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Programmes

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ROSETTA

MARS EXPRESS

ARTEMIS

SMART-1

GNSS-1/EGNOS

GALILEOSAT

EOPP

ENVISAT 1/POLAR PLATFORM

EOEP/CRYOSAT/GOCE/SMOS/ADM-AEOLUS

METOP-2

MSG-1

COLUMBUS

ATV

NODE-2 & -3

CUPOLA

ERA

DMS (R)

MELF I

GLOVEBOX

HEXAPOD

EMIR/ELIPS

MFC

ARIANE-5 DEVELOP.

ARIANE-5 PLUS

LAUNCH OCTOBER 2004

FIRST LAUNCH SEPT. 2004

CRYOSAT JUNE 2004/ GOCE FEB.2006SMOS 2007/ADM-AEOLUS OCT. 2007

LAUNCH JANUARY 2008(UNDER REVIEW)

LAUNCHES FEBRUARY 2004 & NOV.2006 (UNDER REVIEW)

LAUNCH UNDER REVIEW

LAUNCHED JULY 2000

LAUNCH UNDER REVIEW

LAUNCHED MAY 2002

LAUNCH OCTOBER 2005

BIO, FSL, EPM, PCDF, EXPOSE with COLUMBUS

OPERATIONAL

QUALF. LAUNCHES UNDER REVIEW

APCF-6/BIOBOX-5/ARMS/BIOPACK/FAST-2/ERISTO

MATROSHKA

CRYOSAT

VEGA FIRST LAUNCH JULY 2006

FLUIDPACK/BIOPAN

HERSCHEL/PLANCK

MSG-2/3

EMCS

VENUS EXPRESS

EDDINGTON

GOCE SMOS AEOLUS

MARES/PEMS

PROJECT 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007J FMAM J J A SOND J FMAM J J A SOND J FMAM J J A SOND J FMAM J J A SOND J FMAM J J A SOND J FMAM J J A SOND J FMAM J J A SOND

In Orbit

Under DevelopmentPROJECT 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007

J FMAM J J A SOND J FMAM J J A SOND J FMAM J J A SOND J FMAM J J A SOND J FMAM J J A SOND J FMAM J J A SOND J FMAM J J A SOND

COMMENTS

COMMENTS

SC

IEN

CE

PR

OG

RA

MM

EA

PP

LIC

AT

ION

S/

TE

CH

NO

LOG

Y P

RO

GR

AM

ME

SC

IEN

TIF

ICP

RO

G.

CO

MM

S./

NAV

.P

RO

G.

EAR

TH O

BS.

PR

OG

.M

AN

NE

D S

PA

CE

& M

ICR

OG

RA

VIT

YP

RO

GR

AM

ME

LAU

NC

HE

RP

RO

GR

AM

ME

DEFINITION PHASE

OPERATIONS

MAIN DEVELOPMENT PHASE

ADDITIONAL LIFE POSSIBLE

LAUNCH/READY FOR LAUNCH

RETRIEVAL STORAGE

SPACE TELESCOPE

ULYSSES

SOHO

HUYGENS

XMM-NEWTON

MARECS-B2

METEOSAT-5 (MOP-2)

METEOSAT-6 (MOP-3)

METEOSAT-7 (MTP)

ERS-2

ECS-4

CLUSTER

INTEGRAL

LAUNCHED APRIL1990

LAUNCHED OCTOBER 1990

LAUNCHED DECEMBER 1995

LAUNCHED OCTOBER 1997

LAUNCHED DECEMBER 1999

DEORBITED EARLY 2002

OPERATED BY EUMETSAT

OPERATED BY EUMETSAT

OPERATED BY EUMETSAT

PROBA LAUNCHED OCTOBER 2001

LAUNCHED APRIL 1995

REMOVED FROM ORBITDEC. 2002

RE-LAUNCHED MID 2000

LAUNCHED OCTOBER 2002

LAUNCH FEBRUARY 2004

LAUNCH JUNE 2003

LAUNCH AUGUST 2003

LAUNCHED JULY 2001

OPERATIONS START 2004

FIRST LAUNCH 2005

LAUNCHED MARCH 2002

LAUNCH 2005

LAUNCHED AUGUST 2002

LAUNCH FEBRUARY 2007

LAUNCH MSG-2 JAN. 2005LAUNCH MSG-3 2008

LAUNCH NOVEMBER 2005

LAUNCH EARLY 2008

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ISOThe ISO Data Centre Active Archive Phaseactivities have continued to run smoothly. TheArchive remains busy and, on average, eachmonth in 2003 has seen 60 users downloadingsome 13% of the content, i.e. the equivalent ofthe full scientific content is being retrievedevery eight months by the community.Requirements have been consolidated for anew version of the ISO Data Archive (V.6),planned for release in July, which upgradesthe functionality associated with, and visibilityof, the Expert Reduced Data (i.e. data reducedsystematically ‘by hand’). Projects focussing onreducing data from selected observing modesare underway and a campaign for solicitingreduced data from the community is about tostart.

