Vatican ‘counts down to launch’ Pope’s message of hope in Spei Satelles

By Devin Watkins

Pope Francis’ message of hope and peace for our troubled world is about to lift off into space.

The Spei Satelles, or “Guardian of Hope” satellite will carry a record of the Pope’s Statio Orbis of 27 March 2020 – held at the height of the Covid-19 pandemic – into orbit around the earth.

The SpeiSat 3U CubeSat will launch on 10 June 2023 from Vandenberg Space Force Base in the US state of California aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, which will place it in Low Earth Orbit (LEO) at an altitude of 525km.

Peaceful payload

The satellite—about the size of an American football—will house a “nanobook” version of Pope Francis’ Why Are You Afraid? Have You No Faith?, a book containing images and words from the Statio Orbis.

The nanobook was created by the Polytechnic University of Turin, is about the size of the tip of a pen, and can only be read by highly-advanced nanotechnology reading devices.

Yet, anyone with an amateur UHF-band radio can pick up a broadcast beamed from the satellite on 437.5 MHz to hear excerpts from the Pope’s book as it passes overhead.

Hope and action

The initiative also offers an invitation for people to get involved, and live out the Gospel message of hope in their own lives.

According to a press release, the website www.speisatelles.org gives people the chance to follow the mission’s progress, and have their name inscribed in a dedicated memory chip aboard SpeiSat.

“In order to obtain a virtual boarding pass, those interested will be asked to pledge to do a work of mercy on behalf of peace and hope,” read the statement. “Each person involved can thus become a concrete seed of hope in their daily lives.”

The satellite could potentially stay in orbit for up to 12 years, but the radio transmitter will continue to broadcast for only 6 months to a year due to battery-induced limitations.

Prophetic icon of hope

The headquarters of Vatican News – Vatican Radio hosted a press conference on Monday to present the initiative, exactly three years after the momentous papal prayer was held in St. Peter’s Square.

The Vatican’s Dicastery for Communication—the parent organization of Vatican News—is promoting the initiative in collaboration with the Italian Space Agency, the National Research Council, the Polytechnic University of Turin, the Instituto para el Diálogo Global y la Cultura del Encuentro – IDGCE, the Salesian University Institute Venice – IUSVE, and the Digital Apostolate of the Archdiocese of Turin.

Fr. Luca Peyron, who leads the Digital Apostolate of Turin, told reporters that the SpeiSat carries a prophetic message of hope, spread through the marvels of advanced technology.

“Even though the nanobook cannot be read with the naked eye,” he said, “it will be there, orbiting our planet. It thus becomes a sign and an icon, just like Pope Francis as he stood alone in that empty St. Peter’s Square.”