Astrium selected for
MicroWave Sounder
instruments for MetOp Second
Generation satellites
16
July 2013
Astrium
has been
selected by the European
Space Agency (ESA) to supply
the MicroWave Sounder (MWS)
instruments for the MetOp
Second Generation series of
satellites (MetOp-SG). The
contract for the MWS
instruments, worth up to
€155.5 million, has been
awarded to Astrium in the UK
and the satellites will be
operated by EUMETSAT, the
European Organisation for
the Exploitation of
Meteorological Satellites.
The MWS
instrument is the follow on
to the highly successful
MicroWave Humidity Sounder
(MHS), also primed from
Astrium in Portsmouth and
currently flying on the
first generation MetOp
missions. The new generation
of instruments will provide
a much higher level of
performance over a greater
spectral range. The
instrument delivers
atmospheric temperature and
water vapour information for
use in Numerical Weather
Prediction (NWP) forecasts
enabling short term weather
forecasts to be made with
greater accuracy.
There
will be a minimum of two MWS
instruments, each with a
mission life of 7.5 years. A
team of 40 at Astrium in
Portsmouth will develop the
MWS instruments together
with 15 major
sub-contractors across UK
and Europe. In the UK key
contributions to the
programme will also be made
by SEA Ltd, STFC/RAL, JCR
Systems Ltd and Queens
University in Belfast
together with other
opportunities for UK
companies to bid to provide
equipment/services. ESA has
the option of ordering a
third instrument, to ensure
that the MWS instruments
will provide accurate
forecasting data until 2040
and beyond. The first
MetOp SG satellite is due to
be launched in 2021
Astrium
UK Managing Director, Colin
Paynter said: “This contract
is a direct result of the
government increasing its
ambition in space which has
allowed our great innovation
and engineering talent to
have a route to market. It
builds on Astrium’s proven
expertise in meteorological
and space-borne instruments,
and is great news for the UK
team. The unique experience
built up in developing and
manufacturing the microwave
instruments for the current
MetOp satellites firmly put
Portsmouth as one of the
world leaders in this area.”
Minister
for Universities and Science
David Willetts, said: “This
substantial contract shows
that the UK’s increased
investment in the European
Space Agency is already
paying dividends and getting
us ahead in the global race
and the space race. It
confirms our space
industry’s world-class
position and will see
Astrium working with other
leading businesses,
scientists and engineers to
develop cutting edge
satellite technology.”
There are
currently four MHS
instruments in orbit, on the
European MetOp satellites
and the US NOAA
meteorological satellites.
The first instrument was
launched in 2005. Altogether
they have accumulated 17
years of faultless mission
operation across the four
instruments. A fifth MHS
instrument is in long term
storage and will be launched
on the third and final MetOp
satellite in 2018.
In
addition to the MHS sounders
in orbit on the current
MetOp satellites, several
other instruments were
procured by Astrium and
largely built at its sites
across Europe. They include
the Advanced Scatterometer
(ASCAT), a radar system that
measures wind speed and
direction above the surface
of the oceans, and the
Global Navigation Satellite
System Receiver for
Atmospheric Sounding (GRAS),
a GPS receiver that supplies
atmospheric sounding data.