A new approach to data-quality assessmenthas been laid down, upgrading from a smallset of ‘technical quality flags’ to a well-structured quality report, which often includesa ‘scientific assessment’. Implementation ofthis approach, which is the same as thatforeseen for the XMM-Newton ScienceArchive, is planned for version 7 of the ISOarchive, due for release end-2003.

ISO continues to have a significant presencein the refereed literature, with about 1000articles drawing upon ISO data havingappeared since late-1996, 143 of them in2002, with a similar number expected thisyear. These ISO-based papers cover almost all areas of astronomy.

XMM-NewtonXMM-Newton operations continue to runsmoothly. Radiation levels around the beltsand during the remainder of the orbit havestarted to increase again, which is a well-known seasonal effect. The recent orbit-maintenance manoeuvre and the spring 2003eclipse season went by without any problems.

All XMM-Newton ground-segment elementsare being upgraded from SCOS-1b to SCOS-

2000, to ensure satellite operability throughoutits potential lifetime up to 2010.

Data processing and data shipment isproceeding according to plan; over 2500observation sequences have been executed,and the data for 2400 of these have beenshipped. Version 2.0 of the XMM-NewtonScience Archive (XSA), including the firstrelease of the Survey Science Centre (SSC)generated source catalogue, was successfullyreleased on 7 April for use by the wholeastronomical community.

The programme-completion status is asfollows:- Guaranteed time : 96.9 %- AO-1 programme : 93.5 % - AO-2 programme : 39.4 %

The third call for observing proposals (AO-3)was released on 17 March, with a deadline of30 April, and is open to all astronomersworldwide.

On 27 February, a Gamma-Ray Burst (GRB)alert was received from ESA’s Integral satelliteand XMM-Newton was used to follow up thisevent. GRB030227 was discovered at 08:42UT on 27 February in the field of view ofIntegral’s IBIS telescope. Notification wasreceived by Vilspa (E) at 10:00 UT and an

observation was immediately approved by theXMM-Newton Project Scientist for execution atthe beginning of orbit 590, which was startingat 11:09 UT the same day. The observationbegan at 16:39:39 UT and lasted for a total of49 ksec. Already after the first 1000 sec ofexposure, two sources were clearly present inthe MOS field of view. Initial results can befound at:

http://xmm.vilspa.esa.es/external/xmm_news/items/grb030227/index.shtml

The above sequence of events clearlydemonstrates XMM-Newton’s ability to rapidly(< 6 h) follow up external triggers, andillustrates the powerful and unique capabilitiesoffered by operating the Integral and XMM-Newton observatories in combination.

By the end of March, some 280 papers basedon XMM-Newton data had been published in,or submitted to, the refereed literature.

IntegralFollowing its successful commissioning andperformance-verification phases, Integral has entered routine operation, conductingobservations on behalf of the astronomicalcommunity and guaranteed-observing-timeholders. Operations are proceeding smoothlywith no major concerns.

In February, the observing programme wasinterrupted to allow observations of the CrabNebula ‘standard candle’ source. Theseobservations will allow the sensitivities andresponses of Integral’s high-energy instru-ments to be accurately derived and providedto observers. Unfortunately, the Crab Nebulawas not visible earlier in the mission due tosolar-aspect-angle constraints.

As part of the guaranteed-time programme,Integral regularly scans the Galactic Planelooking for unusual activity and new gamma-ray sources. The first such new source, namedIGR J16318-4848, was recently found in thisway and prompted follow-on Target ofOpportunity observations with ESA’s otherhigh-energy mission XMM-Newton. These

ISO

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revealed a compact high-energy source deeplyembedded in dense surrounding material. Thismaterial blocks many of the emitted X-rays,while allowing the gamma-rays through muchmore easily. This results in a relatively faint X-ray source as viewed by XMM-Newton, buta bright gamma-ray source for Integral. Sincethen, Integral has discovered two more similarsources, hinting that such sources may bemuch more common than astronomerspreviously believed.

The detailed Integral observing programme is planned about one month in advance andcan be found on the web site of the Integral Science Operations Centre(http://astro.estec.esa.nl/Integral). The firstpublic data are now available on the web siteof the Integral Science Data Centre(http://isdc.unige.ch/) located near Geneva(CH), and the first shipments of data andprocessed science products to observers areexpected to start shortly.

RosettaVarious new mission scenarios were presentedto the Agency’s Science ProgrammeCommittee (SPC) in February. The outcomewas an SPC recommendation to study indetail a mission to comet Churyumov-Gerasimenko, which could be launched on anAriane-5 G+ in February 2004. A groundobservation programme has started to furthercharacterise the new target comet, and aLander Working Group has been set up toconsider in detail the difficulties of landing onthis particular comet nucleus, which is largerthan Wirtanen.

