Alcatel: Proteus

CALIPSO (Proteus, standard) [NASA]

Globalstar-2 (Proteus, modified) [Alcatel Alenia]

Proteus (Plateforme Reconfigurable pour l'Observation, les Te'le'communications Et les Usages Scientifiques) is designed for LEO payloads in the 300 kg/300 W class. The platform also offers a 2-Gbyte mass memory and a 690-kbit/s S-band telemetry transmitter.

Proteus is designed for use in sunsynchronous, polar and near-equatorial orbits at altitudes from 500 to 1,500 km and for an orbital lifetime of 5 years.

Proteus offers precision attitude control (to within 0.05°) with the main instrument package pointing in the earth-center (or anti-earth-center) direction or precision inertial stabilization and attitude control. Attitude can also be programmed to follow a customer-specified pattern.

A Proteus control center can be easily integrated with an existing facility using equipment that is both readily available and easy to maintain.

The Proteus service module is compatible with all launch vehicles with a payload capacity between 500 and 1,000 kg. The only limits are those imposed by the customer's payload

The service module's precision AOCS (attitude and orbit control system) features a fully redundant configuration of rate gyros, star trackers, GPS receivers, reaction wheels and magnetic torquers.