{"id":788684,"date":"2024-09-10T05:59:50","date_gmt":"2024-09-10T10:59:50","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/spaceweekly.com\/?p=788684"},"modified":"2024-09-10T05:59:50","modified_gmt":"2024-09-10T10:59:50","slug":"a-smooth-start-to-life-in-orbit-for-sentinel-2c","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/spaceweekly.com\/?p=788684","title":{"rendered":"A smooth start to life in orbit for Sentinel-2C"},"content":{"rendered":"


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\n\tEnabling & Support<\/span><\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t10\/09\/2024<\/span>
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Sentinel-2C has completed its important first few days in space, which saw teams on the ground working around the clock to ensure the spacecraft is ready to begin its mission.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Launch day<\/h2>\n
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tCopernicus Sentinel-2C takes to the skies
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The third Copernicus Sentinel-2 satellite launched from Europe\u2019s Spaceport in French Guiana aboard the final Vega rocket on 5 September at 03:50 CEST (4 September 22:50 local time).<\/p>\n

The 1.1 tonne satellite carries a high-resolution optical payload that will ensure Europe\u2019s Copernicus Earth observation programme continues to gather some of the best global colour imagery of our land and vegetation ever delivered from space.<\/p>\n

After a successful launch, Sentinel-2C separated from its Vega rocket at approximately 04:48 CEST. Around 14 minutes later, at 05:02 CEST, ESA\u2019s ESOC mission operations centre in Darmstadt, Germany, received the all-important first signals from the satellite indicating that it had safely arrived in orbit.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

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We hear you, #Sentinel2<\/a> C!<\/p>\n

Troll Station in Antarctica is receiving the satellite\u2019s signal and telemetry is arriving loud and clear at ESA mission control in Germany. pic.twitter.com\/4bq9UWOAqI<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 ESA Operations (@esaoperations) September 5, 2024<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

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A satellite\u2019s first days in orbit<\/h2>\n

The teams didn\u2019t have to wait long for the first piece of good news: during the satellite\u2019s first 12-minute communication window with KSAT\u2019s Troll ground station in Antarctica, operators received confirmation that Sentinel-2C had successfully deployed its solar array.<\/p>\n

Once the team had gained control of the satellite and confirmed that it had begun to generate power, they set to work switching on and assessing the functionality of the satellite\u2019s other core systems. Meanwhile, ESA\u2019s Flight Dynamics team determined the exact orbit that the satellite had been inserted into by its Vega launcher, and ESA\u2019s Space Debris Office regularly scanned this orbit to ensure it was free of any risk of collision with another spacecraft or piece of debris.<\/p>\n

\u201cOverall, Sentinel-2C’s Launch and Early Orbit Phase (LEOP) went very smoothly, and we were able to complete all of the necessary activities a little earlier than planned,\u201d said Flight Operations Director Franco Marchese. \u201cCompleting a LEOP early reduces the risk that these important activities are disrupted because we need to carry out a collision avoidance manoeuvre to avoid an incoming piece of space debris.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tMembers of the Sentinel-2C operations team
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Marchese reported that the Sentinel-2C LEOP phase formally ended on Friday evening, with the spacecraft and ground systems all operating as expected.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have successfully conducted our first orbital manoeuvre using Sentinel-2C\u2019s thrusters. The satellite is in great shape and the commissioning phase \u2013 during which we will ensure that its multispectral imager payload is ready for routine operations \u2013 started on Monday.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sentinel-2C will now spend the next three months being prepared to begin the routine acquisition of high-resolution images of Earth\u2019s land surfaces, islands, inland and coastal waters from an altitude of around 790 km.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tSentinel-2C Flight Operations Directors
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cFollowing a perfect launch by the final Vega rocket, the Sentinel-2C LEOP was swiftly completed by our teams working at ESOC,\u201d said ESA\u2019s Head of Mission Operations Simon Plum.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn addition to the teams at ESOC, I would like to thank all the teams involved in Sentinel-2C \u2013 including those from industry, the teams at ESA\u2019s ESTEC engineering centre and ESRIN Earth observation centre, and the Vega teams at Europe\u2019s Spaceport in Kourou \u2013 for a job well done and a smooth start to this important mission.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

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