Daily Image

11-04-2011
PreviousNext
Click here or on the picture for a full size image.

SMF demonstration

Submitter: SMF team
Description: The development of the Signal-in-Space Monitoring Facility (SMF) for Galileo is formally finished on April 6 with the demonstration to Thales-Alenia-Space in Italy (TAS-I) and the European Space Agency (ESA).

This monitoring facility is part of the In-Orbit Validation of the first four Galileo satellites. Its prime task is to receive the satellite signals as accurate as possible, perform various signal analyses and transfer the data to TAS-I. At TAS-I, the data will be combined with the outcome from other facilities.

The demonstration started in the morning by capturing signals from Giove-B, which is a Galileo test satellite. After the satellite disappeared behind the horizon, calibration measurements were performed to determine accurately the system signal gain and system phase behavior as function of the frequency. Finally the measurement data was corrected with the calibration data and the signal analysis took place. All went flawlessly.

During the automated measurement procedures, various presentations were given from TAS-I, ASTRON and S&T. When the final measurement results were presented by S&T, the press was invited to share with us this special moment.

The pictures show the project team close to Telescope 6 (default use for SMF), Marchel hands over the DVDs with documentation to Salvatore Corvo (TAS-I), Arnold presenting the Certificate of SMF Cooperation to Andre Bos (S&T), the team scanning the sky for….Giove-B.
Copyright: ASTRON
 
  Follow us on Twitter
Please feel free to submit an image using the Submit page.