The ESSAIM demonstrator, launched by Ariane 5 in December 2004, is a system of several micro-satellites (hence the name ‘swarm’ in French) for analysis of the electro-magnetic environment of the Earth’s surface developed for the French Ministry of Defence’s procurement agency DGA. The system also comprises a ground control segment and a ground user segment for data processing. The mission’s objective is to assess the operational capability of such a system, paving the way for the next generation.

The ESSAIM satellites are based on the Myriade multipurpose micro-satellite product line developed jointly by Astrium and the French Space Agency CNES since 1998.

The ESSAIM satellites are based on the Myriade multipurpose micro-satellite product line developed jointly by Astrium and the French Space Agency CNES since 1998.

In partnership with Thales Systèmes Aéroportés, Astrium delivered the complete turnkey system, including personnel training, launch services and maintenance, during more than five years (three years originally required), which ran up to third quarter of 2010.