An alternative is a mission to the originaltarget comet Wirtanen, to be launched inJanuary 2004 but using a more powerfullaunch vehicle, e.g. Proton. A back-up to these missions is also available to cometChuryumov-Gerasimenko with a launch on anAriane-5 ECA or a Proton in February 2005.The final decision will be made by the SPC inMay 2003.

The Rosetta flight-model spacecraft remains atthe launch site in Kourou (Fr. Guiana), where

preparations for off-loading the fuel areunderway. It will now remain there and will beused for testing any software updates beforethe new launch campaign starts later in theyear.

The engineering-model spacecraft has beentransported to ESOC, where it will remainthroughout the mission. It will also be used totest any new software updates, to train for theflight operations, and eventually as a facility forstudying any anomalies when the spacecraft isin orbit.

Mars ExpressAfter the spacecraft had successfullycompleted all relevant tests, the Beagle-2landing craft was mounted on it for the firsttime in early March. The spacecraft, Beagle-2and all necessary support equipment have

since been transported by two Antonov-124cargo planes to Baikonur, on 19 and 21March, respectively.

Concern about the proper functioning of apower distribution box on the spacecraftnecessitated the removal and repair of thisunit. Its re-installation on the spacecraft inBaikonur required extra work, inducing a slip inthe launch date from 23 May to early June.The launch campaign is progressing well, withactivities being executed ahead of the planneddates.

The Ground Segment Readiness Review wassuccessfully completed in early February, andthe Flight Acceptance Review for the spacecraftwas held in mid-March.

See page 107 for latest news

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Mars Express satellite integration at the Baikonur launch site

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SMART-1After completion of the environmental tests,the SMART-1 flight model successfully passedthe second System Functional andPerformance Test (SFPT-2). The FlightAcceptance Review (FAR) Board, meeting on20 February, confirmed SMART-1’s readinessto fly, provided that the actions assigned –mainly a documentation update and someextra verification tests – were satisfactorilyclosed out. Arianespace has identified alaunch opportunity for SMART-1 between end-July and end-August. The spacecraft activitieswill be resumed with the final functional testand system verification test with ESOC, andthe integration of the solar arrays, beforetransportation to the launch site. In themeantime, the FAR actions are beingcompleted.

Preparation of the Mission Control System(MCS) at ESOC (D) and the Science andTechnology Operation Co-ordination (STOC) atESTEC (NL) is going according to plan. TheGround Segment Readiness Review for theMCS has already been held, while a deltareview for the STOC will take place at the endof May.

Due to the launch-configuration uncertainties,Arianespace has still to perform the finalmission analysis for the SMART-1 launch. Theassociated review is now expected to takeplace in June, and its success is a pre-condition for the mission Flight AcceptanceReview, expected to be held in early July.

Herschel/Planck/Eddington

Following the successful completion of theSpacecraft Preliminary Design Review (PDR)at the end of 2002, the project turned itsefforts towards the detailed activities. Lowerlevel PDRs took place for many units andsubsystems (including some major ones suchas the Attitude Control Subsystem), furthercontributing to the technical definition of thespacecraft at every level.

The Mission PDR – encompassing not onlythe spacecraft, but also the ground segmentand the science operations – took placesuccessfully in February and cleared the wayfor the programme to progress towards thenext major milestone, the Critical DesignReview (CDR).

There has also been progress in the definitionof the later spacecraft testing activities. Afacility specifically designed for vibrationtesting the Herschel instruments at cryogenictemperatures (- 260ºC) has been finalised atCSL in Belgium, and so the Project can nowsimulate on the ground the conditions that theexperiments will encounter during launch.

The SMART-1 Team in front of the Large Solar Simulator (LSS) at ESTEC in Noordwijk (NL)

Petals of the Herschel telescope after sintering at Boostec (F)

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Testing of the first qualification models of theHerschel payloads in this cryogenic vibrationfacility is scheduled for May.

The scientific instruments themselves are alsoadvancing in their development, and the firstfull hardware models are being built and willbe tested throughout the rest of this year.

Another area where major milestones arebeing achieved is in the manufacturing of theHerschel Telescope. The 12 petals that, whenput together, will make up the full 3.5 mprimary mirror have already been manu-factured and will be joined together (bybrazing) in the coming weeks. Thereafter, thecomplete mirror has still to undergo a numberof other lengthy processes, including polishing,coating, and cryogenic optical testing.

The Eddington mission, to be implemented inthe Science Directorate’s new ‘Cosmic Vision’strategic plan as part of the overallHerschel/Planck/Eddington programme, hasalso made major progress. The ESA IndustrialPolicy Committee (IPC) approved theprocurement proposal at its January meeting,authorising the release of the Invitation toTender (ITT) for industry to conduct paralleldefinition studies, which should be kicked off in May. A contract has been placed for themanufacture and testing of the special CCDdetectors needed for the Eddington mission.

