Cosmo-SkyMed provides synthetic aperture radar imagery to military and civilian users.
The two newly ordered satellites will complete the second-generation Cosmo-SkyMed constellation and allow Italy to retire its first-generation Cosmo-SkyMed satellites.
Thales Alenia Space manufactured the 2.2-metric-ton Cosmo-SkyMed satellite for the Italian Space Agency.
Arianespace scheduled a Soyuz mission for 2019-12-17 carrying the Italian Cosmo-SkyMed second-generation radar satellite, the European Space Agency’s CHEOPS telescope, and three smallsat secondary payloads.
e-GEOS expects a second second-generation Cosmo-SkyMed satellite to launch in 2020.
Thales Alenia Space will leverage its experience with Cosmo-SkyMed, a four-satellite constellation funded by the Italian Space Agency and the Italian Ministry of Defence that launched between 2007 and 2010.
CONAE will operate Saocom-1A as part of the Argentine-Italian System of Satellites with the Italian Space Agency and will coordinate observations with Italy’s four Cosmo-SkyMed X-band SAR satellites.