Thales Alenia Space España’s contribution to Europe's Sentinel satellites

Thales Alenia Space España plays a key role in the European Space Agency's Copernicus program. Coordinated by the European Commission, with the European Space Agency (ESA) in charge of the space component, Copernicus (formerly known as GMES, or Global Monitoring for Environment and Security) is the most ambitious Earth observation program to date. It will provide accurate, timely and easily accessible data to improve our environmental management efforts, to help us understand and mitigate the effects of climate change and to enhance security. The Copernicus program includes five families of Sentinel satellites. Thales Alenia Space was named prime contractor for the Sentinel-1 and Sentinel-3 missions, with responsibility for the design, development, integration and testing of the satellites in these systems; the company's Spanish subsidiary, Thales Alenia Space España, has successfully delivered all communications systems for the Sentinel 1, 2 and 3 satellites, including both A and B missions.

Thales Alenia Space España is a major contributor to the Sentinel satellites. Leading a consortium of European companies, it is responsible for the specification, development,  monitoring, integration, testing and delivery of all image transmission systems, as well as the S-band data communications equipment for satellite operation and control. The Spanish company is also responsible for the production of the various electronics units in the optical, radiometer and radar instruments on these six satellites. It has been working intensively for the last five years to complete these challenging technological developments.