Constelación Islas Canarias (CIC), a project involving the Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias (IAC), Cabildo de Tenerife and Telespazio Ibérica, has been recognised in the 2026 edition of The 100 Best Ideas by Actualidad Económica, a supplement of El Mundo, in the Digitalisation category.

This recognition places Constelación Islas Canarias among the year’s standout initiatives for its ability to connect space technology, Earth observation and territorial management from an applied perspective. In the publication, the project is included among the selected proposals for its innovative character and its potential to generate scientific, environmental and economic applications from the Canary Islands.

For the IAC, this distinction represents recognition of the work it has been carrying out in the field of space technology and, in particular, of its contribution to an initiative designed to provide the archipelago with its own Earth observation capabilities. In the words of Álex Oscoz, Head of the IAC’s Space Department, this recognition “highlights a way of working based on collaboration between public institutions, science and industry to develop space capabilities with real-world application”. In his view, Constelación Islas Canarias “not only represents a technological advance, but also a commitment to equipping the archipelago with its own tools to observe, analyse and manage its territory from space”.

Constelación Islas Canarias is a strategic initiative aimed at strengthening the archipelago’s Earth observation capabilities through its own infrastructure, designed to provide advanced tools for territorial monitoring, environmental tracking, emergency management and decision-making support. Its development also helps to strengthen the Canary Islands’ technological autonomy in an area of growing importance.

The project also stands out for its pioneering dimension, as it is conceived as the first and largest Earth observation satellite constellation promoted by a regional government. This dimension reinforces its value as a technological infrastructure serving the territory and as an example of collaboration between public administrations, science and industry to promote space capabilities with practical application.

The Institute’s participation in this project is channelled through IACTEC Espacio, its department specialising in the development of advanced instrumentation for small satellites, Earth observation, image processing and technology transfer. In this framework, the IAC contributes scientific and technological knowledge to the development of a system designed to respond to the specific needs of the archipelago.

Among the Institute’s contributions to the project is the development of the DRAGO-3 camera, an evolution of the DRAGO line of space instrumentation, designed to operate in the SWIR, or short-wave infrared, range. This type of technology makes it possible to capture information that is not visible to the human eye and is particularly useful in applications such as detecting water stress in crops, monitoring wildfires and carrying out advanced observation of the territory.

This recognition comes at a time when the IAC continues to consolidate its capabilities in the space sector, strengthening its activity in small satellites, Earth observation instrumentation and data processing. In this context, Oscoz underlines that the award “also reinforces the work that has been carried out at the IAC in space instrumentation and Earth observation, and confirms that it is possible to promote projects from the Canary Islands with technological, scientific and operational reach”.

The distinction granted by Actualidad Económica reinforces the visibility of Constelación Islas Canarias as an initiative aligned with the development of the New Space ecosystem and with a vision in which space is understood not only as a field of research, but also as a tool at the service of society. In this sense, the project connects innovation, territory and economic development through an infrastructure designed to generate knowledge and useful applications.

For the Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias, this recognition is also an incentive to continue advancing the development of strategic capabilities in space technology from the Canary Islands, consolidating alliances with institutions and companies and reinforcing the role of the archipelago as a leading environment for Earth observation and aerospace innovation.