Europe launches new Sentinel mission with its upgraded Vega-C rocket

On 5 December at 22:20 CET (18:20 local time), the European Space Agency (ESA) Copernicus Sentinel-1C mission was successfully launched from Europe’s Spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana.

Copernicus Sentinel-1 is an environmental monitoring and maritime security mission; Sentinel-1C satellite’s goal is to expand and complement the Earth observation capabilities of its predecessors, Sentinel-1A and Sentinel-1B. 

GMV plays a key role in Copernicus, the European Union’s Earth observation program, participating actively in both the ground segment and the space component, as well as in the associated user services. Since the beginning of the program, the company has been involved in all phases of development and has covered the entire value chain, starting with the initial engineering studies and mission analyses needed to define its feasibility.

GMV also developed the control center, located in the ESA’s Space Operations Centre (ESOC), from where the mission’s evolution is monitored during the launch and early orbit phase (LEOP); the commissioning phase, to ensure that the mission meets the established requirements satisfactorily; and then to provide regular monitoring of the mission throughout the satellite’s useful life. Its tasks also include developing the mission planning system, contributing to the development of the orbital control system, and providing the associated support during the satellite launch. GMV is additionally in charge of the development of the satellite’s operational simulator used for validation of the mission’s flight control procedures and operator training.

Furthermore, GMV is responsible for hosting (using proprietary infrastructure), monitoring, operating, and maintaining the mission planning component of the Sentinel 1 missions on a 24/7 basis, including operations to address any type of emergency that may arise (e.g., natural disasters).

GMV is also in charge of the maintenance and evolution of all the simulators, control centers, and auxiliary software systems for the Copernicus satellites, including Sentinel-1C.

Finally, GMV regularly and continuously provides the precise orbit determination (POD) service, needed for processing and using the data generated by the instruments onboard Sentinel missions.

The Sentinel-1 mission is the result of a close partnership between ESA, the European Commission, industry, service providers, and data users.

The Vega-C rocket carried the third satellite of the Sentinel-1 mission, marking the return of the launcher and a key step in restoring independent and versatile access to space for Europe. 

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