Thales Alenia Space has signed a first 7M€ contract with the European Space Agency (ESA) to develop the Earth Observation Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) instrument to be embarked on the two Harmony satellites, ESA’s 10th Earth Explorer mission.
The company made the following statement on the contract:
“This bridging phase contract is the first step towards the final contract for the overall SAR implementation phase. Under this contract, Thales Alenia Space will lead a diversified European industrial consortium to design, develop and validate the C-Band SAR instruments and will also be responsible of the C-Band digital electronic and antenna tiles to be embarked on both Harmony satellites, expected to be launched aboard a Vega-C launch vehicle by 2029.”
“ESA's choice of entrusting the development of the radar instrument is evidence of the success and great compliance of the technology used by Thales Alenia Space and confirms our company’s long and recognized experience in manufacturing Earth observation satellites based on radar technology.” said Massimo Comparini, Senior Executive Vice President, Observation, Exploration, and Navigation at Thales Alenia Space.
Comparini added: “The development of this instrument will allow Thales Alenia Space to make an important technological and architectural step forward improving the competitiveness of SAR products in the institutional and commercial Earth Observation market”.
Florence Hélière, ESA’s Harmony Project Manager, said: “Thanks to Thales Alenia Space’s long involvement in radar technology, I am assured they will develop the Harmony SAR instrument successfully. I'm also confident that the team’s motivation and engagement will be an asset in maintaining the schedule and meeting our rendezvous with Sentinel-1.”
