Thales Alenia Space Delivers Jason-2 to its Launch Base
(Cannes, April 30, 2008) -- The Jason-2 satellite, built by Thales Alenia Space, left its integration centre in Cannes for its launch site. The satellite is slated for a June 15 launch from the Vandenberg Air Force Base (California, USA) by a Delta II rocket.
The Jason-2 operational oceanographic mission involves a quadripartite collaboration between French space agency CNES, its American counterpart NASA, and the two meteorological organizations Eumetsat and NOAA, in charge of data analysis.
Designed to study the Earth's oceans and climate, Jason-2 will take over from its predecessor, Jason-1, which has already been in orbit for seven years and is still operational. Jason-2 will provide an opportunity for the launch of new services, including maritime forecasts for ships, and coupling of this data with weather forecasts.
Based on a Proteus platform, Jason-2 features the Poseidon-3 altimeter, also developed by Thales Alenia Space in Toulouse. Poseidon-3 will offer the same measurement accuracy as Poseidon-2, but will include an experimental mode capable of providing measurements near coastal zones, as well as for lakes and rivers. The Poseidon dual-frequency altimeter continues to be the key instrument in this spaceborne observation program.
Source : Thales Alenia Space
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