ESA Signs Contract For the Construction of the Harmony Mission

MILAN — On October 15, 2024, at the International Astronautical Congress, OHB’s Rüdiger Schönfeld and ESA’s Simonetta Cheli signed a €280 million contract for the construction of two Harmony Earth observation satellites. Due for launch in 2029 on a Vega-C rocket, the innovative mission will team up with a Sentinel-1 satellite to map deformations of Earth’s surface. The small constellation represents ESA’s 10th Earth Explorer mission.

Signing the contract

At the signature ceremony, the ESA Director of Earth Observation Programs Simonetta Cheli commented on the project: “We are thrilled to award the industrial contract, worth over €280 million, to OHB System AG as prime contractor for the two Harmony satellites. This exciting new mission comprises two identical satellites, each of which carries a receive-only synthetic aperture radar and a multiview thermal-infrared instrument. They will orbit Earth in convoy with a Copernicus Sentinel-1 satellite to yield new information to answer important questions on Earth system processes.”

ESA Director of Earth Observations Programmes Simonetta Cheli and OHB Board Member Rüdiger Schönfeld sign the €280 million contract to build the two Harmony satellites. Credits: Space Voyaging/Edoardo Giammarino

“We thank ESA for their trust in developing this complex mission and now look forward to getting underway with the build. As our subcontractors for Harmony, Thales Alenia Space in Italy is responsible for the synthetic aperture radar and ABB in Canada is responsible for the thermal-infrared imager. With the contract now signed, it’s full steam ahead for Harmony, which has to be built within the next five years in order for the satellites to meet their rendezvous with a Copernicus Sentinel-1 satellite,” added Rüdiger Schönfeld, Board Member at OHB Systems AG.

The satellites

Each satellite carries a receive-only synthetic aperture radar, allowing it to pick up the signals sent by Sentinel-1 that bounced off the surface of the Earth. Additionally, the satellites carry a thermal-infrared instrument to collect complementary information on the sea surface and the clouds above it.

Over the ocean, Harmony will observe the interaction between water, ice, and the atmosphere. It will provide insights into heat transfer, extreme weather drivers, and climate change. Observing the ocean with the two radars in different places, coupled with the infrared data, will provide data on winds, temperatures, currents, and waves.

*A rendering of the two Harmony satellites in orbit. The synthetic aperture radar receivers are clearly visible. Credits: ESA*

Over land, Harmony will be able to observe small shifts in the shape of the surface, such as those occurring before and after volcanic events and earthquakes. This data will be precious to assess risks in geologically active areas. The mission will also map the flow and loss of glaciers at the peripheries of ice sheets.

The challenge ahead

Since Harmony will rely on a Copernicus Sentinel-1 satellite as a radar emitter, it is crucial to launch in time to maximize science returns while all three satellites are active. Confidence in the project is high, however. “It’s not easy but it’s feasible, and we are really convinced that we will achieve this. The last two years have shown that we are on a good path because the schedule that called to come to this country for the signature today was established two years ago, and now we are here exactly on time,” added Schönfeld.

For the complete coverage of the 2024 International Astronautical Congress, please click here.