France in Space #252

** 1: EUROPEAN UNION SPACE POLICY READY FOR LIFT-OFF

On November 11th, the European Commission presented a policy paper on
“Space: A New European Frontier for an Expanding Union”. Space
technologies
are set to play a key role in helping the Union achieve its main
objectives:
faster economic growth, job creation and industrial competitiveness,
enlargement and cohesion, sustainable development and security and
defense.
The paper was developed in close co-operation with the European Space
Agency
and calls for substantial additional spending on space. It also
recommends
action to ensure Europe’s independent access to space, to enhance space
technology, promote space exploration, attract more young people into
careers in science and strengthen European excellence in space science.
The
European Space Policy will be implemented through a new multi-annual
European Space Programme that would determine priorities, set
objectives,
allocate roles and responsibilities and define annual budgets. To be
reviewed and updated every five years, the Programme would incorporate
research and development, infrastructure development, and services and
technology. This Action Plan is the result of one of the most extensive
consultations ever conducted in the research and technology sector. The
final result shows that policy-makers and citizens alike strongly
support a
more active role for the EU in space. Space is a key contributor to job
creation and competitiveness in the EU in many crucial high-tech
sectors,
especially telecommunications. Today, the European space sector directly
employs over 30,000 people in about 2,000 companies. Restructuring of
the EU
space industry is of critical importance for its future survival. To
attract
the necessary investment for the future, the EU space industry will
need a
steady flow of work, in particular from a strong public procurement
market.
The Commission proposes three main budget scenarios to support the
Action
Plan. A first option would be to support the needs identified during the
consultation on the European Commission’s space policy and would
involve an
annual expenditure growth rate of 4.6%, with respect to the overall
public
level of funding in 2003 (€5,380 billion). The second scenario presents
an
annual growth rate of 3.4%, a higher rate than the global growth rate
of the
EU economy. The third is more modest and is based on the current level
of EU
expenditures with a growth rate of 2.3 %, which, it is argued, would
not be
sufficient to guarantee EU independence with respect to technology and
access to space. [European Commission 11/11/2003]

** 2: EUROPE AND THE US WORKING TOGETHER ON JASON 2 PROGRAMME

Europe and the US are working on a joint program of Earth observation
satellites to study the oceans, the jets streams and the overall impact
of
global warming. Jason 2 is Eumetsat contribution to the program. Jason 2
will continue the work of 2 previous missions that resulted of
cooperation
between the CNES (French Space Agency) and NASA: Jason 1 (December
2001) and
Topex/Poseidon (August 2002). Data from Jason 2 will also be used for
offshore operations and weather forecasts. Participation to the Jason
program is considered optional and only countries contributing to its
financing will have access to the data. The program is budgeted to 30 M
Euros. [Techniques Sciences Méthodes 09/2003]

** 3: SPOT IMAGE REVENUE BASED ON GOVERNMENT MILITARY CUSTOMERS

Nearly 18 years after launching its first satellite with ambitions of
stimulating a global private-sector business, Spot Image has concluded
that
the only Earth observation business worth seeking is the business of
serving
government customers. And inside that government market, the military
business remains by far the most important, according to Spot Image
Chairman
Jean-Marc Nasr. He also declared that the commercial private sector
demand
will remain marginal for the foreseeable future. About 60% of Spot
Image’s
2002 revenue of 51 M Euros came from military users, either directly or
through Spot partners, in Europe, the United States, South America and
Asia.
The two biggest export markets are the United Stats and China, with both
markets dominated by government demand. [Space News 11/10/2003]

** 4: GOCE & CRYOSAT: THE LATEST SCIENCE SAT FROM EADS

The European research satellite Gravity-Field and Steady-State Ocean
Circulation Explorer (GOCE) will measure the gravitational field as
well as
the shape of the Earth more precisely than ever before. GOCE will start
“surfing” the gravitational field of the Earth from an altitude of
about 250
kilometers in August 2006 for at least two years. Data will aid in
geological and oceanographic investigations. EADS Astrium is on schedule
with their developments and will deliver the completely assembled and
tested
platform to ESA by April 2005. Another European satellite, CryoSat, the
ice
research satellite developed and built by EADS Astrium for the European
Space Agency, is being tests and integrated. The launch is scheduled in
autumn 2004 on board a Rockot launcher from the Plesetsk Cosmodrome in
Russia. CryoSat will measure changes in the thickness of ice sheets and
polar ocean sea-ice cover for at least three years with unprecedented
accuracy. The industrial contract amounts to some 70 million euros.
[EADS
Astrium 11/04/2003]

** 5: ULTRASOUND SCAN PERFORMED LONG DISTANCE

During a telemedicine congress, Mr. Philippe Arbeille, professor at the
medical university in Tours, France, successfully conducted an
ultrasound on
a patient 5000km away, in Cyprus. From his office in Tours, Mr. Abeille
directed the movements of a robot, named “Otelo”, which moved the
ultrasound
probe on the patient. The robotic probe is a joint venture between
France,
Italy, Greece and the United Kingdom and was developed by a team of
engineers from Bourges, France. The experiment was financed by the
European
Union and used satellite relay to transmit the data. This experiment
gives
hope to patients in remote areas for faster diagnosis by a specialist. A
lighter and more ergonomic prototype should be commercialized by a
company
from Toulouse in 2005. [AFP 11/07/2003]

** 6: IN BRIEF

EADS expects to take a majority stake in the Arianespace launch
consortium
in 2004 following negotiations with the French space agency (CNES) and
other
Arianespace shareholders, EADS Chief Financial Officer Hans-Peter Ring
said
on November 6th. [EADS 11/06/2003] French national Raphaela Le Gouvello
arrived in Papeete, Tahiti after 89 days and 14 hours at sea on a
sailboard.
The sailboard was outfitted with a unique technology transferred from
the
European Space Agency: inflatable cousins that automatically stabilized
the
sailboard if it capsized. [Paris Normandie 11/05/2003]

[From AFP, EADS Astrium, European Commission, Paris Normandie, Space
News,
Techniques Sciences Méthodes, La Tribune]

France In Space is a weekly synthesis of French space activities based
on
French press. Its content does not reflect an official position of the
French Government or CNES. It is provided by the CNES office and the
Office
of Science and Technology of the French Embassy in Washington D.C
Editors: Vincent Sabathier, Thibaut Girard, Valery Tessier-Leon

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About CNES

“CNES develops and leads national space programmes. The main thrust of
its
action is to serve France’s ambition to sustain a strong space
capability
and contribute to scientific discovery at the highest levels. CNES is
committed to fostering innovative space technologies that meet the
current
and future needs of society. Most programmes are pursued in cooperation
with
international partners. CNES also plays a central role in programmes
initiated by ESA, the European Space Agency, to which it is a major
contributor. It is thus a driving force behind ESA programmes and
activities”.