Proba-3 completes final test, prepares for November launch

Proba-3 completes final test, prepares for November launch
by Erica Marchand
Paris, France (SPX) Oct 04, 2024

ESA's double-satellite Proba-3 mission has successfully passed its final system test before shipment to India for launch. The mission, designed to perform precise eclipse-like observations, involved receiving commands from the mission's science team and transmitting images, replicating its future operations in space.

Proba-3's twin satellites will perform millimetre-scale formation flying, where one satellite will cast a shadow on the other to block out the Sun and observe its corona in unprecedented detail. This setup allows for prolonged observations, previously unattainable in space missions.

The last of five System Validation Tests (SVTs) was carried out by scientists at the Royal Observatory of Belgium. They sent operational requests to ESA's mission control at the European Space Security and Education Centre (ESEC) in Redu, Belgium. These commands were then transmitted to the spacecraft, currently located at Redwire Space in Kruibeke, Belgium, to automate the scientific observations.

Having completed this testing, Proba-3 is now set for shipment to India's Satish Dhawan Space Centre on October 21, ahead of its scheduled November 29 launch aboard the PSLV-XL rocket.

The latest test lasted 12 hours and simulated Proba-3's elliptical 19.5-hour orbit around Earth. During six hours of the test, the spacecraft formation-flew at its apogee, approximately 60,000 km from Earth, to simulate solar corona observations. The test included command updates to adapt to possible solar events, ensuring mission flexibility.

"These System Validation Tests replicate the full chain of operations, including all the ground systems and software we'll use during the mission," explained Proba-3 systems engineer Raphael Rougeot. "The tests also involve the teams who will operate the mission, including Redwire for early orbit activities and ESA personnel for the operational phase, along with support from prime contractor Sener in Spain."

"We are checking the spacecraft's operability, ensuring data can flow seamlessly between the ground segment and the satellites to guarantee smooth mission execution. Proba-3's automated systems are key to achieving this," Rougeot added.

Proba-3 system engineer Esther Bastida Pertegaz highlighted the realism of the final tests: "Operating the satellites remotely from our actual mission control site feels like they are already in space."

The ASPIICS coronagraph, Proba-3's main instrument for observing the Sun, remained closed during the test, but it still captured an internal image, which was sent to the Royal Observatory of Belgium for validation.

The only part of the ground segment not involved in this test was the global network of ground stations, located in Chile, Australia, Spain's Canary Islands, and near Madrid, which will maintain contact with the spacecraft during its orbits.

Proba-3, consisting of the Coronagraph and Occulter satellites, is the latest addition to ESA's experimental minisatellite series, which began in 2001.