Italian Space Agency entrusts Thales for role in EO surface biology and geology mission with NASA

Italian Space Agency entrusts Thales for role in EO surface biology and geology mission with NASA
by Erica Marchand
Paris, France (SPX) Jan 23, 2025

The Italian Space Agency (ASI) has awarded a key contract to Thales Alenia Space, a joint venture between Thales (67%) and Leonardo (33%), to contribute to NASA's Surface Biology and Geology - Thermal Infrared (SBG-TIR) Earth Observation mission.

This agreement follows a 2023 collaboration pact between ASI and NASA for the SBG-TIR mission. The partnership underscores a long-standing commitment to international cooperation in tackling global challenges through advanced space technologies.

The mission's objectives focus on gathering radiometric and multispectral measurements of emissions from land and water. These data will aid climate, ecological, and geological analyses while supporting applications in food security and water management. NASA's thermal infrared (TIR) radiometer and ASI's VIS-NIR camera will combine to deliver high-resolution observations of terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems. These instruments will also monitor critical phenomena such as wildfires, volcanic activity, and water resource dynamics.

Mission Roles and Responsibilities

Leveraging its expertise in Earth Observation missions, Thales Alenia Space will manage the integration of the SBG-TIR satellite. This involves adapting its PRIMA-S platform to accommodate a TIR spectrometer and conducting rigorous testing to ensure mission success. The PRIMA-S platform, a derivative of the HE-R1000 solution, forms part of Thales Alenia Space's Earth observation portfolio, which includes both radar and optical satellites.

The satellite will also host the VIREO instrument, developed by Leonardo in collaboration with ASI. VIREO will capture contextual images across visible and near-infrared (VNIR) spectra, enhancing the mission's data-gathering capabilities.

Teodoro Valente, President of the Italian Space Agency, stated, "The signing of this contract represents a very important milestone in bilateral cooperation with NASA and demonstrates our shared commitment to Earth observation and to the development of space technologies addressing global challenges related to climate change and environmental monitoring. By integrating the capabilities of our COSMO-SkyMed and PRISMA satellites with new thermal infrared observations, we will be able to provide a clearer and more detailed picture of the state of our planet, contributing to building a better future for generations to come."

Giampiero Di Paolo, Deputy CEO and Senior Vice President for Observation, Exploration, and Navigation at Thales Alenia Space, expressed his gratitude, saying, "We are very proud to have signed this contract and our gratitude goes to the Italian Space Agency that I wanted to thank sincerely for giving us the opportunity to play a central role in this mission in collaboration with NASA and NASA's JPL.

This cooperation represents a substantial advantage for Italy to enrich its capabilities and competences in Earth observation, for the benefit of the scientific community as well as for the development of practical applications, thus contributing to a better management of environmental resources and to the understanding of global phenomena." Di Paolo further highlighted the business significance of the contract, emphasizing its validation of the PRIMA-S platform's flexibility for accommodating diverse payloads across Low Earth Orbit (LEO) and Middle Earth Orbit (MEO) missions.

ASI and NASA will jointly oversee the mission's system management, payload integration, and launch operations. NASA will also handle the TIR instrument's integration, including the OTTER sensor provided by NASA and the Italian VIREO sensor developed by Leonardo.