PRISMA - Formation Flying Project Close to Launnch

Abstract

The PRISMA project is a technical demonstration mission for formation flying and rendezvous in space. The mission can be considered as an in-obit test-bed where different experiments involving Guidance, Navigation and Control (GNC) algorithms, sensors and actuators can be tested. The project is also a demonstration mission for two novel propulsion technologies. The project consists of two satellites, of which one is manoeuvring relative to the other, using different sensors and algorithms. The project is run by Swedish Space Corporation (SSC) with important contributions from the German Aerospace Center (DLR), the French Space Agency (CNES) and the Technical University of Denmark (DTU). The project started in beginning of 2005. The satellites are now basically on the launch pad, scheduled for launch on June 15, 2010 from the Russian site Yasny. The ground segment, consisting of a Mission and Operations Control Centre in Solna, Sweden, has been established and is ready for launch.