The IUE project has come to an end after 18+ years of extremely successful orbital operations.
At a meeting of ESA's Science Programme Committee (SPC) in February, the decision was taken to terminate the orbital operations of the International Ultraviolet Explorer (IUE) satellite on 30 September. Science operations were terminated shortly before that date to allow the necessary end-of-life testing of the spacecraft. Only a year ago, when NASA - the major partner in the IUE project - decided to terminate its IUE science operations, ESA had been able to extend its support to include full responsibility foe the scientific operations, under the 'hybrid science operations' scheme (described in detail in ESA Bulletin No. 87), and thus maintain this important capability for the astrophysics community. As a consequence of the budgetary restrictions placed on ESA's Science Programme, the earlier recommendation of the Space Science Advisory Committee (SSAC), to terminate the operations of IUE in coordination with NASA in September, was accepted by the SPC.
The IUE project, using a 45cm ultraviolet telescope for spectroscopic observations in the 115 to 320 mm waveband, has been carried out jointly by NASA, ESA and the UK PPARC (formerly SERC). Launched in 1978, its designed lifetime was only three years.
In July, the SPC agreed to complete the IUE Final Archive by the end of 1997, allowing the project to reprocess all its spectroscopic observations (numbering over 100,000) with a newly designed reduction, significantly improving on the normal direct processing done during the operational phase of the IUE project. The resulting homogeneous data archive on the ultraviolet radiation of cosmic sources, collected over the 18+ years of the operational project, will remain an important resource for astrophysical studies for many years to come.
This has been one of the most successful astrophysics projects in space science, with more than 3500 papers in referred journals based on the observational results of the spectrographs. Over 500 doctoral dissertations have used its results, clearly demonstrating the importance of the project, not least for the education of the next generation of astrophysicists.
During the last six months of science operation a number of special observational programmes (Lasting Value programmes) were conducted from ESA's IUE Observatory at its ESA Villafranca Satellite Tracking Station in Spain, to make sure that the material in the Final Archive will nota lack any critical observations for which the specific capabilities of the IUE project were particularly suitable.
These programmes were associated with planetary studies (Jupiter and its Galilean satellites in coordination with the in- situ studies of the Galileo mission); critical observations of the mechanisms associated with the stellar winds in massive stars; and a major coordinated campaign in the x-ray, ultraviolet and optical wavelengths to determine the nature of the mini- quasar in the Seyfert I Galaxy NGC 7469.
The last observations were all made under single-gyro spacecraft control after another gyro failure in March 1996 left IUE with only one functional gyro, out of the original six.
An Agreement on Space Cooperation for peaceful purposes was signed in Paris between the European Space Agency (ESA) and the Government of the Portuguese Republic on 24 July.
The Portuguese Government was represented by the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Jaime Gama and by the Minister of Science and Technology, Professor Mariano Gago. ESA was represented by its Director General, Jean-Marie Luton.
It is hoped that the new agreement will help to establish closer cooperation between Portugal and ESA in areas of mutual interest, such as space sciences, earth observations, telecommunications and microgravity.
The Agreement is also intended to increase the exchange of information on the activities of the two parties in the fields of research and development and applications related to space, as well as to foster the exchange of experts and the definition of joint pilot projects.
Satellite navigation is one promising area of cooperation where Portuguese authorities have expressed their interest in participating in the Agency's activities being carried out in the framework of the Artes 9 telecommunications programme.
Similar agreements have been concluded by the Agency with Greece, Hungary, Poland and Rumania.
From right to left: Jean-Marie Luton, ESA's Director General;
Jaime Gama, Portugal's Minister of Foreign Affairs and Professor
Mariano Gago, Portugal's Minister of Science and Technology.
The Euromir 95 scientists met at the European Astronaut Centre on 3 and 4 September to present and exchange their preliminary findings and results from the 41 experiments carried out during the flight onboard the Mir station and on the ground.
In addition, Astronaut Thomas Reiter presented his views concerning the experimental work conducted onboard the Mir station during his 179-day flight. All participants at this meeting expressed their great satisfaction regarding the wealth and quality of scientific data obtained through the Euromir programme.
The lessons learned and experience gained, particularly in view of the utilisation of the future International Space Station, have been the subject of discussions between Astronaut Thomas Reiter and various ESA engineers/scientists at ESTEC.
Negotiations are underway between the Agency and their relevant Russian counterparts for the continuation of selected Euromir experiments onboard the Mir station during the latter half of 1997. This extension would be based on equipment already aboard the Mir station. For the experimental work, a Russian crew member would be trained pre-flight in order to devote an agreed working time during the flight to the Euromir experiments.
