Satellite Technology

Several thousand active satellites are currently orbiting our planet. They enable science, providing information on the state of and changes to Earth and its climate, and are the backbone of today's information society in the areas of communications and navigation. Future space missions will place ever greater demands on satellite technology: increasingly large amounts of data require more on-board computing power for more autonomous operations and higher rates of data processing. Other important developments include improved and lower-vibration attitude control systems, more powerful conventional and electric propulsion systems, a higher energy supply for satellites and their payloads and the miniaturisation of components.

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Heinrich Hertz

The Heinrich Hertz mission has a number of ambitious goals. One is to test the suitability of new satellite communications technologies for use in space. Technology must function under very demanding conditions in space, as it is exposed to extreme heat and cold, as well as vacuum and microgravity conditions.

SmallGEO

"Developed in Germany, built in Europe" could be the motto of the small geostationary satellite (SmallGEO). SmallGEO was developed in a public-private partnership between the European Space Agency (ESA) and the private satellite operator Hispasat as part of the European Space Agency (ESA) ARTES SGEO programme. In addition to the construction of the first satellite mission H 36W-1, the scope of the collaboration was the development of the SmallGEO satellite platform, which is intended to form the basis for further future satellites.