Airbus awards Celestia STS for CRISTAL LSTM PDH EGSE

Celestia-STS has been awarded a significant new contract for the supply of Payload Data Handling (PDH) EGSE systems for use on the Copernicus CRISTAL and LSTM programs. This is a direct contract with Airbus Defence & Space (Germany and Spain).

In total we will provide 4 systems; 2 in full and 2 in reduced configuration.

The systems in full configuration will include:
- WizardLink Front-End
- Cortex HDR Modem
- RF Conditioning and Switching Unit
- LZP Processing

In addition, on this project we will integrate (software) CFDP processing functionality. The 2 reduced configuration systems will only contain the Digital interfaces (no RF), with focus around WizardLink, LZP and CFDP functionality.

About Copernicus CRISTAL Mission

Copernicus is the European Union's Earth Observation Programme, looking at our planet and its environment for the benefit of Europe's citizens.

With a launch planned in 2027, the Copernicus Polar Ice and Snow Topography Altimeter, CRISTAL, mission will carry, for the first time, a dual-frequency radar altimeter, and microwave radiometer, that will measure and monitor sea-ice thickness, overlying snow depth and ice-sheet elevations. These data will support maritime operations in the polar oceans and contribute to a better understanding of climate processes. CRISTAL will also support applications related to coastal and inland waters, as well as providing observations of ocean topography.

About Copernicus LSTM Mission

According to eoportal.org "LSTM (Land Surface Temperature Monitoring) is an ESA mission developed by Airbus Defense and Space, set to join the Copernicus Sentinel system in 2028. The satellite will have Thermal Infrared (TIR) observation capabilities over land and coastal regions in support of agriculture management services, and possibly a range of additional services. The LSTM mission will consists of two satellites, LSTM-A (planned for launch in 2028) and LSTM-B (planned for launch in 2030)."