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Alcatel to build the Jason-2 oceanographic satellite ALCATEL NEWS RELEASE Posted: May 5, 2004 Alcatel Space, a subsidiary of Alcatel, announced that it has been chosen by French space agency CNES to build the Jason-2 spatial oceanographic satellite. This satellite, designed to monitor oceans and climate, will carry on the mission of Jason-1, launched on December 7, 2001. Jason-2 is a quadripartite program organized by CNES, NASA, NOAA and Eumetsat. Based on high-precision oceanographic altimetry, it will introduce new data processing services supplied by Eumetsat, such as sea forecasts for ships, and coupling of this data with weather forecasts. The 40-million euro CNES contract covers manufacture of the Poseidon-3 altimeter, the primary instrument for the mission, plus a payload module to manage all the instruments, and the assembly, integration and testing of the satellite. The PROTEUS platform to be used for the satellite is covered by a contract for five platforms that Alcatel Space has already received from CNES. Jason-2 will carry on its predecessor's mission of monitoring and precisely measuring the oceans. In addition, Jason-2 will incorporate the experimental Wide Swath Ocean Altimeter (WSOA), supplied by NASA, to enhance spatial coverage. The WSOA instrument enables measuring meso-scale phenomena such as vortices inside ocean currents to improve our ocean circulation models. Jason-2 will be placed into the same orbit at Jason-1, at an altitude of 1,336 kilometers, inclined 66 degrees, to provide virtually complete coverage of ice-free oceans. It will weigh about 600 kilos at launch, and have 550 watts of power. While space-based meteorological observation has enabled scientists to better understand the climate, spatial oceanography is playing an increasingly important role. Alcatel contributes to this endeavor through its broad expertise in two complementary areas: development of the light weight PROTEUS platform for low-orbit missions; and its recognized expertise in advanced radar altimetry. With operational systems such as Jason, Alcatel Space has become the world's leading specialist in space-based altimetry. Alcatel Space, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Alcatel, is a global leader for satellite solutions. Deploying extensive dual expertise in civil and military applications, Alcatel Space develops complete system solutions for telecommunications, navigation, environment and risk management, radar and optical observation, meteorology and scientific satellites. It is also the leading European prime contractor for ground segments in earth observation, meteorology and navigation systems, as well as space system operation. Alcatel provides communications solutions to telecommunication carriers, Internet service providers and enterprises for delivery of voice, data and video applications to their customers or to their employees. Alcatel leverages its leading position in fixed and mobile broadband networks, applications and services to bring value to its customers in the framework of a broadband world. With sales of EURO 12.5 billion in 2003, Alcatel operates in more than 130 countries. |
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