More than 200 people gathered in the winter cold on Tuesday 17 February to attend the breaking of ground ceremony for a new research building at DTU Space in Lyngby. The construction marks a significant expansion of the institute’s activities.
DTU and DTU Space are prioritising the space and defence area with investments totalling around DKK 2 billion over a five-year period. This includes approximately DKK 300 million annually and DKK 500 million in new research infrastructure – among them an investment of about DKK 300 million in the new DTU Space research building, Building 330, scheduled for completion in 2028.
“There is a need to strengthen our research, development and advisory activities in the space sector. The expansion comes as our project portfolio and international engagement grow, increasing our need for advanced facilities and modern research infrastructure,” said Director of DTU Space, Henning Skriver.
“The new building will become a central hub for DTU’s future space research. It will bring together a range of new laboratories, test facilities and workplaces”.
The Director broke the first ground for the new building along with Chair of the DTU Board Margrethe Vestager, Minister for Higher Education and Science Christina Egelund, and Head of ESA’s Astronaut Corps and Adjunct Professor at DTU, Andreas Mogensen, in the presence of DTU President Anders Overgaard Bjarklev.
Growing demand for space-based research and technology
The expansion is driven by increasing national and international demand for space research, technological advisory services and satellite data – particularly within climate, security and Arctic monitoring, where Denmark holds a special responsibility and strategic role.
“We expect further growth in the coming years in order to help strengthen Denmark’s efforts in space, defence and climate research. We are working systematically to develop technology and competences that make Denmark an active and credible partner in international space programmes,” said Henning Skriver.
DTU Space is Denmark’s largest space research institute, with around 250 employees. With the new research facility, the institute will gain an additional 8,200 square metres dedicated to space activities.
The investments take place within a broader national political context, as the Danish government has allocated more than DKK 19 billion to research and innovation over the next four years.
Many DTU missions with more to come
DTU Space contributes to a wide range of international space missions in close collaboration with ESA and NASA.
Some missions are already in orbit, others will be launched in the coming years, and several are under development. These include the ESA missions New Athena, LISA, Comet Interceptor and Proba-3, as well as NASA missions such as Psyche and GRACE-C.
The missions cover areas such as Earth observation and climate, exploration of the Solar System, space safety and space weather research, and Arctic monitoring.
Common to these missions is a long time horizon – typically five to ten years or more – from initial concept and technology development to launch, operations and scientific exploitation. This places high demands on stable research environments, advanced test facilities and long-term investment.
In addition to these long-term space missions, DTU Space also participates in shorter-term projects, including within the defence sector and in collaborations focused on innovation, technology development and entrepreneurship in the space field.
“At a time of geopolitical uncertainty and increasing focus on European sovereignty in critical technologies, it is crucial to invest where research capacity is already strong and where results can be brought into play quickly,” said Henning Skriver.
“Our new research building and the overall investments in the coming years will ensure that DTU Space can continue to design, develop and test space technology at a very high level. And that we can subsequently work with missions once they are in orbit, for the benefit of society, security and international collaboration”.
Facts about the new DTU Space Building 330
- The new Building 330 is scheduled for completion in 2028 and will provide the framework for research, development and testing of next-generation space instruments and space technology, in step with growing activities and strengthened international collaboration with, among others, ESA and NASA.
- DTU is constructing the building in collaboration with turnkey contractor Elindco, consulting engineers Artelia and architects Christensen & Co Architects. The cost is approximately DKK 300 million.
- Building 330 will house advanced research and test laboratories, including cleanrooms with controlled temperature, humidity, vibration and contamination levels. The building is designed to support an integrated development, research and testing process, allowing instruments to move safely between development and test environments via airlocks.
- This is supported by specialised infrastructure such as liquid nitrogen for cooling and stress testing.
- The building will also include a robotics laboratory for landing simulations, offices, teaching facilities, shared areas and facilities for public communication of space research and space technology.
- The building will be approximately 27 metres high, with five storeys and a basement, covering a total of 8,200 square metres.
- Outdoor observation facilities may be established on the roof level.
