2011-11-22 - ABB Canada wins R&D contract worth CDN $5.7 million from Canadian Space Agency
Quebec, Canada, Nov. 22, 2011 – ABB, the leading power and automation technology group, will develop key technologies for an instrument designed for meteorological observations onboard satellites for the Canadian Space Agency’s Polar Communications and Weather (PCW) mission.
This R&D contract for a multi-spectral imager is worth $5.7 million and was awarded by the Canadian Space Agency through the Space Technologies Development Program (STDP). ABB plans to award important subcontracts to seven Canadian firms active in optical instrumentation and space.
Model of the imaging spectroradiometer to be developed by ABB Analytical Measurements
Currently there are limitations to the short-term weather forecasts, long-term climate predictions, and other services offered in the high Arctic by existing satellites, particularly with respect to mobile communications for ships, planes and unmanned aerial vehicles. To help improve these services, the PCW mission aims to place two satellites into a highly elliptical orbit approximately 39,900 km above the North Pole to provide reliable and continuous communication services and to monitor weather and climate changes throughout the Arctic region.
"We are delighted that our team was selected by the Canadian Space Agency to develop key technologies for the PCW weather payload,” said Marc-Andre Soucy, Manager of ABB's Remote Sensing division. “Space-based and ground-based atmospheric instrumentation is a core business at ABB Canada, and this contract will strengthen our position within this market. Canada is a large territory, which not only makes satellites a practical solution for weather forecasting and telecommunication services for our communities, but such satellites also provide the infrastructure to bolster our sovereignty in the Arctic region."
ABB Canada already has a number of space-related projects to its credit, including the interferometer system that is at the heart of the Cross-track Infrared Sounder (CrIS) instrument, which is a key component of the U.S. NPP meteorological satellite that was launched by NASA on October 28, 2011.
ABB (www.abb.com) is a leader in power and automation technologies that enable utility and industry customers to improve their performance while lowering environmental impact. The ABB Group of companies operates in some 100 countries and employs approximately 130,000 people. In Canada, (www.abb.ca), ABB employs over 2,500 people in 40 locations from coast to coast.