images

GOCE satellite - Artist view

by

ESA/AOES Medialab/Novapix

Reference

e-sot01-70509

Date

2008-09-19

Launched in 2009, ESA's Gravity field and steady-state Ocean Circulation Explorer (GOCE) has been developed to bring about a whole new level of understanding of one of the Earth's most fundamental forces of nature, the gravity field. In orbit, the same side of the GOCE satellite remains facing the Sun. The spacecraft is equipped with four body-mounted and two wing-mounted solar panels. Due to the configuration in orbit, the solar panels will experience extreme temperature variations so it has been necessary to use materials that will tolerate temperatures as high as 160ºC and as low as -170ºC.