Chromar Technology, home
Design · Develop · Assemble · Qualify · Test

You focus on the mission.
We focus the light.

One team, from first design to final test, with 45 years of optical design behind every lens.

Explore our systems
From concept to qualified system

Optics engineered for the extreme.

Chromar Technology is a privately owned South African company that designs, develops, assembles, qualifies and tests specialised optical systems: catadioptric telescopes, refracting lenses and zoom lenses for Earth-observation satellites, CubeSats, HAPS, UAVs and defence systems, from UV to LWIR. More than four decades of experience is built into every lens.

260+Original optical designs
5,000+Assemblies built and shipped
12Design types with space heritage
45Years of optical design
Precision by design

Optical systems

View all 88 lenses
01 Catadioptric lenses
Chromar C450 f/7.8 catadioptric lens, 450 mm focal length
58 designs · 100 to 2,500 mm UV to MWIR. Compact long focal lengths.
02 Refracting lenses
Chromar R27 f/5 refracting space lens, 27 mm focal length
28 designs · 13 to 400 mm Star tracker, space camera and sight lenses.
03 Zoom lenses
Chromar Z25 continuous zoom lens, 9 to 320 mm, 25x optical zoom
Z25 · 9 to 320 mm · 25× zoom 1° narrow field at 1080p.
04 Kuiper series
Chromar C950 Pluto, Kuiper series catadioptric telescope for Earth-observation satellites, render
950 to 2,500 mm For Earth-observation satellites and HAPS.
05 Space components
Chromar R16 f/1.4 star tracker lens, 16 mm focal length, more than 100 in orbit
Star tracker and sun sensor optics Plus optics built to your specification.
06 Test equipment
Chromar MTF test bench for lens testing, render
Interferometer, MTF bench, collimators To buy or to hire.
Next generation · In development

Kuiper series

Long-range optics for a new view of Earth.

Four catadioptric models from 950 to 2,500 mm, developed for Earth-observation satellites and then high-altitude platforms. The first, the C950 Pluto, is targeted for Q1 2027.

Proven in the field. Proven in orbit.

45 years of optical design.

1982Optical design begins
1996Chromar is founded
2009First camera reaches orbit
2026260+ original designs

From missile seeker optics and tank sights to helmet tracking for fighter aircraft and cameras in orbit.

Explore our heritage