B132cover2 11/23/07 11:39 AM Page 1 www.esa.int number 132 - november 2007 Member States Etats membres Austria Allemagne Belgium Autriche Denmark Belgique Finland Danemark France Espagne Germany Finlande Greece France Ireland Grèce Italy Irlande Luxembourg Italie Netherlands Luxembourg Norway Norvège Portugal Pays-Bas SPACE FOR EUROPE Spain Portugal Sweden Royaume-Uni Switzerland Suède United Kingdom Suisse ESA bulletin 132 - november 2007 Node-2 Aloft ESA Communications ESTEC, PO Box 299, 2200 AG Noordwijk, The Netherlands Columbus Next Tel: +31 71 565-3408 Fax: +31 71 565-5433 Visit Publications at http://www.esa.int IFCb132 11/21/07 9:56 AM Page 2 european space agency Editorial/Circulation Office ESA Communications ESTEC, PO Box 299, The European Space Agency was formed out of, and took over the rights and obligations of, the two earlier European space organisations – the 2200 AG Noordwijk European Space Research Organisation (ESRO) and the European Organisation for the Development and Construction of Space Vehicle Launchers The Netherlands (ELDO). The Member States are Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Tel: +31 71 565-3408 Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and the United Kingdom. Canada is a Cooperating State. Editors Andrew Wilson In the words of its Convention: the purpose of the Agency shall be to provide for and to promote for exclusively peaceful purposes, cooperation among Carl Walker European States in space research and technology and their space applications, with a view to their being used for scientific purposes and for operational space applications systems: Design & Layout Isabel Kenny (a) by elaborating and implementing a long-term European space policy, by recommending space objectives to the Member States, and by concerting Eva Ekstrand the policies of the Member States with respect to other national and international organisations and institutions; Advertising (b) by elaborating and implementing activities and programmes in the space field; Lorraine Conroy (c) by coordinating the European space programme and national programmes, and by integrating the latter progressively and as completely as possible into the European space programme, in particular as regards the development of applications satellites; The ESA Bulletin is published by the European Space (d) by elaborating and implementing the industrial policy appropriate to its programme and by recommending a coherent industrial policy to the Agency. Individual articles may be reprinted provided the credit line reads ‘Reprinted from ESA Bulletin’, plus Member States. date of issue. Signed articles reprinted must bear the author’s name. Advertisements are accepted in good The Agency is directed by a Council composed of representatives of the Member States. The Director General is the chief executive of the Agency and faith; the Agency accepts no responsibility for their its legal representative. content or claims. The ESA HEADQUARTERS are in Paris. Copyright © 2007 European Space Agency Printed in the Netherlands ISSN 0376-4265 The major establishments of ESA are: THE EUROPEAN SPACE RESEARCH AND TECHNOLOGY CENTRE (ESTEC), Noordwijk, Netherlands. THE EUROPEAN SPACE OPERATIONS CENTRE (ESOC), Darmstadt, Germany. ESRIN, Frascati, Italy. Chairman of the Council: S. Wittig Director General: J.-J. Dordain agence spatiale européenne L’Agence Spatiale Européenne est issue des deux Organisations spatiales européennes qui l’ont précédée – l’Organisation européenne de recherches spatiales (CERS) et l’Organisation européenne pour la mise au point et la construction de lanceurs d’engins spatiaux (CECLES) – dont elle a repris les droits et obligations. Les Etats membres en sont: l’Allemagne, l’Autriche, la Belgique, le Danemark, l’Espagne, la Finlande, la France, la Grèce, l’Irlande, l’Italie, le Luxembourg, la Norvège, les Pays-Bas, le Portugal, le Royaumi-Uni, la Suède et la Suisse. Le Canada bénéficie d’un statut d’Etat coopérant. Selon les termes de la Convention: l’Agence a pour mission d’assurer et de développer, à des fins exclusivement pacifiques, la coopération entre Etats européens dans les domaines de la recherche et de la technologie spatiales et de leurs applications spatiales, en vue de leur utilisation à des fins Space Shuttle Discovery delivers the European- scientifiques et pour des systèmes spatiaux opérationnels d’applications: built Node-2 to the International Space Station in October, paving the way for the arrival of the (a) en élaborant et en mettant en oeuvre une politique spatiale européenne à long terme, en recommandant aux Etats membres des objectifs en Columbus laboratory module in December. Inset matière spatiale et en concertant les politiques des Etats membres à l’égard d’autres organisations et institutions nationales et internationales; (from top): ESA astronaut Paolo Nespoli suits up (b) en élaborant et en mettant en oeuvre des activités et des programmes dans le domaine spatial; on Node-2’s launch