November 24, 2005 – The Validation and Retrieval Team for the European Space Agency’s Soil Moisture and Ocean Salinity (SMOS) programme, a group of more than 70 scientists from around the world, held their first meeting (in Avila, Spain, on 21–24 November 24) to consider a series of proposals for exploiting data collected by the SMOS mission.
The SMOS programme, the second Earth Explorer Opportunity mission selected under ESA’s Living Planet programme, has been designed to observe and monitor two important variables of the Earth’s climate system – soil moisture over landmasses and salinity over the oceans. These two parameters are of key interest as they are fundamental for understanding the planet’s global water cycle, and thus for the creation of atmospheric, oceanographic and hydrological prediction models. The basis for the project, which dates back some years, was the brainchild of two scientific research institutes, the French CESBIO and the Spanish SCIC; subsequently the programme has attracted the involvement of over 45 institutions, agencies and universities from 17 countries, all of which sent representatives to the conference in Avila.
EADS Astrium Spain has designed the technical specifications for and is building the mission’s single-instrument payload, the innovative two-dimensional interferometer MIRAS (Microwave Imaging Radiometer using Aperture Synthesis), which should start delivering data by the end of 2007.
During their visit, the SMOS Validation and Retrieval Team had the opportunity to view the Flight Model of this instrument, which is under construction at EADS Astrium’s Barajas site in Madrid. The Engineering Model successfully passed qualification tests, carried out at ESTEC in The Netherlands during the summer this year. In 2006, the Flight Model will be integrated onto the satellite’s Proteus platform and further tests will be undertaken. The launch of the SMOS satellite is scheduled for March 2007 on-board a Rockot launcher.
EADS Astrium is Europe’s leading satellite system specialist. Its activities cover complete civil and military telecommunications and Earth observation systems, science and navigation programmes, and all spacecraft avionics and equipment.
EADS Astrium is a wholly owned subsidiary of EADS SPACE, which is dedicated to providing civil and defence space systems. In 2004 EADS SPACE had a turnover of €2.6 billion and 11,000 employees in France, Germany, the United Kingdom and Spain.
EADS is a global leader in aerospace, defence and related services.
In 2004, EADS generated revenues of €31.8 billion and employed a workforce of more than 110,000.
Contact:
Francisco Lechón (Spain) +34-91-586-3741
http://www.space.eads.net
