GRASP Earth and CIMEL Form Strategic Alliance to Advance Atmospheric Environmental Monitoring

Lille / Paris, 5 February 2026 – GRASP Earth, a NewSpace pioneer in atmospheric environmental monitoring, has announced a strategic alliance with CIMEL Electronique, a global leader in scientific atmospheric instrumentation. This partnership strengthens GRASP Earth’s capabilities by tightly integrating ground-based and space-based atmospheric observations, a critical step toward delivering scientifically validated data for climate research, air quality monitoring, meteorology, and environmental decision-making.
By combining CIMEL’s decades-long expertise in high-precision reference instruments with GRASP’s advanced data processing algorithms and its GAPMAP satellite constellation demonstrator, the GRASP Earth group is positioning itself as a global leader in end-to-end atmospheric monitoring, from the Earth’s surface to space.

Bridging Ground-to-Space Atmospheric Observations

Monitoring atmospheric composition—including aerosols (particles), gases, and clouds—is essential for understanding climate change, improving weather forecasts, assessing air quality, and protecting public health. These measurements are also critical for satellite surface imagery and Earth Observation calibration.

However, the Earth’s atmosphere is a complex and dynamic system that requires:

Multiple high-performance instrument types

Synergistic data fusion from ground and satellite platforms

Advanced retrieval algorithms for accurate interpretation

The GRASP–CIMEL alliance addresses this challenge by unifying ground-based precision, global satellite coverage, and state-of-the-art data inversion algorithms, delivering a comprehensive and scientifically robust view of the atmosphere at local, regional, and global scales.

A Shared Vision for Scientifically Validated Atmospheric Data

Through this alliance, GRASP Earth aims to become a global reference in atmospheric environmental monitoring. CIMEL’s renowned ground-based instrumentation—widely used as scientific references worldwide—will be combined with GRASP Earth’s proprietary multi-angle polarimeter technology deployed aboard the GAPMAP satellite constellation.

This integrated approach ensures:

Consistent calibration between ground and satellite measurements

High-accuracy retrievals of aerosols, gases, and clouds

End-to-end, scientifically validated atmospheric data products

These capabilities empower scientists, space agencies, cities, environmental authorities, and industries with actionable insights to support climate action, air quality regulation, and environmental protection.

Industrial Synergies and NewSpace Capabilities

As part of the alliance, CIMEL will extend its industrial manufacturing expertise to produce satellite-borne polarimeters at its facilities in Paris. This step marks CIMEL’s expansion into NewSpace instrumentation while reinforcing Europe’s industrial capabilities in Earth Observation.

“This alliance is the natural next step after years of working side by side in a field where our strengths align perfectly. For our partners and customers, it means even more powerful solutions—combining CIMEL’s instruments with GRASP’s cutting-edge algorithms. And for us, it’s a proud milestone: expanding our expertise into NewSpace instrumentation. A thrilling new chapter for CIMEL!”
— Didier Crozel, CEO, CIMEL Electronique

David Fuertes, CEO of GRASP Earth, emphasized the strategic impact:

“This move perfectly complements GRASP’s product portfolio with solutions for monitoring the Earth from both ground and space, all powered by our algorithms. It also reinforces our position in Europe by adding key industrial capabilities in France.”

Both companies will continue their existing operations while jointly collaborating with partners and customers to deliver holistic atmospheric observation systems, supporting operational data chains from the surface to orbit.

Strengthening European Leadership in Environmental Monitoring

This alliance reinforces GRASP Earth’s unique global positioning, rooted in France’s strong heritage in atmospheric sciences and Earth Observation. At the same time, it contributes to French and European leadership and autonomy in the rapidly growing NewSpace and environmental monitoring sectors.

About GRASP Earth

GRASP Earth is a pioneer in atmospheric monitoring, developing advanced retrieval algorithms that transform measurements into detailed information on the physical properties of the Earth’s atmosphere and surface. By integrating ground-based and space-based observations—including its own GAPMAP satellite constellation—GRASP Earth delivers a holistic view of aerosols, gases, and clouds to support climate science, environmental regulation, industry, and local governments.

About CIMEL Electronique

CIMEL Electronique is a global leader in atmospheric instrumentation, designing and manufacturing high-precision instruments for both ground-based and spaceborne applications. Its solutions are trusted by scientific networks and space agencies worldwide. Notably, more than 600 CIMEL photometers operate continuously within AERONET, the world’s reference aerosol observation network coordinated by NASA.