Thomas Reiter unloads supplies from the Progress vehicle.
On Monday 12 August, ESA astronauts Pedro Duque and Christer Fuglesang arrived at NASA's Johnson Space Center to begin training as members of the 1996 Astronaut Class.
The two ESA astronauts are part of a group of international astronaut candidates, in which the Canadian, French, German, Italian and Japanese space agencies are also represented, who will train for 22 months as mission specialists for future Space Shuttle and International Space Station mission.
Pedro Duque
Pedro Duque, born on 14 March 1963 in Madrid, Spain, was selected in May 1992 to join ESA's Astronaut Corps. He trained at ESA's European Astronaut Centre in Cologne and at the Cosmonauts Training Centre in Star City, Russia. He was stand-by crew member for ESA's 30-day Euromir 94 mission and served as primary Crew Interface Coordinator for that Mission, Duque was also the Alternate Payload Specialist for Shuttle mission STS-78 in June-July this year.
Christer Fuglesang
Christer Fuglesang, born on 18 March 1957 in Stockholm, Sweden, was selected in May 1992 to join ESA's Astronaut Corps. He trained at ESA's European Astronaut Centre in Cologne and at the Cosmonaut Training Centre in Star City, Russia. He was the stand-by crew member for ESA's 180-day Euromir 95 mission and served as primary Crew Interface Coordinator for that mission.
The other international candidates selected by NASA are: Steve MacLean and Julie Payette of the Canadian Space Agency; Mamorou Mohri and Soichi Noguchi of the Japanese Space Agency NASDA; Philippe Perrin of the French Space Agency CNES; Gerard Thiele of the German Space Agency DARA and Umberto Guidoni of the Italian Space Agency.
As part of their skills maintenance programme, the ESA astronauts completed a rigorous six-day underwater training programme on Giglio Island, Italy in July. During the course, they learned and practised skills and used equipment that are required during extra-vehicular activities. Also, taking advantage of the neutral buoyancy that the underwater environment offers and which simulates space conditions, they practised moving and working while wearing bulky equipment. They also performed emergency recovery procedures.
The ESA astronaut corps currently includes: Jean-François Clervoy (F), Pedro Duque (E), Christer Fuglesang (S), Ulf Merbold (D), Claude Nicollier (CH), and Thomas Reiter (D).
The ESA astronauts practise using various breathing systems
at depths of up to 36 metres. They learn to use standard air,
Nitrox (a special gas mixture), and re-breathers, a computer-
controlled, self-mixing and closed-circuit personal life support
system.
The 91st Ariane launch took place successfully on Tuesday 10 September at 21:00:59, Korou time (02:00:59 on 11 September, Paris time).
An Ariane 42P version (equipped with two solid propellant strap-on boosters) placed the American telecommunication satellite Echostar II into geostationary transfer orbit.
The next Ariane launch is scheduled for 7 November 1996. An Ariane 44L (the version equipped with four liquid strap-on boosters) will take into orbit the Arabian and Malaysian telecommunication satellites. Arabsat IIB and Measat, respectively.
The Japanese Minister of State for Science and Technology, Mr Hidenao Nakagawa, visited ESA Headquarters on 12 September 1996. The Minister was accompanied by the NASDA President, Mr Takashi Matsui, who had a long and detailed discussion with ESA's Director General on the ongoing, cooperative projects between the Agency and Japan, and prospects for widening such cooperation in the future.
Mr Hidenao Nakagawa (Japanese Minister of State for Science
and Technology) shakes hands with Mr Jean-Marie Luton (ESA's
Director General) on the occasion of his visit to ESA
Headquarters.
The 1996 International Space University Summer Session Programme was held this year in Vienna, Austria from 1 July to 6 September.
The intensive 10-week programme was attended by some 100 graduate students and professionals from around the world. They were provided with a unique educational experience centred around an interdisciplinary, intercultural and international perspective of the world's space activities.
The curriculum consisted of three parts: core lectures,
specialised lectures and design projects. This year, the two
projects selected and successfully carried to completion were: -
'Ra; The Sun for Science and Humanity' which presents a
'Strategic Framework for pursuing solar science and
applications', defined in three time frames: Near-, Mid-and Far-
Term.
- 'Distant Operational Care Centre' which outlines a
design for a medical facility in space and that will also 'lead
to significant advances in medical knowledge and spin-off Earth
applications of the technology'.
ESA-sponsored attendees this year were Mr F. Sarti (ESTEC), Mr G. Carra (HQ) and Mr J. Sanchez (ESRIN). The session was also attended by Mr G. Scoon (ESTEC), a supporter of the programme for many years, who this year served as co-chair for the 'Ra' design project.
