GIOVE-B Satellite Design and Performance Validation

G.J. Robertson, R. Kieffer, M. Malik, G. Gatti, V. Alpe, M. Johansson

Abstract:	The GIOVE-B satellite was successfully launched into Medium Earth Orbit (MEO) on April 27, 2008. On completion of platform commissioning, the navigation payload was fully activated on May 7, 2008. Since then, GIOVE-B has continued to transmit dual-frequency Lband navigation signals on a routine operational basis. GIOVE-B is the European Space Agency’s (ESA’s) second Galileo In-Orbit Validation Element satellite and serves as an in-orbit demonstrator for Europe’s Galileo satellite navigation system, currently under construction. The prime contractor and payload prime for GIOVE-B was EADS Astrium (Germany and UK respectively), supported by Thales Alenia Space (Italy) for satellite assembly, integration and test. The historic 2008 launch of the 500kg (1100lb) satellite marked the culmination of an often complex satellite integration and test campaign, in the course of which the satellite performance was verified under demanding environmental conditions, and the signal generation capability was extensively upgraded just a few months before launch. The principal mission objectives of GIOVE-B are to maintain the frequency filings for the Galileo program, evaluate critical payload technologies required for Galileo, characterize the orbit radiation environment, and enable early signal experimentation. The development, verification and in-orbit operation of this satellite has generated vast amounts of valuable information and lessons learned across all project disciplines, including satellite assembly, integration and testing, as well as mission analysis, launch and early orbit operations, and in-orbit testing (IOT). Knowledge and experience garnered from GIOVE-B is now being applied directly to the current and future phases of the Galileo program. GIOVE-B is providing invaluable in-orbit experience for satellite equipments which have no previous flight heritage. GIOVE-B carries the world’s first orbiting Passive Hydrogen Maser (PHM); an atomic clock that offers fundamental advantages in terms of its superlative accuracy and minimal drift. GIOVE-B is also the first satellite to transmit the MBOC (Multiplexed Binary Offset Coding) modulation standard from space. The high performance of the payload and its equipments is directly related to the high-quality service that will be delivered by the forthcoming Galileo operational constellation, and consequently full validation in-orbit is crucially important. Throughout IOT the transmitted navigation signals were measured using two independent ground stations. Navigation signal broadcasts have continued on a routine basis since the completion of the IOT campaign and the satellite has demonstrated excellent availability and consistent performance. This paper describes how the GIOVE-B satellite design satisfied the mission requirements, with particular emphasis on the navigation payload performance and functionality, and highlights some of the manufacturing and qualification challenges that were met over the course of the project.
Published in:	Proceedings of the 22nd International Technical Meeting of the Satellite Division of The Institute of Navigation (ION GNSS 2009) September 22 - 25, 2009 Savannah International Convention Center Savannah, GA
Pages:	3008 - 3016
Cite this article:	Robertson, G.J., Kieffer, R., Malik, M., Gatti, G., Alpe, V., Johansson, M., "GIOVE-B Satellite Design and Performance Validation," Proceedings of the 22nd International Technical Meeting of the Satellite Division of The Institute of Navigation (ION GNSS 2009), Savannah, GA, September 2009, pp. 3008-3016.
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