CIMR facts and figures

Launch: CIMR-A in 2029; CIMR-B in 2035 

Rocket: Vega-C  

Launch site: Kourou, French Guiana 

Orbit: Dawn-dusk sun-synchronous orbit inclined at 98.702° with a repeat cycle of 29 days at 817 km altitude and mean local solar time at the descending node of 6h 00 min ±10 min.  The orbit is chosen to coordinate with MetOp-SG-B1. 

Revisit time: 95% global coverage every day with sub-daily coverage in the polar regions. 

Life: Seven years (consumables for 12.5 years) after six months commissioning. The dual satellite system of CIMR will provide at least 15 years of continuous measurements. 

Satellite dimensions: Stowed for launch: 2.8 m x 2.1 m x 5.1 m; 
In orbit: 2.8 m x 6.5 m x 14 m, including the 8.5 m diameter reflector  

Instrument: Conically scanning (observation zenith angle 52–55°) microwave radiometer with dual polarisation channels at 1.4 GHz, 6.9 GHz, 10.65 GHz, 18.7 GHz and 36.5 GHz. 

Reflector: 8.5 m diameter reflector attached to an 8 m-long boom rotating at 7.8 rpm  

Mass: ~2000 kg (including 250 kg fuel); instrument 700 kg (rotating). 

Power consumption: ~1kW, continuous  

Spatial Resolution: L-band: 58 km, C- and X-band: 15 km, K-band: 5 km and Ka-band 4.5 km 

Data: Science data: downlinked via X-band to Svalbard (NO); 
Tracking, telemetry and command: uplinked and downlinked via S-band via Kiruna (SE) 

Project and commissioning: Managed at ESA’s European Space Research and Technology Centre (ESTEC) in Noordwijk (NL) 

Mission management: ESA’s Centre for Earth Observation (ESRIN) in Frascati (IT) 

Mission control: ESA’s European Space Operations Centre (ESOC) in Darmstadt (DE) 

Prime contractors: Thales Alenia Space, Italy for the satellite; OHB Italy for the CIMR microwave radiometer; HPS/LSS Germany for the Large Deployable Reflector System. 

Disposal: Controlled reentry through dedicated propulsion