Sentinel satellites, part of the GMES (Global Monitoring for Environment and Security Space) component currently being developed under supervision by the European Space Agency, will employ software solutions from Critical Software.
The Sentinel missions include radar and super-spectral imaging for land, ocean and atmospheric monitoring. They will provide invaluable data in understanding how the planet and its climate are changing, the role played by human activities in these changes, and how these will influence our daily lives.
More than 30 Critical Software engineers will be involved in the different development stages over the next two years. The team will be responsible for the Independent Software Validation and Verification (ISVV) of several components of Sentinel-1 and, at the same time, will be designing, developing and integrating the central software for Sentinel-2. The team has just started the design phase of the on-board software for Sentinel-3, which will be developed, verified and validated by Critical Software as well.
Sentinel-1 will provide all-weather radar images over Europe and Canada and is scheduled to be launched at the end of 2012. Sentinel-2 will systematically cover the earth's land surface, to produce cloud-free imagery over Europe and is planned for launch at the end of 2012. The Sentinel-3 mission will determine parameters such as sea surface topography, sea/land surface temperature, ocean and land colours, with high-end accuracy and reliability and is planned for launch in 2013.
'This significant contract is the result of hard work and a bold strategy. We were able to successfully demonstrate our competencies to EADS Astrium and Thales Alenia Space, both major European prime contractors. We were chosen ahead of fierce competition for our technical and management skills, backed by a quality management system certified to operate in CMMI Staged Level 5,' stated Bruno Carvalho, business development manager for the space market sector.
