CCD imaging sensors from e2v equip unmanned spacecraft headed for International Space Station

EADS SODERN spacecraft engineers in Limeil-Brevannes, France, needed image sensors for the European Space Agency’s (ESA’s) Jules Verne automated transfer vehicle (ATV) spacecraft destined for the International Space Station (ISS). They found the optimal imaging sensors at e2v Technologies plc in Chelmsford, England. EADS SODERN experts chose the CCD47-20 sensors from e2v for two key systems delivered for the ATV: an SED16 star tracker for determining the orientation of the spacecraft by measuring its position relative to stars, and a videometer primary rendezvous and docking sensor for the spacecraft. The Jules Verne ATV was launched into orbit from French Guiana hauling nearly seven tons of cargo to the ISS roughly 250 miles above the Earth. For more information, visit e2v online at www.e2v.com.