Venus ExpressImplementation of Venus Express has beenprogressing at a rapid pace. The structuralelements are being assembled at Contraves inZurich (CH). Implementation of the groundsegment has been initiated in parallel and itsDesign Review will be completed by July. Thecontract for launch-service provision is beingnegotiated with Starsem and will be completedbefore the summer.

The Spacecraft Preliminary Design Reviewhas already been successfully completed. Thehot thermal environment is a major challengefor the mission design, impacting both thespacecraft’s thermal protection and the designof the solar array. The latter is the one item

that requires major changes with respect tothe Mars Express re-use philosophy.

On the payload side, the scientific communityhas set up regular meetings to advise theproject, and planning of the scientificobservations during the mission has started.

Double StarSince the birth of the Double Star project withan agreement signed in July 2001 betweenESA and the Chinese National SpaceAdministration (CNSA), regular interface andcoordination meetings have been heldbetween European and Chinese scientists andengineers. After eighteen months of intenseinterface definition work, the cooperativeactivities entered the hardware testing phaselast autumn, with a successful compatibilitytest of European and Chinese equipmentbeing carried out at Imperial College inLondon (UK).

Assembly of the structural-thermal model(STM) spacecraft was completed in China andit successfully passed its environmental testprogramme in February. The electricalsubsystems for the first of the two flight-modelspacecraft are being tested in Beijing andreadied for the integration of the European andChinese payload instruments at CSSAR(Centre of Space Science and Applied

Research). In parallel, European scientists arerefurbishing and adapting their Cluster flight-spare instruments for delivery to CSSAR bymid-May.

At that time, the European and Chinese-provided instruments will be subjected for thefirst time to an integrated system test and willundergo a full suite of interface and functionaltesting. Thereafter, all spacecraft and payloadinstruments will be mounted to the DSP-E(Equatorial) satellite structure, the first of thetwo Double Star satellites to be launched fromXichang in southwest China in December.

ArtemisAfter a 19-month journey in transfer orbit, the spacecraft finally arrived at its nominalgeostationary position on 31 January, anodyssey reported in some detail in an article inthe last issue of the ESA Bulletin (February2003). Since then, the remainder of theplatform commissioning tests have beenperformed and all subsystems were found tobe in good order. All specified functions areavailable (and many non-specified ones aswell, which have been discovered only as aresult of the very novel way in which we had tooperate the spacecraft during the orbit-raisingmanoeuvres). In parallel, the communicationpayload characterisation tests were executedby the Artemis team at the Redu station inBelgium. They were also very successful, with all payload functions available and allcharacteristics compliant with or better thanspecified values.

Rather spectacular communication tests havealso been performed. Optical data linksbetween Artemis and Spot-4 have beenestablished successfully and have confirmedthe good results of November 2001. Data-relayservices between Artemis and the Envisatsatellite have been carried out for the firsttime. Envisat pointed its high-gain antennatowards Artemis, whose data-relay antennareceived the signal, locked onto it andmaintained the link for the pre-programmedtime. Image data were transferred at 100Mbit/sec via this link from Envisat directly tothe processing centre in Frascati, Italy.

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Perhaps even more impressive were the testsperformed between Artemis and the JapaneseADEOS-II satellite. High-data-rate link testssimilar to those performed with Envisat wereconducted, but in addition TTC (telemetry,tracking and command) data were transmittedto and from Artemis. Commands generated inthe ADEOS-II control centre in Japan weretransmitted via terrestrial lines to Redu. Reduthen transmitted the data to Artemis, whichforwarded it to ADEOS-II. The commands wereexecuted on ADEOS and the correspondingtelemetry data relayed back to Japan viaArtemis and Redu.

These tests marked the end of the ArtemisCommissioning Phase. The satellite is nowoperational, with the Land-Mobile payloadbeing used since 1 April to provide anoperational service to Telespazio/Eutelsat. Bythe end of April, the daily data-relay service toEnvisat and Spot-4 will begin, and EGNOS will use the Navigation payload from summeronwards.

Meteosat SecondGeneration (MSG)

The MSG-1 in-orbit commissioning activitieshave continued since the satellite took its firstimage on 28 November. In December, theywere temporarily interrupted to analyse anobserved ‘satellite wobble’. Detailedsimulations showed that it had been caused byfuel migration within the thermally regulatedfuel lines.

Functional and performance testing of theMSG-1 SEVIRI imaging radiometer areproceeding nominally. The preliminary resultsare of a very high quality and resulted in asuccessful Commissioning Results Review bythe end of March.

Both the GERB instrument and the Searchand Rescue (S&R) transponder have alsobeen successfully commissioned.

MSG-1 commissioning will continue until mid-June, at which time Eumetsat will start the

subsequent Commissioning Phase-B with thefinal Image Processing Facility configuration,with the goal of entering the MSG operationalphase by the end of the year.

An Enquiry Board established to investigatethe anomalous switch-off of a solid-statepower amplifier (SSPA) on 25 October hasnow been concluded, with recommendationson the operation of MSG-1 and on theretrofitting of all SSPAs for MSG-2 and 3.

