Grasshopper
09-28-2007, 04:27 PM
The European Space Agency said last week that its first satellite dedicated to measuring the Earth's gravity field is now ready for pre-launch testing.
Known now simply as GOCE - the Gravity field and steady-state Ocean Circulation Explorer satellite - the unit has been under construction in Italy for nearly a year. According to reports, the satellite will soon be shipped to the ESA's research and technology center in the Netherlands for final testing.
Mark Drinkwater, GOCE project scientist, said the satellite is designed to measure the Earth's gravity - finally providing researchers with a uniform worldwide picture.
The GOCE satellite "will do this with a level of detail and accuracy never before achieved," the researcher said. "This fundamental reference dataset will give access to new scientific insights into ocean circulation and its impact on climate, as well as into the structure of the interior of the Earth in critical locations such as earthquake and volcanic zones."
Different from other missions where independent instruments are carried aboard interstellar spacecraft, the ESA said GOCE is unique in that the unit's technology actually forms part of the satellite's structure. The spacecraft, the group said, has no mechanical moving parts.
ESA officials said the satellite's launch is expected sometime next spring from the Plesetsk Cosmodrome in northwest Russia.
Known now simply as GOCE - the Gravity field and steady-state Ocean Circulation Explorer satellite - the unit has been under construction in Italy for nearly a year. According to reports, the satellite will soon be shipped to the ESA's research and technology center in the Netherlands for final testing.
Mark Drinkwater, GOCE project scientist, said the satellite is designed to measure the Earth's gravity - finally providing researchers with a uniform worldwide picture.
The GOCE satellite "will do this with a level of detail and accuracy never before achieved," the researcher said. "This fundamental reference dataset will give access to new scientific insights into ocean circulation and its impact on climate, as well as into the structure of the interior of the Earth in critical locations such as earthquake and volcanic zones."
Different from other missions where independent instruments are carried aboard interstellar spacecraft, the ESA said GOCE is unique in that the unit's technology actually forms part of the satellite's structure. The spacecraft, the group said, has no mechanical moving parts.
ESA officials said the satellite's launch is expected sometime next spring from the Plesetsk Cosmodrome in northwest Russia.