Contract Signed For
ESA's Sentinel-3 Earth Observation Satellite
(14 April 2008) The European Space
Agency and Thales Alenia Space today signed a €305 million contract to
provide the first Sentinel-3 earth observation satellite, devoted to
oceanography and land-vegetation monitoring, as part of the European GMES
programme.
As prime contractor, Thales Alenia Space is
responsible for the satellite's design, development and integration.
The
contract was signed today in Paris by Volker Liebig, ESA Director of Earth
Observation, and Pascale Sourisse, President and CEO of Thales Alenia Space, in
the presence of Jean-Jacques Dordain, ESA Director General, officials from the
European Commission, the French Ministry of Research and Higher Education and
Dominique Bussereau, French Secretary of State for Transport at the Ecology,
Energy, Sustainable Development & Land Management
Ministry.
Underlining the value of this mission for Europe, Volker
Liebig commented: "This satellite is an important element of GMES and will
enable Europe to observe important ocean parameters".
Volker Liebig, ESA Director of Earth Observation, and Pascale Sourisse, President and CEO of Thales Alenia Space, signed the contract for Sentinel-3 Earth Observation satellite on 14 April 2008 in Paris. Sentinel-3 will provide crucial data for information services to the European Union and its Member States as part of GMES. The services to be fed data cover areas such as climate change, sustainable development, environmental policies, European civil protection, development aid, humanitarian aid and the European Common Foreign & Security Policy. (courtesy: ESA - N. Imbert-Vier 2008)
Global Monitoring for Environment and
Security (GMES) aims at delivering environment and security monitoring services
and is being led by the European Commission. It is Europe's response to the
ever-increasing demands of effective environmental policies and is at the same
time the European contribution to the Global Earth Observation System of
Systems (GEOSS).
ESA is responsible for the implementation of the GMES
Space Component, a package of earth observation missions involving ESA, EU/ESA
Member States and other partners. Central elements of this Space Component are
the five families of Sentinel missions.
Sentinel-3 will provide crucial
data for information services to the European Union and its Member States as
part of GMES. The services to be fed data cover areas such as climate change,
sustainable development, environmental policies, European civil protection,
development aid, humanitarian aid and the European Common Foreign &
Security Policy.
ESA’s Sentinel-3 operational ocean monitoring mission is scheduled to be launched in 2012. (courtesy: ESA)
The Sentinel-3 mission will produce a
consistent, long-term set of remotely-sensed marine and land data for
(operational) ocean state analysis, forecasting and service provision. A
comprehensive measurement system facilitating global ocean and land observation
is required in order to provide data for advanced numerical forecasting
models.
Sentinel-3 will determine parameters such as sea surface
topography, sea/land surface temperature, ocean colour and land colour with
high-end accuracy and reliability. For this purpose, it carries an advanced
radar altimeter and a multi-channel optical imaging instrument.
To
achieve near-global coverage and meet all scientific requirements, Sentinel-3
will be placed in a high-inclination, sun-synchronous polar orbit.
Near-real-time data processing and delivery will allow operational services to
continuously profit from the mission.
ESA carried out the Sentinel-3
definition phase in 2005/6, drawing on an industrial consortium led by Thales
Alenia Space. The implementation phase started in autumn 2007 and the launch of
the first Sentinel-3 satellite is planned for 2012.
(source:
ESA)