PLEO - Pleiades On-board Management Unit

The French Pleiades Earth Observation Satellite Constellation is a project of the French government, performed in cooperation with Austria, Belgium, Italy, Spain and Sweden. It represents the continuation of the successful SPOT (Système Pour l ́Observation de la Terre) series of satellites.

The main control computer of the Pleiades satellites is the On- board Management Unit (OBMU) which will be supplied by Saab Ericsson Space and Austrian Aerospace. Based on a long-term cooperation strategy, Austrian Aerospace will supply major parts of the I/O (input/output) system of the OBMU.

This subsystem handles discrete signals carrying telemetry-, telecommand- as well as equipment status information and translates these data into the spacecraft ́s data bus format. The output of this activity is spaceborne electronic modules carrying high-reliability, customer tailored integrated circuits capable of withstanding the harsh space environment with high radiation rates, extreme mechanical stress and the absence of atmosphere. As satellites, once launched, cannot be repaired, exhaustive testing is necessary.

The respective demanding test equipment is a further result of the present project. This activity enables Austrian Aerospace to participate in the core team of a satellite manufacturing consortium and to secure its position in many future missions. It aims at the development of advanced technologies making future on-board computers more competitive and it broadens the company ́s relation to other industries in the dominating nations of Europe ́s space business.

Coordinator

Austrian Aerospace - Wolfgang Mayer

Partner

Saab Ericsson Space, Gothenburg, Sweden - Stefan Fredriksson

Austrian Aerospace
Wolfgang Mayer
Stachegasse 16
A-1120 Vienna
E-mail: wolfgang.mayer@space.at
Web: www.space.at