day; Node-2 is attached to (c) en coordonnant le programme spatial européen et les programmes nationaux, et en intégrant ces derniers progressivement et aussi the Station; ESA astronauts Hans Schlegel (left) complètement que possible dans le programme spatial européen, notamment en ce qui concerne le développement de satellites d’applications; and Léopold Eyharts prepare for the Columbus (d) en élaborant et en mettant en oeuvre la politique industrielle appropriée à son programme et en recommandant aux Etats membres une politique launch; Columbus begins its journey to the industrielle cohérente. launch pad. (NASA) L’Agence est dirigée par un Conseil, composé de représentants des Etats membres. Le Directeur général est le fonctionnaire exécutif supérieur de l’Agence et la représente dans tous ses actes. Le SIEGE de l’Agence est à Paris. Les principaux Etablissements de l’Agence sont: LE CENTRE EUROPEEN DE RECHERCHE ET DE TECHNOLOGIE SPATIALES (ESTEC), Noordwijk, Pays-Bas. LE CENTRE EUROPEEN D’OPERATIONS SPATIALES (ESOC), Darmstadt, Allemagne. ESRIN, Frascati, Italy. Président du Conseil: S. Wittig Directeur général: J.-J. Dordain www.esa.int ContentsB132 11/21/07 9:59 AM Page 3 10 16 26 Node-2 in Place! Revealing the Red Planet Pinpointing the Milky Way Europe’s First Module Permanently Mars Express Provides an The Formidable Challenge of Attached to the ISS Unprecedented View Processing Gaia’s Data 34 42 50 ESA Optical Ground Station Globcolour Medspiration Ten Years Since First Light Precursor to Ocean Colour Services Precursor to Sea-Surface Services bulletin 132 - november 2007 Contents Node-2 in Place! 10 Medspiration 50 Europe’s First Module Permanently Attached to the ISS A Precursor to the GMES Marine Core Service Sea-Surface Philippe Deloo Thematic Assembly Centre Olivier Arino et al. Revealing the Red Planet 16 Mars Express Provides an Unprecedented View New Opportunities for ESA’s Redu Ground Station 58 Agustin Chicarro, Angelo Pio Rossi & Olivier Witasse Ralph Bierett & Daniele Galardini Pinpointing the Milky Way 26 Soyuz at the European Spaceport 64 The Formidable Challenge of Processing Gaia’s Data Harald Arend et al. Jane Douglas et al. The ESA Optical Ground Station 34 Programmes in Progress 70 Ten Years Since First Light Zoran Sodnik, Bernhard Furch & Hanspeter Lutz News – In Brief 84 Globcolour 42 Publications 92 A Precursor to the GMES Marine Core Service Ocean Colour Thematic Assembly Centre Simon Pinnock, Odile Fanton d’Andon & Samantha Lavender www.esa.int esa bulletin 132 - november 2007 1 Node2.qxd 11/21/07 10:23 AM Page 10 Node-2 in Place! Europe’s First Module Permanently Attached to the ISS Node2.qxd 11/21/07 10:24 AM Page 11 ISS Philippe Deloo Head of Cupola/Nodes Project Office, Directorate of Human Spaceflight, Microgravity & Exploration, ESTEC, Noordwijk, The Netherlands ode-2 is now safely attached to the International Space Station (ISS), Nlopening the way for expanding the outpost’s research capabilities. This inter- connecting node is crucial for the Station to host Europe’s Columbus and Japan’s Kibo modules. These laboratories will offer the long-awaited facilities for performing full-scale research and experiments aboard the ISS. Introduction European involvement in Node-2 began in 1997 with the signature of the Columbus launch barter arrangement: ESA committed to provide goods and services to NASA to offset the cost of a Shuttle launch for Columbus, the European laboratory module. The goods and services promised by ESA included Node-2 and Node-3. (NASA’s own Node-1 was launched in 1998 as the Station’s second element.) The European-built Node-2 (the cylinder, centre-left) attached to Strictly speaking, Node-2 is not the the International Space Station, first European-built module attached to November 2007. It was later the Station, but it is the first that will moved to become the end stay for the rest of the Station’s life. Two module at bottom, ready to host Italian Multi Purpose Logistic Modules Columbus. Inset: Paolo Nespoli glides through Node-2. (NASA) (MPLMs) have already flown several esa bulletin 132 - november 2007 11 Node2.qxd 11/21/07 10:24 AM Page 12 Human Spaceflight Above: Node-2 arrives in the Shuttle’s cargo bay (NASA) Below: the Station’s robotic arm hoists Node-2 to its temporary attachment point, 26 October (NASA) 12 esa bulletin 132 - november 2007 www.esa.int Node2.qxd 11/21/07 10:24 AM Page 13 times to the Station, delivering and From the top: ISS Commander Peggy Whitson and Paolo Nespoli returning cargo aboard the Shuttle. prepare to open Node-2’s hatch for the first time, 27 October; They are docked to the Station for entering Node-2; the ISS and Shuttle crews pose in Node-2; Paolo Nespoli with a Node-2 model (NASA) around a week before being returned to Earth. To take advantage of the organisation and procedures developed for the the contractor was asked several times MPLM programme, full management to make modifications to Node-2 at responsibility for the two Nodes was KSC.