For more information concerning the two design projects or on ISU activities in general, contact:
International Space University
Parc d'Innovation
Boulevard Gonthier d'Andernach
67400 Illkirch
France
'Ra: The Sun for Science and Humanity' project team.
The European Space Agency, the British National Space Centre and the UK Industrial Space Committee shared a Space Pavilion at this year's Farnborough International Air Show (2 to 8 September).
The spotlight in the Space Pavilion this year was on space science models and particularly on Huygens, ESA's space probe to Saturn's moon Titan, to be launched in October 1997, and on SOHO, Europe's Sun observer launched at the end of 1995. A 3D virtual reality theatre allowed visitors to discover the International Space Station 'as if they were there', while an Ariane-5 1:5 mock-up towering outside the main entrance showed the way to the Pavilion. The Pavilion also hosted an interactive display area: a cyberspace terminal with the latest Internet news, and hands-on units featuring the best of space R&D and space teaching information. Many demonstrations of space applications, including technology transfer, were also on display.
The Pavilion opening was hosted by Ian Taylor, Britain's Minister for Space; Jean-Marie Luton, ESA's Director General; and Pat Norris, the UK Industrial Space Committee's Chairman.
The IAF (International Astronautical Federation) held its 47th Congress on 7-11 October in Beijing this year. The IAF is a non- governmental association of national societies, institutions and industrial companies. Founded in 1950 with 11 members, it now has 129 members in 46 countries. The IAF Congress is held annually in a different country.
During the Congress, and with the active support of the Chinese National Space Agency (CNSA), ESA organised the fourth meeting of the Space Agency Forum (SAF-4) on 8 October.
On this occasion, the Chinese Prime Minister received the main representatives of the various space agencies for an exchange of views. Most papers and reports presented were directed towards space activities in the 21st century, detailing long-term and future programmes. Other topics of interest included: benefits of the mission to planet Earth for developing countries, space in education, space science activities and Earth observation studies.
Furthermore, proposals were made for a SAF Award and a Space Millennium event, though no final decisions were taken. The AIAA (American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics) reported on its 3rd international space cooperation workshop 'From Recommendations to Action' which was held at ESRIN earlier this year.
The keynote address for this year's Space Agency Forum was given by Mr K. Doetsch, President of the IAF.
Participants in the Fourth Space Agency Forum held in the
guest house of the Chinese government in Beijing.
The Fourth International Symposium on Space Mission Operations and Ground Control Systems was held at the Forum der Technik near the Deutsches Museum in Munich, from 16 to 20 September. The subject of the symposium was 'Global Space Operations in the next Century'.
Some 600 experts from over 30 countries were invited to discuss the latest trends in the satellite sector and ground control systems, with special emphasis on greater cost effectiveness and the increasing internationalisation and standardisation of future space projects.
With nearly 1000 operational satellites already in orbit and some 500 more to come in the next five years, there were several key themes to be addressed:
Reports on the latest developments were presented by the two organisers, the German Space Agency (DLR) and the European Space Agency (ESA), and by the representatives of the American, Russian, French, Japanese, Chinese, Indian, Brazilian, Canadian and Ukrainian space agencies. Space industry representatives from all over the world contributed to the general exchange of information and experience.
Copies of the Proceedings (ESA SP-394) can be ordered from ESA Publications Division (see inside back cover for details).
Envisat-1 is an environmental multidisciplinary Earth- observation mission. It will not only provide continuity with and enhancement of the ERS data, but will add significant new capability principally in the area of environmental monitoring, both of the atmosphere and of the oceans.
Formally, the Envisat activities are covered by a combination of two Programmes:
The Envisat-1 Programme has required extensive contractual negotiations. The contract with the PPF Industrial consortium led by Matra Marconi Space (UK) was concluded and signed in July 1995. After lengthy and difficult negotiations, the contract with the Mission Prime consortium led by DASA/Dornier was concluded and signed on 12 July 1996. The Payload Data Segment contract (consortium led by Thomson-CSF) as well as the Launch Services Agreement (with Arianespace) are currently under negotiation and are expected to be finalised before the end of 1996.
Signing of the Envisat Mission Prime contract. From right to
left seated: ESA's Director General, Mr J-M. Luton and Dornier's
Managing Director, Mr K. Ensslin; right to left standing: Mr P.
Rinio (ESA), Mr K. Reuter (Head of ESA Cabinet), Mr L. Emiliani
(Director of ESA's Earth Observation Programme), Mr K. Gluitz
(Dornier), Mr B. Pfeiffer (ESA), Mr W. Thoma (ESA), Mr R.
