Beyond Gravity and APCO Technologies contribute to Sentinel-2 satellites

Two Sentinel-2 satellites, which contain Swiss technology, are waiting in climate-controlled tents at Airbus to be transported to the launch site. Once in space, Sentinel-2-C and Sentinel-2-D will replace the Sentinel-2-A and Sentinel-2-B satellites which have been providing data since 2015 and 2017, respectively.

The two satellites are being used as part of the European Copernicus environmental monitoring program. The data they collect monitors changes in land use, soil sealing, agriculture and forestry, as well as natural disasters, coastal areas and glaciers. The  data is also used for humanitarian aid missions. The data is open for everybody who wants to use them.

APCO Technologies supplied the structure and thermal control subsystem for the multispectral imager for Sentinel-2 as well as ground support equipment for the platform. APCO Technologies, which is based in Aigle in the canton of Vaud, has been one of the European market leaders in the development, manufacture, assembly, integration and testing of structure and thermal subsystems for satellites and instruments for 25 years.

Beyond Gravity, headquartered in Zurich, is responsible for the drive mechanism of the solar array and for the eddy current damper, which is part of the solar array wing. In 2022, the company changed its name from RUAG Space to Beyond Gravity. Over six decades, it has supplied products for hundreds of space missions, both for launch vehicles and satellites.

The launch of Sentinel-2C is scheduled for September 2024 from the spaceport near Kourou. Delays are possible, because the Vega-C launcher intended for the launch has been prone to malfunctions since 2019 and must still undergo tests. The launch of Sentinel-2D is scheduled for 2025. ce/mm