Sentinel-1D satellite now on course to expand the capabilities of Copernicus

The Sentinel-1D satellite is part of Europe’s Copernicus program, and on November 4th, it was successfully launched on board a European Ariane 6 launcher from the spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana. GMV has been playing a key role in this mission for various phases and subsystems.

The Copernicus program includes six satellite families, with the Sentinel-1 family providing radar images that are used for land and maritime monitoring and emergency services. This new satellite will replace Sentinel-1A, which has been in operation since 2014, and will join Sentinel-1C to operate as a pair in polar orbit. The main characteristic of the Sentinel-1 satellites is their instrument, known as C-SAR, which is a synthetic aperture radar system that allows the satellites to operate regardless of the existing illumination levels and weather conditions, to ensure that a consistent, long-term data archive can be obtained. The improvements provided by this new satellite pair, compared to their predecessors (1A and 1B), are greater precision for the radar images captured, and addition of an automatic identification system (AIS) that records data related to maritime vessels in real time.

GMV has been responsible for developing the satellite’s control center, which is located at the European Space Agency (ESA) Operations Center (ESOC) in Germany. This is where the satellite’s launch and early orbit phase (LEOP) and commissioning phase are being monitored, and this center will continue to monitor the rest of the mission. It is also worth noting that GMV is also responsible for the control centers for the other satellites that make up the Copernicus constellation.

The team from GMV oversees the mission planning system and development of the orbital control system, as well as the operational satellite simulator that is used for validation of the mission’s flight control procedures and for operator training.

As part of the critical operational services, GMV is providing 24/7 service, which also includes management of emergency operations to ensure a rapid response to any natural disasters that occur. For this purpose, the center’s infrastructure houses the mission planning component for the Sentinel-1 satellites, and it also performs monitoring, operation, and maintenance services. In addition, GMV is responsible for the maintenance and evolution of all the simulators, control centers, and auxiliary software systems that support the in-flight operations of the Copernicus satellites. Finally, the company is providing the precise orbit determination (POD) service on a regular and continuous basis. This service is necessary for processing and using the data generated by the onboard instruments.

GMV’s contribution to Europe’s Global Monitoring for Environment and Security (GMES) program has been an essential part of making this program one of the European Union’s major achievements. In this case, the company’s participation covers the program’s entire cycle, from the ground segment to the space component to data processing and analysis, so that services can be provided to all of the users who will benefit from this valuable information about our planet.