Knöfel (Dornier), Mr R. Benz (Dornier), Mr B. Gardini (ESA).
From right to left: ESA's Director General, Jean-Marie Luton
and Eumetsat's Director, Tillmann Mohr sign a Cooperation
Agreement for two further weather satellites of the Meteosat
Second Generation.
On 16 October 1996, Mr Jean-Marie Luton, the ESA Director General, and Mr Tillmann Mohr, the Director of Eumetsat, signed a Cooperation Agreement on the procurement by ESA of two further weather satellites of the Meteosat Second Generation (MSG-2 and MSG-3) for Eumetsat.
The MSG series of satellites and ground processing facilities will provide continuity of observations with the current generation of Meteosat satellites until well into the next century.
MSG-1, the first satellite in the series, will carry as its main payload an advanced radiometer for Eumetsat's requirements and a radiation budget experiment as a result of an ESA Announcement of Opportunity. It is currently being developed by ESA and scheduled for launch in the year 2000.
MSG-2 and MSG-3 will be procured by ESA on behalf of Eumetsat. They will be built by European industry under ESA contract and are scheduled for launch in 2002 and 2007.
Eumetsat will launch and operate the three satellites and provide data until 2012.
The MSG design makes effective use of the most advanced technology to significantly improve the quality of weather satellite data. A new weather image will be provided every 15 minutes in 12 channels of the visible and infrared spectrum, instead of every 30 minutes in 3 channels on the current Meteosat satellites, and with twice the resolution. This, together with enhanced data dissemination capacities, will result in a dramatic increase in capabilities for monitoring weather patterns over the Atlantic Ocean, Europe and Africa and for the prediction and warning of severe storms and other potentially hazardous phenomena. The MSG satellites will also contribute significantly to climate monitoring.
Following the signature of the ESA/ Eumetsat Agreement, Mr Jean-Marie Luton and Mr Yves Michot, President and Chief Executive Officer of Aerospatiale the prime contractor, signed the contract covering the industrial development of the three MSG satellites for an amount of 601.4 Million ECU.
2-6 June 1997
Darmstadt, Germany
ESA's European Space Operations Centre (ESOC) has been operating spacecraft missions since 1968. Within this period, support has been provided to a variety of satellite missions such as satellites in near-Earth, geostationary and highly-eccentric orbits, as well as satellites with interplanetary trajectories.
International symposia on flight dynamics were founded by ESOC in 1981. During the past 15 years, 11 symposia have been organised by ESA, CNES, GSFC, IKI/CUP, INPE and ISAS.
This next International Symposium on Space Flight Dynamics, to be organised by ESOC's Orbit Attitude Division, will give the specialists in the flight dynamics field a unique opportunity to present, discuss and exchange information on the various aspects of spacecraft support in the orbit and attitude areas.
The symposium will cover all aspects of space flight dynamics with its associated support on ground and on board. It will consist of:
The deadline for receipt of the proposals for papers in the form of an extended abstract is 15 December 1996. The conference language will be English.
Information regarding the symposium, the call for papers and
registration is maintained on a World Wide Web page at the
following address:
http://www.esoc.esa.de/external/mso/conf.html
For further information, please contact the chairman of the
Programme Committee:
Mr R.E. Muench
ESOC - European Space Operations Centre
Robert-Bosch-Str. 5
64293 Darmstadt
Germany
Tel: +49-6151-902226
Fax: +49-6151-902271
ESA's ISO scientific spacecraft continues to operate very smoothly in orbit with an average of 45 scientific observations being made each day, and a vast quantity of high-quality astronomical data being returned.
On 5 September, a station-keeping manoeuvre was successfully executed. The hydrazine reaction-control system was used for 6 min 16 sec to increase the semi-major axis of the spacecraft's orbit by about 40 km. This stopped ISO's previous eastwards drift and gave it a small west-wards drift. This drift will naturally decrease and reverse, and so another manoeuvre is expected to be necessary in mid-1997.
On the same day, the first direct measurement of the mass of remaining liquid helium was successfully made. Two heaters were activated for 112 secs to inject a known quantity of heat into the helium. By precisely measuring the temperature rise (around 5 mK), the mass of helium present was calculated to be 203 kg, which is slightly in excess of the modelling prediction 192 kg. Using a mass flow rate from the thermal models and the measured helium mass, it is estimated that the onboard helium supply will last until December 1977. This confirms previous estimates, made from indirect measurements, that ISO's lifetime in orbit will be about 2 years, compared to the 18 months originally specified.