The MSG-2 satellite-level on-ground testactivities are nearing completion. Following thethermal-vacuum testing in December, anoptical vacuum test to verify the performanceof the SEVIRI imager was conducted inJanuary. Preliminary results show that allperformances are nominal. Following a Pre-storage Review (PSR) planned in Cannes (F)for early June, the satellite will be put intostorage to await its launch, which is scheduledfor January 2005.

For MSG-3, pre-integration activities havestarted with the mating of the propulsionsubsystem and thermal hardware onto thesatellite structure. As all of the remainingsubsystems have now been delivered, thesatellite’s main AIT (assembly, integration and test) programme will start in May.

MetOpIntegration work on the first flight modelcontinues, with preparations for the start ofMetOp-1 satellite integration and test activitiesbeing well advanced. Work at Payload andService Module level is thus nearly completefor MetOp-1, and is continuing at full speed forMetOp-2 and -3.

The Satellite Qualification Review is currentlybeing held, which is evaluating the results ofthe important module-level testing, examiningthe preparations for satellite-level integration,and checking the qualification status of alldesign elements. In parallel, Eumetsat isperforming its own Critical Design Review ofthe overall Polar System, with active supportfrom ESA and the MetOp team.

The first flight model of the IASI instrument isnow well into its acceptance test cycle, withdelivery to MetOp foreseen in the summer. Anumber of problems have been identified inthis process, e.g. with the (redundant half) ofthe corner-cube mechanism, and the acousticsensitivity of the laser subsystem. The wayforward on these issues is being investigated.

The second flight model of the GOME-2

Artist’s impression of how MSG builds up its scanned imagery as the spacecraft rotates at 100 rpm

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instrument has just been delivered. Oneperformance issue has recently beenidentified, which points to a degradation in the gratings used in the instruments. Thecause is not yet clear, but the solution mayrequire a retrofit.

The GRAS instrument continues to makeprogress, albeit rather slowly. The antennametallisation issue has been resolved, by the selection of gold to replace the silverpreviously used.

Failure of the AMSU and HIRS instrumentsduring the MetOp environmental testing hasrequired their return to the USA, where theproblems are being investigated and theinstruments repaired.

Eumetsat and NOAA have recently agreed a‘Joint Transition Agreement’ which addressesthe respective roles of the NPOESS systemand EPS/MetOp in the 2010 time frame.The Agreement preserves a strong role forEurope in respect of the infrared atmosphericsounding mission in the morning orbit.Stemming from this Agreement is a possibilityto have a rapid relaunch capability for MetOp,in the event of a launch or early-orbit failure.This concept is being evaluated.

ADM-AeolusAlmost all of the Invitation to Tender (ITT)packages for subsystems and equipment havebeen approved. Proposals for about 15 ofthese tender actions have been received, andseveral have already been evaluated. Inparticular negotiations are taking place withGalileo Avionica with a view to placing acontract for the laser transmitter assembly.

The Agency has discussed with industry thelifetime-assessment programme run on laserpump diodes in preparation for the Aeolusmission. That programme has shown that anadequate stack lifetime is achievable, andsignificant elements of the qualificationprogramme for stacks have been agreed. Theprogramme will include extensive screening ofstack components and a lot acceptance teston the flight stacks.

It has been decided that definitive launcherselection will not take place until late 2005.This will allow the on-going evolution in the launcher market, and particularly thereadiness of Vega for Aeolus, to be taken intoaccount. The structural-model campaign to bestarted next year will therefore ensure basiccompatibility with several launchers.

The ground-segment configuration to supportdata reception is being studied by ESRIN.It must receive and process the data andforward them to operational meteorologicalcentres within three hours. It will have oneEuropean ground station (probably Svalbard,Tromsø or Kiruna) and another in NorthAmerica. Point Barrow, a NOAA station inAlaska, would be a suitable candidate, but thepossibility of a new Canadian station with a2.4 m antenna is also being discussed.

Supporting science studies have investigatedthe quality of Aeolus wind data based onbackscatter information from the US LITEShuttle experiment. They have shown that dataat least as good as that from radiosondes canbe obtained over most of the globe. There is agood wind yield in priority areas where fewother wind measurements are available.

A separate study has shown that the twodifferent wind directions measured by Aeolus

on ascending and descending passes addsignificant information when integrated into atime-dependent assimilation scheme. The line-of-sight measurements used in this studyprovided a significant contribution to theanalysis of tropical wind patterns.

CryoSatThe satellite development programme passeda major milestone in March 2003 with thedelivery of the Cryosat spacecraft structurefrom Contraves (CH) to Astrium GmbH (D).Work on the test-beds for electrical andfunctional verification is making goodprogress. The Critical Design Review processhas been started with a presentation atESTEC and will assess the maturity of the

design prior to the integration of the protoflightmodel satellite.

