Inmarsat To Manage Payload Tests For Galileo In-Orbit Validation Programme

 

28th July, 2008

Inmarsat has been awarded a contract by DLR, the German aerospace centre, to provide Payload In-Orbit Test (IOT) services for the four satellites forming the Galileo In-Orbit Validation (IOV) phase.  DLR manages the Galileo IOV Operations Segment activities for the European Space Agency (ESA). 

Over the next two years, Inmarsat will manage the deployment and operations of a complex Payload IOT facility at the ESA ground station in Redu, Belgium, centred on a state-of-the-art IOT measurement system and complemented by three high-performance antennas.  

The in-orbit testing of the Galileo IOV satellites will be critical for the success of the Galileo mission. The results obtained during in-orbit tests will create a benchmark throughout the satellites’ operational life and will be used as a reference across the entire Galileo constellation.  It is essential that the highest accuracy is achieved for each individual measurement with every possible source of error minimized and accounted for.  “We are very proud to be selected by DLR and ESA for this vital component of the Galileo programme,” said Ruy Pinto, Inmarsat’s Director of Satellite Operations and Navigation.  “Inmarsat has a long-standing involvement with navigation services and Galileo, and we are highly motivated to contribute to the overall success of the Galileo In-Orbit Validation phase”. 

The state-of-the-art technology of the Galileo IOT system will be managed by teams of highly-skilled engineers and operations personnel from Inmarsat, and supported by a range of industry-leading subcontractors that includes Vertex, SED Systems and Siemens Austria.