A few spacecraft anomalies have occurred since launch, but they have had only a minor impact on the scientific return. At the end of May, a sequence of onboard events led to the Earth entering ISO's field of view for about 2 min. To prevent a recurrence of this event, linked to the extreme narrowness of the safe corridor for pointing during perigee passage at certain seasons, some of the onboard autonomy was temporarily overridden by ground commands. On the 16 August and 12 September, ISO unexpectedly re-configured itself into an autonomy mode. The cause of this has been traced to a 'Remote Terminal Unit' and ISO is now operating using a redundant unit. Just 2.5 days of science were lost during these anomalies.
The four scientific instruments continue to operate well and are returning high-quality data. An additional observing mode, using the high-resolution Fabry-Perot interferometer of the Long Wavelength Spectrometer, has been commissioned.
Ground operations are also proceeding very satisfactorily. Observing schedules containing highly-rated observations are being routinely produced and executed with efficiencies of up to 95%.
The initial scientific results from ISO were presented to an enthusiastic international audience of about 260 astronomers at a workshop held at ESTEC in Noordwijk (NL) on 29-31 May. These results and others were published in the November issue of the journal 'Astronomy and Astrophysics', which is dedicated to ISO and contains close to 100 scientific papers.
A 'Supplementary Call for Observing Proposals' was issued to the European, American and Japanese astronomical communities at the beginning of August. This solicited for observations to be carried out in the period December 1996 to December 1997. The deadline for response was 7 October and a total of 551 proposals were received, requesting almost four times the available observing time. The results of the proposal review process will be made available at the end of November.
An image of the Rho Ophiuchi dark cloud taken with ISOCAM. The
scattered bright dots are new stars of moderate size, comparable
in mass to the Sun. The bright fuzzy object, above and slightly
to the right of centre, is a new massive star, much heavier than
the Sun, still wrapped in the placental cloud from which it
formed. A similar object appears partly veiled towards the bottom
right of the picture. The conspicuous wisp right of centre is the
interface between the dense cloud and the general interstellar
medium. In a dark region near the centre of the image, the dust
is so dense that even an infrared telescope can look no further
into the murk.
This ISO image is a colour-composite of data taken at wavelengths of 7 and 15 microns of an approximately 0.75 x 0.75 degree area of the sky.
Signing for INTEGRAL's Phase C/D are ESA's Director General,
Mr Jean-Marie Luton and the prime contractor Alenio Spazio's
Managing Director, Mr Antonio Rodota.
The INTEGRAL (International Gamma-Ray Astrophysics Laboratory) mission was selected by the ESA Scientific Programme Committee on 3 June 1993 as the next ESA medium-size scientific mission (M2) to be launched in 2001. The mission utilises the service module (bus) under development for the ESA XMM project. Contributions to the programme will be made by Russia and NASA.
The nominal lifetime of the observatory will be two years with a possible extension of up to five years. During this period, most of the observing time will be made available to the worldwide scientific community.
On 6 November 1996, INTEGRAL officially entered the next part of its evolution, Phase C/D. This main development and verification phase has the objective of producing a fully integrated and tested satellite compliant with the technical, schedule and cost requirements of the INTEGRAL programme.
The first symposium on the utilisation of the International Space Station (ISS) was held in the period 30 September through 2 October at ESOC. The symposium was devoted to all disciplines with a potential interest in the ISS. Approximately 350 participants attended.
The symposium was structured into three parts: an introductory plenary session, discipline oriented splinter sessions, and a closing plenary session.
During the introductory plenary session, presentations covering the content and schedule of the International Space Station Programme were given. The European contributions and the resulting utilisation rights were highlighted. The session was complemented by introductory papers on discipline oriented utilisation of the Space Station.
The three main objectives of the splinter sessions, held on the second day of the symposium, were:
Output from the sessions included reports on the following topics:
The closing plenary session included summaries from the splinter sessions and presentations of overall discipline strategies.
From the results of the symposium, it was concluded that there is a strong demand to establish and enlarge the community of potential Space Station users. This community will have to ensure a pronounced visibility, both to the tax payer and to the political decision maker. Furthermore, although routine operations are still far in the future, it will be necessary to initiate promotion of potential applications and to start science activities of ground based type research at the university level.
There will also be an increasing demand to focus Space Station activities on topics of high relevance and visibility. Potential users of ISS should therefore join together to create large ventures that have challenging goals and are capable of attracting public interest. Examples of current and potential projects include a magnetic spectrometer to investigate antimatter in our Universe, the search for Near Earth Objects, disaster monitoring and the x-ray telescope accommodated on a coorbiting Free Flyer.
The Proceedings of the symposium have already been published by ESA Publications Division as ESA SP-385 (further details and an order form can be found inside the back cover of this Bulletin).
ESA Bulletin Nr. 88.