GIOVE-B in the cleanroom (2007)

GIOVE-B, the second demonstrator satellite in the Galileo programme, in the Maxwell Test Chamber for radio-frequency testing at ESA ESTEC. The spacecraft was built by Alcatel Alenia Space with significant contributions from EADS Astrium. It was developed to validate the critical technologies for the future Galileo satellites, including the passive hydrogen maser (PHM) atomic clock and advanced signal transmission capabilities. ESA launched the spacecraft on a Soyuz launcher from Baikonur on 27 April 2008.