CMA CGM Group supports Gama in its solar sail mission, as it is already using satellite information to improve its operations worldwide for navigation, real-time maritime conditions and telecommunications.
Gama is a French start-up company which tries to redefine deep space access at low cost.
The satellite containing Gama’s solar sail was launched on 3 January 2023 on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, after two years of research and design.
CMA CGM told Container News that it has been working for several years to identify, design and develop solutions for maritime transport and logistics, particularly in the area of connectivity, which involves satellite and space-based resources.
A French shipping company’s representative told Container News, “the company has formed partnerships with the main players in the spatial sector, including the French Spatial Agency, the CNES, in June 2021 and Thales AleniaSpace in November 2021. In this particular context, CMA CGM is a partner of Gama, a solar sail launch project.”
Through its Alpha mission, Gama is expected to test the deployment of a solar sail in low earth orbit (LEO).
“Through Gama, CMA CGM Group is supporting a large-scale project launched by a French company, which aims to democratise a means of space propulsion that offers many opportunities for the mobility of tomorrow,” noted CMA CGM’s representative.
