For planet earth and beyond
Three more nano-satellites have been launched as part of ESA’s efforts to boost the European space industry, fostering innovation and creating jobs. The satellites will be used to monitor climate change, forecast the weather, track ships at sea and aeroplanes in flight, and connect electronic devices to one another through the internet of things, enabling people to stay connected to one another everywhere and all the time.
An advanced telecommunications satellite that can be completely repurposed in orbit has arrived at its launch site of Europe’s Spaceport in French Guiana.
Developed under an ESA Partnership Project, Quantum will be able to respond to changing demands on Earth during its 15-year lifetime, providing data, communications and entertainment exactly where and when it is wanted.
Valuable data is flowing rapidly from Earth observing satellites back to the planet, thanks to the most sophisticated laser communication network ever built.
Day-and-night radar images and multispectral high-resolution images of vegetation, soil and water cover, inland waterways and coastal areas – as well as information for emergency services – are arriving back at Earth in almost real time.
Project INDIGO, a flagship ESA Public Private Partnership (PPP), is wrapping up on a high note after five successful years and an impressive track record of commercial success. It’s the end of a project that has seen telecom services reach new and unserved satellite markets, greatly enhancing the customer value chain.
Keeping information secure in today’s interconnected world is becoming ever more important, so ESA is supporting efforts to ensure that future communications are kept confidential.
Broadband satellites that can be completely repurposed while in orbit have just taken a leap forwards.
Beam-hopping satellites can switch which region of the world they cover – and vary the data volume and rates for each region – according to demand.
The European Space Agency signed a Partnership Projects contract on 21st May 2021 with the Prime Contractor OHB LuxSpace (LU) for the development and the qualification of the Triton-X Heavy platform, which will be ready for commercial use by mid-2023.
The design for a series of telecommunications satellites that can be completely repurposed after launch has just been completed.
The standardised OneSat satellites for the highly competitive global commercial telecommunications market are software defined and fully reprogrammable in orbit. They are being developed as an ESA Partnership Project with manufacturer Airbus.
The ESAIL microsatellite for making the seas safer has picked up more than two million messages from 70 000 ships in a single day.
The reliable high-performance satellite was developed as an ESA Partnership Project to help European and Canadian space companies succeed in the competitive global telecommunications market.
Clustered at the edge of the Crocodile River in Mpumalanga Province, South Africa, stand thousands of farms and small holdings growing fresh fruit and sugar cane. Water to irrigate the crops is taken from the river, but this slows its flow rate and leaves less for those downstream.