ESA - SMOS - ESA and EADS-CASA sign contract to build instrument for the SMOS mission

SMOS at a glance

An Earth Explorer Mapping soil moisture and ocean salinity Improving our understanding of the water cycle Introducing a novel use of technology Facts and figures

About the satellite

Platform Instrument

About the launch

Launch site Launcher

SMOS in orbit

After liftoff Data

Meet the team

Achim Hahne, Project Manager Susanne Mecklenburg, Mission Manager Matthias Drusch, Mission Scientist Jordi Font, Co-Lead Investigator Yann Kerr, Co-Lead Investigator Manuel Martin-Neira, Instrument Principal Engineer Guillermo Buenadicha, Payload Operations Engineer Andrés Borges, EADS CASA Espacio Payload Project Manager Roger Jegou, Launch Campaign Manager Norrie Wright, Payload Data Ground Segment Manager

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ESA and EADS-CASA sign contract to build instrument for the SMOS mission

17 June 2004

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TheESA’s Soil Moisture and Ocean Salinity (SMOS) satellite

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ESA’s Soil Moisture and Ocean Salinity (SMOS) mission will provide global maps of soil moisture and ocean salinity. Soil moisture data are urgently required for hydrological studies; data on ocean salinity are vital for improving our understanding of ocean circulation patterns. Together, these data will contribute to furthering our knowledge of Earth’s water cycle, and help to improve climate, weather and extreme-event forecasting.

Credits: ESA - AOES Medialab

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ESA and EADS CASA signing contract to build the SMOS instrument

ESA and EADS CASA signing the contract to build the instrument which will be carried on ESA's Soil Moisture and Ocean Salinity satellite.

The people on the podium (from left to right) are:
Emilia Buergo, Director Strategic Programmes, CDTI
Pedro Méndez, CEO, EADS-CASA
Vincente Gómes, Director General, CDTI
José Achache, Director of Earth Observation Programmes, ESA
Andrés Borges, SMOS Project Manager, EADS-CASA

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MIRAS (Microwave Imaging Radiometer using Aperture Synthesis) is a completely new type of instrument - a radiometer that operates between 1400 and 1427 MHz (L-band). It consists of a central structure and three deployable arms, each of which has three segments. The 69 antenna-receiver elements (LICEFs) are distributed over the three arms and central structure. The image shows a detailed view a LICEF.

Credits: ESA - AOES Medialab