Background and justification:

This report summarises the feasibility study result of AltiCube+, a low-cost long fixed-baseline radar altimeter solution based on CubeSats on-orbit assembly. Various altimeter concepts based on the AltiCube+ solution, including off-nadir SARIn and a Multiple-Input and Multiple-Output, have been explored, aiming at sub-kilometre cross-track resolution for water level monitoring. Key technologies on deployable structures, autonomous assembly and highly capable platform have been assessed.

CDPS envisages to provide cloud capacity for data processing. It offers a cloud-agnostic, highly-scalable framework with resource elasticity, a common component for mission data, and marketplace service for third-party integration. CDPS aims to lower infrastructure costs while providing efficient, scalable, and secure processing capabilities for various Earth Observation systems.

The “16U4SBSP” mission concept is a fundamental technology demonstration step for the realization of kW-/MW-/GW-scale Space-Based Solar Power (SBSP) based on flight formation, a distributed or aggregated swarm of small satellites contrary to conventional concepts of monolithic giant SBSP satellites. In this mission, a swarm of 16U CubeSats collaboratively supply wireless power via Radio-Frequency waves to end-users in different locations on the ground, for instance to provide backup power for emergency situations, and also for space-to-space commercial use-cases.

RaCERS is a swarm of eight small satellites that will fly in close formation to exploit the enormous power of cooperating radars to boost the quantity and resolution of environmental observations from space. This will transform the science of Earth environmental monitoring and forecasting applied to such vital concerns as severe weather, natural hazards, snow/ice cover, soil moisture, vegetation canopy, surface winds, ocean circulation and much more.

During its science phase EnVision will use ESTRACK antennas located at the three ESA deep space sites in New Norcia (Western Australia), Cebreros (Spain) and Malarg?e (Argentina), and optionally the DSN antennas located at the NASA sites of Canberra (Australia), Robledo (Spain) and Goldstone (United States of America). In order to increase the flexibility in the selection of the ground stations, or alternatively to increase the data volume, offline arraying between distant antennas is proposed during overlapping visibility slots.

• a Receive Telescope with a 80cm aperture mounted on a very precise Mount with arcsecond pointing and tracking accuracy
• a Transmit Laser Package (precise pulsed source capable to operate at 532nm and 1064nm)
• a time-gated photon-counting Detection Package (filters and detectors sensitive at 532nm and 1064nm)
• a precise Control, Timing, Calibration and Processing System as the central "heart" of the LRS