ESA Open Invitation To Tender AO8823
Open Date: 28/11/2016
Closing Date: 02/02/2017 13:00:00

Status: ISSUED
Reference Nr.: 16.197.25
Prog. Ref.: General Studies
Budget Ref.: E/0600-00 – General Studies
Special Prov.: BE+DK+FR+DE+IT+NL+ES+SE+CH+GB+HU+IE+AT+NO+FI+PT+GR+LU+CZ+RO+PL+CA+EE
Tender Type: C
Price Range:     100-200 KEURO
Products: Satellites & Probes / Optical Communication / Optical Comm ¿ BB / Tracking, (fine) Pointing and Stabilization mechanisms / Ground Segment / Ground Station / Baseband equipment / Telemetry and Telecommand equipment, Tracking, Ranging and Doppler measurement equipment, CODECS, …
Techology Domains: Others
Establishment: ESAHQ
Directorate: Directorate of Technical & Quality Manag
Department: System, Software & Technology Department
Division: Future Prep. & Strategic Studies Off.
Contract Officer: O’Sullivan, Margaret
Industrial Policy Measure: N/A – Not apply
Last Update Date: 28/11/2016
Update Reason: Tender issue

Recent trends show an increased deployment of small satellites, often in massive releases, into Earth orbit. It is expected that this trend will continue and rates will grow. The new small or tiny satellites follow non-classical approaches for the design and for operations. One concern is the dependence from publicly available two-line element (TLE) sets for operations. The timely TLE availability is not guaranteed, and further the assignment of operator identification to TLE sets can be delayed. We propose to study augmenting the observability of small satellites through passive components, such as small laser retro-reflectors or dipoles with minimumdesign impact at system level. Adding unique patterns to discriminate similar satellites of mass launches or constellations should be investigated, too. This would not only be beneficial for operators of small missions, but also help to improve conjunction predictions, even after mission end, for all satellites. It would also improve assessments of attitude and attitude motion state, e.g. during operations or contingency situations. Finally, the proposed tagging would also help for complying with requirements of spacecraftregistration. The study shall collect and synthesise information on available technologies and on-going developments; and shall develop feasible, cost-efficient, and promising concepts for the identification of small satellites with minimal impact on the design.The activity shall address design, operational, and regulatory aspects.

If you wish to access the documents related to the Invitation to Tender, you have to log in to the ESA Portal.