COSMO-SkyMed

A COSMO-SkyMed flare above the UK
Manufacturer	Thales Alenia Space
Country of origin	Italy
Operator	ASI
Applications	Earth observationradar
Website	http://www.cosmo-skymed.it/it/index.htm
Specifications
Bus	PRIMA
Launch mass	1,700 kg (3,700 lb)[1]
Power	4kW
Regime	Sun-synchronous orbit
Design life	5 years (planned)
Production
Status	Operational
On order	4
Built	4
Launched	4
Operational	4
Maiden launch	COSMO-1 23 June 2007, 02:34:00UTC
Last launch	COSMO-4 5 November 2010, 02:20:03 UTC

COSMO-SkyMed (COnstellation of small Satellites for the Mediterranean basin Observation) is anEarth-observation satellitespace-based radar system funded by theItalian Ministry of Research andMinistry of Defence and conducted by theItalian Space Agency (ASI), intended for both military and civilian use.^[3] The prime contractor for the spacecraft wasThales Alenia Space. COSMO SkyMed is aconstellation of four dual useIntelligence, surveillance, target acquisition, and reconnaissance (ISR)Earth observation satellites with asynthetic-aperture radar (SAR) as main payload, the result of the intuition ofGiorgio Perrotta in the early nineties. The synthetic-aperture radar was developed starting in the late nineties with the SAR 2000 program funded by ASI.

The space segment of the system includes four identical medium-sized 1,700 kg (3,700 lb) satellites calledCOSMO-SkyMed (orCOSMO)1,2,3,4, equipped with synthetic-aperture radar (SAR) sensors with global coverage of the planet.^[4] Observations of an area of interest can be repeated several times a day in all-weather conditions. The imagery is applied to defense and security assurance inItaly and other countries, seismic hazard analysis,environmental disaster monitoring, and agricultural mapping.^[5]

The four satellites are inSun-synchronouspolar orbits with a 97.90°inclination at a nominalaltitude of 619 km (385 mi) and anorbital period of 97.20 minutes. The local time ascending node at theequator is 06:00. The operating life of each satellite is estimated to be 5 years. Each satellite repeats the sameground track every 16 days. They cross the equator at approximately 06:00 and 18:00 local-time each day and can image any point twice each day. The satellites are phased in the same orbital plane, with COSMO-SkyMed's 1, 3, and 2 at 90° intervals followed by COSMO-SkyMed 4 at 67.5° after COSMO-SkyMed 2. The offset of satellite 4 allows a one-day interferometry mode for elevation information.^[6] The Sun-synchronous orbit (SSO) is used due to power (Electrical Power Subsystem) andrevisit time requirements.

The satellites' main components are:

• Twosolar arrays for 3.8kW at 42VDC
• Stabilization, navigation andGlobal Positioning System (GPS) systems
• Synthetic-aperture radar (SAR) working inX-band
• 300Gbit on-boardmemory and 310Mbit/sdata-link withground segments

The radar antenna is a phased array that is 1.4 × 5.7 m (4 ft 7 in × 18 ft 8 in). The system is capable of both single- and dual-polarization collection. The center frequency is 9.6GHz with a maximum radar bandwidth of 400MHz.^[7]

United Launch Alliance provided launch services for the satellites with theirDelta II 7420-10C launch vehicles fromVandenberg Air Force Base.^[8] Satellite processing for the first two satellites was handled by the Astrotech Space Operations subsidiary ofSPACEHAB.^[5] The first satellite COSMO-1 (COSPAR 2007-023A) was launched at 02:34:00UTC on 8 June 2007.^[9] COSMO-2 (COSPAR 2007-059A) was launched at 02:31:42 UTC on 9 December 2007,^[10] the launch having been delayed from 6 December 2007 due to bad weather, and problems with the rocket's cork insulation. COSMO-3 (COSPAR 2008-054A) launched at 02:28 UTC on 25 October 2008. COSMO-4 (COSPAR 2010-060A) launched on 6 November 2010, at 02:20 UTC.^[11]

Theground segment of the system is composed of:

• Command Center:
  • ItalianCentro Controllo e Pianificazione Missione del Fucino
• Tracking and data stations:
  • Argentine Cordoba Station
  • SwedenKiruna Station
• User Ground Segments:
  • Italian Matera Civil User Ground Segment
  • Italian Pratica di Mare Defence User Ground Segment
  • France Defence User Ground Segment

The governments ofArgentina andFrance are involved respectively in the civil and military segments of the system.

