2011-11-22
ABB to help Canadian space agency to monitor climate in the North Pole
ABB 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 applications 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 an imaging spectroradiometer, a device designed to measure the wavelengths of individual colors of light, is worth CDN $5.7 million and was awarded by the Canadian Space Agency through the Space Technologies Development Program (STDP). The technologies that ABB will develop are similar to those currently under development for the next generation of geostationary weather satellites.
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2011-10-26
ABB's interferometer to reach space onboard the NPP satellite
Quebec, Canada, October 26, 2011 – ABB, the leader in power and automation technologies, is proud to see the completion of this critical project. Working with its customer, ITT, on a contract worth nearly $50 million that was carried out in a number of phases, ABB developed the interferometer, which is a critical part of the Cross-track Infrared Sounder (CrIS), one of the instruments that make up the next generation of US polar-orbiting meteorological satellites. The NPP will carry new sensors to monitor global environmental conditions, collect and disseminate data related to weather, atmosphere, oceans, and land.
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For further technical information in this release, please go to: www.abb.com/analytical
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2011-09-26
ABB to build an innovative astronomical measuring instrument
A $2.3 million contract awarded by Laval University for the construction of a new type of optical instrument for astrophysical research in order to broaden our knowledge of the formation of galaxies and stars and the evolution of the universe.
Québec City, Canada, September 26, 2011 – ABB, the leader in power and automation technologies, has been granted a $2.3 million contract from Laval University for the SITELLE (Spectromètre Imageur à Transformée de Fourier pour l’Étude en Long en Large de raies d’ Émission – Wide-field Imaging Fourier Transform Spectrometer) project. The instrument, which incorporates a number of leading-edge technologies, will be installed on the renowned Canada-France-Hawaii (CFH) telescope, which is one of the most scientifically productive telescopes in the world, located 4,200 metres above sea level at the top of Mauna Kea on Hawaii's Big Island.
In building this measuring instrument, ABB will work in close collaboration with Dr. Laurent Drissen’s team at Laval University. It will open to the heavens for the first time in the spring of 2013, and will be able to analyze light coming from space with a power that no other spectro-imager used in astronomy provides.
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2011-05-13
Henry Buijs receives prestigious John H. Chapman Award of Excellence from Canadian Space Agency
In recognition of his exceptional contribution to the Canadian Space Program
Quebec, Quebec, May 13, 2011 – ABB, leader in power and automation technologies, is proud to announce that Dr. Henry Buijs, Chief Technical Officer at ABB Analytical – Measurement Products, was presented with the prestigious John H. Chapman Award of Excellence at the Canadian Space Agency's annual celebration, in the company of representatives from industry, academia, and government as well as former and current Canadian Astronauts.
"Dr. Henry Buijs made direct contributions to several major space missions that have had and will continue to have a tremendous impact on the understanding of the Earth's atmosphere", said Steve MacLean, President of the Canadian Space Agency (CSA), during the ceremony that was held at the Canada Aviation and Space Museum in Ottawa, Ontario.
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2011-03-10
ABB technology to search for signs of life on Mars
The interferometer is the central component of a satellite-borne instrument called MATMOS that will search the Martian atmosphere for methane and other trace gases that will help answer the question: Is there life on Mars?
MATMOS (Mars atmospheric trace molecule occulatation spectrometer) is part of the ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter, a satellite which is to be launched in 2016 in the first mission of a joint space program of the European and United States space agencies (ESA and NASA) to investigate the Martian environment and search for signs of life. The first mission, which is to be launched in 2016, comprises the orbiter and an entry, descent and landing demonstrator that will analyze the environment at the landing site as well as its own performance during the descent. The second mission, in 2018, will consist of two rovers (roaming vehicles) that will land at the same site, collect samples from target destinations, and analyze the mineralogy. Once processed, the data will be transmitted back to earth via an orbiter relay satellite.
One of the most promising indicators of the past or present existence of life is methane, which can be produced either biogenically by dead or living organisms, or geologically by volcanoes or the oxidization of iron. The task of the ABB spatial interferometer is to produce a sensitive survey of the Mars atmosphere: detect, and measure the abundance of methane and other gases as the satellite passes through the Martian atmosphere on its orbit. The ABB interferometer enables phenomenal sensitivity: MATMOS will provide measurements of the concentration of different chemicals and gases with a precision down to a few parts per trillion.
ABB's interferometer was the natural choice for this type of mission. Its design is based largely on another ABB instrument, ACE-FTS, that is currently currently achieving some remarkable results as the principal payload onboard the Canadian satellite SCISAT-1. ACE-FTS is measuring the chemical constituents of the earth's atmosphere and collecting data on the depletion of the ozone layer over Canada and the Arctic. To date it has provided data for more than 200 scientific papers, measured 12 chemicals that have never previously been detected by satellite, and has been operating faultlessly since 2003, several years longer than originally expected.
MATMOS is a collaboration between NASA, the California Institute of Technology/JPL, and the Canadian Space Agency. ABB was selected by the Canadian Space Agency and is the prime contractor for the CSA's contribution to the project.
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