On the payload side, integration of the SIRALaltimeter engineering-model boxes at AlcatelToulouse (F) is nearly complete. The antennasare currently being assembled at Saab-Ericsson (S) and the electrical performancetests are scheduled to begin by the end ofMay. Doris instrument development isprogressing nominally at Thales (F); the flight

In Progress

The Cryosat structure mounted on a trolley at Astrium GmbH

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model has been assembled and the initialelectrical tests have started.

Interfaces between the satellite and theEurockot launcher have been refined and are now under review in Moscow withEurokot/Krunichev.

The ground segment’s development isprogressing well, and preliminary activitieshave started at the Kiruna station. TheCryovex campaign, which forms part of theCryosat Cal/Val activities, is planned for April.

GOCEAbout nine months into Phase-C/D, the space-segment development activities are focussedon completion of the detailed satellite design,achieved through breadboard manufacturingand testing and through the execution ofequipment-level Preliminary Design Reviews(PDRs). Such PDRs have recently beensuccessfully concluded for the S-bandtransponder and antenna, the Power Controland Distribution Unit (PCDU), the Commandand Data Management Unit (CDMU), and themagnetic torquer. In addition, PDRs are inprogress for the ion-thruster assembly, thesatellite-to-satellite tracking instrument, andthe Gradiometer Accelerometer InterfaceElectronic Unit (GAIEU). The manufacture andtesting of the main on-board computer (i.e.CDMU) breadboard has been finalised and itis presently being used to support softwaredevelopment activities.

The GOCE industrial consortium is nearlycomplete. Negotiations have been concludedsuccessfully with the suppliers selected for thesolar generator’s Photovoltaic Assembly (PVA)and substrate, respectively. Moreover, theindependent-software-validation and the star-tracker contracts have been kicked-off.

On the Gradiometer side, mechanical testingof an accelerometer sensor head equippedwith the selected stop material and coatingwas performed during the second half ofMarch. On-going inspection of the testspecimen is expected to confirm whether thecurrent sensor-head design is able to

withstand the vibrations experienced duringlaunch. The accelerometer electronicsdevelopment is an area of some concern dueto the delays encountered so far. The Front-End Electronics Unit (FEEU) breadboardtesting activities were recently completed and the results show a satisfactory level ofcompliance with the gradiometer performancerequirements.

Concerning the Ion Propulsion Assembly,breadboard test activities for the xenon feedassembly have been completed and micro-vibration testing is in progress. Manufacture ofthe pre-verification model of the ion thrusterhas been completed, and a short 500 hendurance test has been initiated.

Ground-segment activities have focussed on finalisation of the documentation relevant to the Invitation to Tender (ITT) for thedevelopment of the Payload Data Segment(PDS), responsible for scientific dataprocessing up to Level-1B and for the runningarchive of data products during the mission.The PDS ITT was released at the beginning ofFebruary and contractor selection is expectedby the middle of this year.

Finally, the documentation relevant to thelaunch of an in-depth study of the tasks to beperformed by the Calibration and MonitoringFacility (CMF) has been completed. The studyitself is expected to start in May.

SMOSThe payload design phase (Phase-B) isprogressing well, with successful conclusion of the Payload System Requirements (PSR)Review with the prime contractor, EADS-CASA, on 1 April. The PSR identified a majordiscrepancy between the payload mass anddeployed inertias, and the capabilities of thePROTEUS platform. Immediate work-aroundsolutions were initiated to recover thesituation.

The formalisation of ESA-CNES cooperation is proceeding with the finalisation of a draftMemorandum of Understanding (MOU)between the two parties. The System

Requirements Document (SRD) has beenthoroughly reviewed and updated. Systemsupport studies have started on 4 March with CNES/Alcatel in support of payloaddevelopment, and on 18 March with Rockot for satellite-to-launcher coupled load andtrajectory analyses.

The ground-segment definition phase (Phase-A) with GMV, Indra and INSA, is proceedingaccording to plan, with completion expected bymid-2003.

The MIRAS Demonstrator Pilot Projects 1 and2 should be concluded by September. Tasksremaining tasks include a measurementcampaign with a Noise Injection Radiometer(NIR) at HUT, the final design review for theDigital Correlator (DICOS) at Astrium, andoptical harness (MOHA) breadboarding andtesting at Contraves.

PROBAThe last three months of usage of the PROBAspacecraft has been shared betweentechnological activities and data collectionfrom the spacecraft’s space-environmentinstruments (SREM, MRM and DEBIE) andthe Earth-observation instruments (HRC,CHRIS). The first CHRIS-PROBA Workshophas taken place in ESTEC to review theresults from the first year in orbit and toprepare the observation plan for the nextcampaign. The ground support for PROBA has

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been upgraded so that data will now also becollected by the ESA/Earthnet station atKiruna in Sweden, as well as ESA’s Redustation in Belgium.

