The primary contractor for the Sentinel-5 Precursor satellite system will be Astrium UK, according to officials at the European Space Agency (ESA). The contract is worth €45.5 million ($60.65 million).
Sentinel-5P is scheduled to launch in 2015. Its main role will be to improve and expand Europe's ability to monitor pollution in Earth's atmosphere. Data from this spacecraft will be used to augment existing computer models that try to simulate how worldwide climate patterns will evolve.
The spacecraft will also be the first Global Monitoring for Environment and Security (GMES) program component to be dedicated to atmospheric chemistry measurements and analysis. It will fill a temporary role, until Sentinel-5 is launched in 2020.
“Sentinel-5P will ensure we have continuous data to monitor the ozone hole and tropospheric pollution. This contract marks another significant milestone in the development of our series of Sentinel satellites to serve GMES,” says the ESA Director of Earth Observation Programs Volker Liebig.
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