İMECE, Turkey's first sub-meter resolution earth observation satellite developed with indigenous and national capabilities, was officially taken into inventory on May 22, 2025 with a ceremony held at the Ahlatlıbel Reconnaissance Satellite Command of the Air Force Command. The ceremony was attended by officials from the Air Force Command and TÜBİTAK, as well as engineers and guests who took part in the project.

"For Our Independence and Future"

Speaking at the ceremony, Major General Hüseyin Duman, Deputy Chief of Staff of the Air Force Command, said: "Today, we are proud to welcome the IMECE satellite, which constitutes a strategic link in our country's space capabilities, into our inventory. I would like to thank all scientists and defence industry employees working for our independence and future. The point we have reached today will leave milestones that will increase our capabilities in many areas from agriculture to industry, from urbanization to defence. We now have another eye in space. I would like to thank all institutions, organizations and technical personnel who contributed to the realization of the project, and I wish that İMECE will be beneficial for the Turkish Armed Forces and our country."

İMECE Satellite Will Now Be Called GÖKTÜRK-2B

In his speech, Hv. Plt. Col. Tolga Çınar, Space Commander from the Air Force Command, said: "Space is no longer just a research area; it is a direct defense area. We have to show an effective, deterrent, continuous and independent presence against all kinds of threats. The İMECE satellite, which has been added to the inventory of the Air Force Command, will be named 'GÖKTÜRK-2B' in accordance with the Air Force Satellite Naming Standards."

"We are proud of the successful completion of another adventure"

In his speech at the ceremony, Mehmet Nefes, Institute Director of TÜBİTAK UZAY, said: "Today, we are proud of the successful completion of the İMECE Project, which started in 2013." "I would like to thank the Presidency of Defense Industries, the Presidency of Strategy and Budget, the Air Force Command and TÜBİTAK SAVTAG for their support to the project." Stating that the satellite, which was developed with a localization rate of over 90 percent, is now in the service of the Turkish Armed Forces, Nefes concluded his speech by saying, "I congratulate all TÜBİTAK UZAY personnel who have worked devotedly since the beginning of the project, and I wish them continued success."

Operational Success in National Satellite Systems

A presentation was also made by Lieutenant Colonel Arda Ayan, Commander of the Reconnaissance Satellite Battalion. In his presentation, Ayan talked about the activities carried out to provide space history to the indigenously developed satellite subsystems. In his speech, Ayan shared information about the process from the launch of the İMECE satellite into space to its commissioning, and said: "After the system tests of the satellite were ready, we started the acceptance tests. After about a year of detailed work, we successfully completed this process."

National Space Technology Signed by TÜBİTAK UZAY

İMECE was developed by TÜBİTAK UZAY to meet Turkey's need for high-resolution satellite imagery. On April 15, 2023, at 09:48 Turkey time, the satellite was launched into space from the Vandenberg Space Force Base in the United States with SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket. After receiving the first signal from the satellite, which successfully separated from the rocket at 12:24 on the same day, the commissioning process was successfully completed and the first test image was obtained on April 29, 2023.

Developed with Local Components

IMECE Project, GÖKTÜRK-2 and RASAT satellitesThe project reached a higher localization rate by building on the know-how gained from the previous projects. Within the scope of the project, a space-compatible electro-optical camera was designed, developed and produced for the first time in Turkey. With this step, Turkey has reached a level where it can not only use satellite imagery, but also produce and export its own electro-optical camera.

Many sub-systems required for the satellite's orientation and orbit control, such as the electric propulsion system, star tracker, solar sensor, reaction wheel, GPS receiver, magnetometer and magnetic torque rod, were developed for the first time with domestic facilities within the scope of the project. In addition, power regulation and distribution equipment, payload data recording systems, X-band and S-band communication systems and flight computers were designed and manufactured by TÜBİTAK UZAY engineers. Software development processes were also carried out entirely indigenously.

New Target: Team Satellite Project

In line with the technological competencies gained through the IMECE Project, the "High Resolution Team Satellite Development Project" was launched in 2024 under the leadership of TÜBİTAK UZAY. With this new project, it is aimed to use the infrastructures established in İMECE more efficiently, to adapt the developed equipment to new systems and to protect and develop the trained human resources.

A Strategic Step in the National Space Journey

İMECE's entry into inventory is seen as a concrete result of Turkey's vision to reduce its foreign dependence in space technologies. İMECE, whose entire production, assembly, integration and testing activities were carried out by Turkish engineers within the borders of our country, also demonstrates Turkey's high technology production capacity and the level it has reached in space technologies.