International SpaceStation

Research and applications programmesFollowing the tragic loss of the Space Shuttle‘Columbia’ and its crew on 1 February, theconsequences for the ISS have beenanalysed. The Space Station Control Board(SSCB) evaluated the logistic needs for 2003and 2004 assuming an absence of the Shuttle,and made several recommendations. As aresult, the Multilateral Control Board (MCB)has decided to convert Soyuz flight 6S (April2003) into a Crew Rotation Flight, and fromApril onwards a two-person crew will be theISS baseline until the Shuttle returns to flight(a three-person crew is unsustainable, with theavailable number of Progress vehicles, beyondend-August 2003). Furthermore, the MCBapproved the SSCB ‘Option 2’ scenario, whichhas added one extra Progress flight in 2003and another in 2004, conditional upon fundingavailability. Unfortunately, to date this fundinghas not become available.

Specific activities related to the Heads ofAgency Programme Action Plan, agreed attheir meeting in Tokyo in December, have been slowed down by the Columbia disaster.

However, before that the decision was taken toreinstate Node-3 as a part of the ISS baseline,and to outfit it with the US regenerativeEnvironmental Control and Life-SupportSystem (ECLSS), thereby fulfilling one of theUS obligations that were not met in the ‘USCore Complete’ configuration.

Space infrastructure developmentAs part of the flight-model acceptance testing,the Columbus Laboratory thermal and electro-magnetic compatibility (EMC) tests wereperformed successfully. Hardware/softwarecompatibility testing has started and systemfunctional qualification of the Electrical TestModel continues.

Node-2 flight-unit mechanical integration hasbeen delayed by the unavailability of certainhardware and re-working of that alreadydelivered. The Node-2 Flight AcceptanceReview (FAR) has been concluded, butnumerous issues remain open.

The Cryosystem design phase (Phase-B) is ongoing and the System RequirementsReview (SRR) has been successfullyperformed.

Flight-unit harness and Meteroid and DebrisProtection System (MDPS) deliveries havebeen made for the Cupola.

Flight-model manufacture and integration ofthe Automated Transfer Vehicle (ATV) isprogressing. Manufacture of the refuellingsystem has been completed and IntegratedCargo Carrier flight-model integration hasstarted. Electrical integration of the FunctionalSimulation Facility (FSF) with the ElectricalTest Model (ETM) has been completed andelectrical testing started. The System CriticalDesign Review (CDR) has also started. Sometechnical problems with propulsion-bayequipment are being worked on and flight-software delivery delays have beenannounced by Industry.

Following the Ariane-5 launch failure lastDecember, the Ariane-5 configuration for

ATV-1 will be based on Vulcain-2 and the EPS upper stage. If Vulcain-2 is not qualified in time, it will be launched by an existingqualified Ariane-5 configuration using Vulcain-1and EPS, with reduced payload capability, butstill within the planned up-load mass for thefirst flight.

Work on Europe’s contributions to the X-38vehicle has been completed.

Operations and related ground segmentsProposal negotiations for the ColumbusControl Centre have been completed andsignature of the contract for the maindevelopment phase (Phase-C/D) took place on 31 March.

Following the ATV Control Centre proposalevaluation and negotiation, the technical andfinancial baseline has been agreed andsignature of the contracts for design anddevelopment, as well as for ATV operationspreparation, is planned for mid-April.

An in-orbit operational problem with theMicrogravity Science Glovebox (MSG) hasbeen resolved and operations restarted.

The Data Management System in the RussianService Module (DMS-R) is continuing toperform without problem.

Utilisation planning, payload developmentand preparatory missionsNine new Microgravity Application Promotion(MAP) continuation proposals had beenreceived by end-March, and they have beenpassed to the Expert Panel for evaluation.

The –80 degC Freezer (MELFI Flight Unit 1)has been installed in the Multi-PurposeLogistics Module (MPLM) ready for launch.

Delivery of the Hexapod to NASA is plannedfor May.

The SOLAR Instrument Safety Workshopidentified a lack of design maturity in thescientific instruments. Relocation of theEXPOSE facility from the EXPORT assembly(with Coarse Pointing Device) to the EuTEFassembly (without CPD) has beenimplemented.

In Progress

Data from PROBA’s SREM instrument clearly indicate theincreased proton flux in the South Atlantic Anomaly

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The payload Phase-C/D for the Atomic ClockEnsemble in Space (ACES) is on hold due touncertainties about the funding of PHARAO.

The Critical Design Review (CDR) forMatroshka has been successfully completedand thermal testing is now in progress atESTEC.

Functional qualification testing of the flightmodel of the European Robotic Arm (ERA) iscontinuing, but the launch date and scenariofor ERA remains undefined.

The seven ESA payloads that were part of theSpacehab mission onboard Space Shuttle‘Columbia’ were lost in that tragic accident.Telemetry and/or video data are available forARMS, COM2PLEX and FAST, representingapproximately 100% of the expected scientificreturn. For APCF, Biobox, Biopack andERISTO, however, the scientific outcome wasdependent on return of the processedsamples, which were destroyed in theaccident.

