Surrey Satellite Technology Ltd. (SSTL) has been chosen by the National Space Organization (NSPO) of Taiwan to design and build as many as 12 satellite platforms for the FORMOSAT-7/COSMIC-2 constellation. This mission is a joint civil programme between NSPO and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) in the U.S, aiming to provide continuity for the highly successful FORMOSAT-3 mission.
The new constellation is intended to consist of 12 spacecraft that will collect atmospheric data at low and mid latitudes, and enhance regional and global weather forecasting for over 5,000 registered users all over the world. The satellites will also supply scientific data to support climate studies and ionospheric science. The first six spacecraft in the constellation is intended to be launched in 2016.
Under the agreement, SSTL will design and build satellites for the FORMOSAT-7 program at its facilities in Guildford, United Kingdom, while the payloads will be manufactured by NSPO’s partners in the U.S. NSPO is responsible for the integration of the majority of the spacecraft at its facilities in Taiwan. The design phase of the spacecraft is already in motion and SSTL is tailoring a new 200kg platform to the mission requirements. The FORMOSAT-7 spacecraft is known as the fifth constellation that SSTL has been involved with, following on from the Disaster Monitoring Constellation, RapidEye, DMC3, and the Galileo FOC.
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