The Project for On-Board Autonomy (PROBA) is a series of technology demonstration missions of the European Space Agency. The first satellite in the series, PROBA-1, was successfully launched on 22 October 2001, initially for a two-year mission and now operational for five years. PROBA-2 is currently under development, with a planned launch in December 2007. PROBA-2 will continue ESA's validation of new spacecraft technologies while also carrying a scientific payload.

The objectives of PROBA are:

In-orbit demonstration and evaluation of new hardware and software spacecraft technologies
In-orbit demonstration and evaluation of onboard operational autonomy
In-orbit trial and demonstration of Earth observation and space environment instruments

Mission Instrumentation:

PROBA-2 has the following spacecraft infrastructure technologies:

New type of lithium-ion battery
Advanced data and power management system, containing many new component technologies
Combined carbon-fibre and aluminium structural panels
New models of reaction wheels, star trackers and GPS receivers
Upgraded telecommand system with a decoder largely implemented in software

PROBA-2 has the following scientific instruments:

Solar observation instruments:

Lyman-Alpha radiometer (LYRA)
Sun Watcher using AP-sensors and image Processing (SWAP) experiment

Plasma measurement instruments:

Dual Segmented Langmuir Probes (DSLP)
Thermal plasma measurement unit (TPMU)

GPS receiver
Laser retroreflector array

Mission Parameters:

PROBA-2 Mission Parameters
Sponsor:	ESA
Expected Life:	2 years
Primary Applications:	Sun observations; technology demonstration
Primary SLR Applications:	Precision orbit determination
COSPAR ID:	TBD
SIC Code:	TBD
NORAD SSC Code:	TBD
Launch Date:	December 2007
NP Bin Size:	5 seconds
RRA Diameter:	16 cm
RRA Shape:	hemispherical
Reflectors:	7 corner cubes
Orbit:	Sun-synchronous dusk-dawn
Inclination:	98 degrees
Eccentricity:	0.0
Weight:	130 kg

Additional Information:

Web sites:

Publications:

"PROBA-2 Mission and New Technologies Overview", Small Satellite Systems and Services -- The 4S Symposium; 25-29 September 2006; Chia Laguna Sardinia, Italy (2006)
Cryosat Retroreflector Technical Description