The Science Reference Model for Biolab isundergoing biological testing prior to delivery,the flight-model subsystems delivery is almostcomplete, and flight-model integration is alsoapproaching completion.

The Fluid Science Laboratory (FSL) systemflight-model assembly, integration and testinghas been completed. Integration of theCanadian Microgravity Vibration IsolationSystem (MVIS) will now take place followingthe completion of FSL flight-modelacceptance.

Testing of the NASA Quench Module Insert(QMI) in the engineering model of the MaterialScience Laboratory (MSL in US Lab) hasbeen successfully completed. Engineering-model delivery to NASA is expected by May,and flight-model assembly has been initiated.

The European Physiology Module (EPM)flight-model system integration is ongoing withharness and thermal subsystems. NASA’sHuman Research Facility HRF-2, including theEPM contribution, the Pulmonary FunctionSystem, has been integrated into the MPLMand is awaiting launch on ULF-1.

ISS educationA review of the pilot version of the ISSEducation Kit (for 12 to 15 year olds) by 800teachers has been completed, with positiveresults. The final version of the kit will beproduced in the last quarter of 2003. On 2/3 March, a workshop for Primary SchoolTeachers was held at ESTEC to prepare forthe development of the ISS Education Kit forPrimary Schools.

Commercial activitiesAn industrial initiative has been taken toestablish a European ISS Business Club, the purpose of which is to contribute to the promotion of ISS commercialisationopportunities throughout Europe’s businesscommunities. It will consist of contractors,subcontractors and suppliers in the area ofISS development, exploitation and utilisation,thus forming a unique industrial networkmotivated to promote the ISS.

A number of commercial proposals related tothe improvement of crew quality-of-life havebeen received and are being considered forfuture ESA Taxi-flight missions.

In preparation for the selection of one or morecommercial agents, a workshop for potentialagents was held at ESTEC in February. It wasattended by members of the CooperationAgreement, the USOCs and the technology-transfer network, and new companies thatoperate as R&D brokers in Europe.

Astronaut activitiesAndré Kuipers and Pedro Duque continuedtheir training in Russia for their Soyuz Taxi-flight missions which, due to the ‘Columbia’accident, have been postponed by six months.Their training schedules have been revisedaccordingly.

The training of Christer Fuglesang and hisfellow crew members for the STS-116/12A.1mission was suspended following the‘Columbia’ accident, but resumed on 18February. The future Shuttle flight scheduleawaits the outcome of the accidentinvestigations.

Vega and P80The two main industrial contracts for the VegaProgramme were signed in Colleferro (I) on 25 February. The first, for a firm fixed price of221 MEuro, is between ESA and ELV, theVega prime contractor and includes anindustrial commitment to future launch pricing.The second, for a firm fixed price of 40.7MEuro, has been signed by CNES, on behalfof ESA, and Fiat Avio, the prime contractor forthe P80 stage demonstrator. Signature of thiscontract is complemented by a significantindustrial investment. These concurrent eventshave concluded an intense negotiation phasein January and mark the full deployment of the resources needed to achieve the Vegalauncher objectives, including a first launch inJuly 2006.

Current Vega activities include the finalisationof contracts at the lower industrial levels, andpreparations for the Avionics PreliminaryDesign Review and the Level-1 Safety Review.The P80 development effort is also proceedingaccording to plan.

In the ground-segment area, final discussionshave taken place between IPT andCNES/DLA/SDS on the basis of the updatedproposal for the ‘Technical ManagementEngineering and Test Activity of the GroundSegment’. Preparation of the Invitations toTender (ITTs) for the main ground-segmentelements has progressed and the pre-TenderEvaluation Boards for three of them (civilengineering, metal structures and controlbench) took place in March. r

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JOB OPPORTUNITIES IN SPACESerco is the largest technical services contractor to ESA. We have been supporting the Agency’s programmes for over 30years and regularly have job opportunities based at ESTEC (Netherlands), ESRIN (Italy), ESOC (Germany), ESA/HQ (France),VILSPA (Spain) and Kourou Spaceport (French Guiana).

Typical activities within the space field encompass:

• AIV Engineering • PC Support • Web Development• Component Testing and • System Administration • Project Management• Failure Analysis • Software Development • Product/Quality Assurance• Antenna Engineering • Database Development and • Technical Authoring• Earth Observation Management • Telecommunications• Ground Segment Engineering • TT & C Engineering• Radio Navigation

If you would like to be considered for future job opportunities with Serco please send your full curriculum vitae to:

Malcolm Thomas, Serco FM BVAmbachtsweg 20A2222 AL KatwijkThe NetherlandsTel.: +31 71 409 0644 - Fax: +31 71 407 4014E-mail: mthomas@serco-fm.nl

Serco is an Equal Opportunities Employer

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