Cannes, France – Thales Alenia Space reports that the Gravity field and steady-state Ocean Circulation Explorer (GOCE) spacecraft, developed and built by Thales Alenia Space for the European Space Agency (ESA), has completed its in-orbit commissioning and calibration phase, by successfully passing an in-flight test review last week.

The satellite’s and the payload’s functionalities have been fully demonstrated and initial results from the first measurement campaign – initiated on September 15 and due to last through March 2010 – are already giving amazing results, even beyond the specifications in some frequency bands. Early measurements have been successfully correlated with existing models of the Earth gravity field and shown significantly higher level of spatial detail.

Following its launch into low Earth orbit on March 17, GOCE reached its operational orbit at an altitude of 259 km at mid-September. Its payload had been switched on and tested since April. As of today, the satellite is in perfect shape and the drag caused by the upper atmosphere is below expectations, resulting in lower power consumption for drag compensation, with performance one order of magnitude beyond the specification. As a result, it is estimated that the measurement phases could be extended as well as the overall mission duration.

GOCE’s 3D mapping of the geoid is expected to provide a global reference for oceanographic observation and the study of ice sheets, as well as for satellite tracking and the unification of the world’s altitude measurements. In addition, GOCE will map density variations in the higher levels of the Earth’s mantle.

Source: Thales Alenia Space