The COSMO-SkyMed satellites have three basic types of imaging modes:

• Spotlight, a high-resolution mode collected over a small area by steering the radar beam slightly fore-to-aft during the collection period
• Stripmap, a medium-resolution mode collected over long, continuous swaths in which the beam is pointed broadside to the satellite track
• ScanSAR, a low-resolution mode that creates extra-wide swaths by collecting short segments at different ranges and then mosaicking them together

There are two Spotlight modes:

• SPOTLIGHT1, which is a military-only mode, and
• SPOTLIGHT2, which provides a resolution of 1 m (3 ft 3 in) over a 10 × 10 km (6.2 × 6.2 mi) area. Spotlight polarization is limited to either HH or VV

There are two Stripmap modes:

• HIMAGE, which provides a resolution of between 3 and 5 m (9.8 and 16.4 ft) over a swath of 40 km (25 mi), and
• PINGPONG, which collects dual-polarization data at 15 m (49 ft) resolution over a swath of 30 km (19 mi). The dual-polarization data can consist of any two polarizations (HH, VV, VH, HV), and it is non-coherent, as it is collected in "pulse groups" that alternate from one polarization to the other.

There are two ScanSAR modes:

• WIDEREGION, which provides 30 m (98 ft) resolution data over a swath of 100 km (62 mi), and
• HUGEREGION, which provides 100 m (330 ft) resolution data over a swath of 200 km (120 mi).

The system is sized to collect up to 450 images per satellite per day.^[12]

e-GEOS, S.p.A., a joint venture between European spaceflight services companyTelespazio (80%) and the Italian Space Agency (ASI) (20%), has the exclusive worldwide commercial rights to sell COSMO-SkyMed data and products.^[13][12]

The COSMO-SkyMed satellites are lesser-known deliverers ofsatellite flares, sometimes approaching magnitude −3. Flares come mainly from SAR-panels of the satellites. Although overshadowed by theIridium satellites, the flares are often long-lasting, with the satellites traversing much of the sky at brighter-than-average magnitudes.

To replace the first COSMO-SkyMed constellation, the Italian Space Agency is developing the COSMO-SkyMed second generation constellation. The 2nd generation constellation has the same function of radar-basedEarth observation with particular focus on theMediterranean area as the 1st generation. Like the 1st generation, the 2nd generation also consists of 4 satellites,CSG-1,CSG-2,CSG-3 andCSG-4. The satellites are improved versions of the first generation satellites. Also the radar payload CSG-SAR (COSMO-SkyMed Second Generation Synthetic Aperture Radar) is an improved version of the first generationX-band SAR payload. Furthermore, the 2nd generation satellites will operate in the same orbit (indeed, in the same orbital plane) as the first generation satellites. The 2nd generation satellites slightly outweigh the first generation satellites at 2,205 kg (4,861 lb) of mass.^[14]

The contract for building two satellites was signed in September 2015. In December 2020, another two satellites were ordered. The satellites are built byThales Alenia Space (the successor company ofAlenia Spazio). They have a planned lifetime of 7 years. CSG-1 was launched on 18 December 2019 bySoyuz ST-A fromCentre spatial Guyanais (CSG). CSG-2 was launched on 31 January 2022 byFalcon 9 Block 5 fromSpace Launch Complex 40 atCape Canaveral Space Force Station,^[15] while the CSG-3 satellite is scheduled to be launched in 2024 on aVega-C launch vehicle.^[16]

• Paz, Spain's SAR satellite.
• SAOCOM, two Argentine SAR-satellites that are part of the SIASGE constellation alongside COSMO-SkyMed.
• SAR Lupe, a system of five military SAR-satellites ofGermany.

Wikimedia Commons has media related toCOSMO-SkyMed.

• COSMO-SkyMed Web Site
• COSMO-SkyMed ProductsArchived 22 July 2013 at theWayback Machine
• INNOVA Consorzio per l'Informatica e la Telematica s.r.l.Archived 2 February 2009 at theWayback Machine – Italian SME with specific know-how and expertise with COSMO-SkyMed's HDF5 format
• Remote Monitoring of Migrants Vessels in the Mediterranean Sea (CeMiSS)

• Spacecraft launched in 2019
• Spacecraft launched in 2022
• 2019 in Italy
• Satellites of Italy
• Synthetic aperture radar satellites
• Satellite constellations
• Military equipment introduced in the 2000s
• Space synthetic aperture radar
• Earth imaging satellites

• Webarchive template wayback links
• Pages containing links to subscription-only content
• Articles with short description
• Short description matches Wikidata
• Use British English from October 2020
• All Wikipedia articles written in British English
• Use dmy dates from June 2023
• Commons category link is on Wikidata