ahead of world-class institutions such as Harvard, CalTech, and MIT. Starting in July 2025, CAB will use approximately 280 hours of telescope time to study early-universe galaxies, examine black hole environments in nearby galaxies, and analyze massive star clusters at the heart of the Milky Way.
Madrid’s talent is also shaping the future of space science. Ana Inés Gómez de Castro, lead researcher of the AEGORA Space Astronomy Group at the Complutense University of Madrid, was selected by the European Space Agency as one of three European representatives on the START review panel for NASA’s upcoming Habitable Worlds Observatory (HWO). HWO will be NASA’s next flagship space telescope, designed specifically to search for signs of life on planets beyond our solar system.
From Getafe to Tres Cantos, Madrid is fueling aerospace innovation through specialized clusters in satellite communications, Earth observation, and aircraft
manufacturing. Combined with a highly skilled, multilingual workforce, Madrid offers an ideal environment to tackle the challenges of modern space exploration. Now more than ever, the phrase rings true: De Madrid al Cielo “From Madrid to the Stars”.