Understanding how climate change is affecting our biosphere enables us to better react to these challenges. Detecting and combatting forest fires, and aiding regrowth, as well as monitoring sea grasses is contributing to the absorption of excess carbon dioxide. Enabling ships to avoid harming whale populations has implications for biodiversity. All of this and more is facilitated by data gathered in space and subsequently processed using technology developed by CGI in Luxembourg.
Five business lines
“CGI Luxembourg contributes to the group’s five main space-related focus areas: Earth observation, satellite navigation, satellite communications, satellite operations, and downstream applications,” explained Guillaume Schott, Country Managing Director of CGI in Luxembourg. These are challenging, cutting-edge areas of activity driven by teams of highly skilled IT specialists and partnerships within the global CGI group and with third parties. CGI is one of the world’s largest IT and business consultancies, with more than 90,000 staff globally. It serves a wide range of industries, including the space sector in which it has been active since the mid-1970s, serving government, military, scientific, academic and commercial space initiatives. Over the time our software has supported the missions of over 1000 satellites.
CGI in Luxembourg’s 150-strong office contributes to this space sector work. The firm taps into the Grand Duchy’s significant, growing ecosystem in this area, which currently features more than 60 companies. They are also backed by the Luxembourg Space Agency and the country’s public research framework. Mr Schott described the five space-related business lines.
Earth observation
Their Earth observation work adds value to a wide range of sectors across the world, including health, transportation, the public sector, farming, maritime, oil and gas, utilities, trading, finance and insurance. Satellite data is often blended with terrestrial data to generate the most value- adding knowledge.
“The sustainability aspects of this sector are equally varied,” noted Mr Schott. “For example, CGI’s Greenhouse Early Warning Service uses satellite-based data service to provide farmers with insights into the condition of their greenhouses, thus reducing energy waste and boosting performance.” Other applications of Earth-observation solutions include surveillance of vegetation. This helps transport and energy infrastructure operators to react in a timely fashion to potentially risky growth of trees and grasses. This data also helps the horticulture and insurance industries, and assists weather forecasting, a vital component of ensuring climate resilience.
Navigation innovation
We take satellite navigation for granted these days, in everything from finding our way around town to tracking our exercise routines. CGI has contributed to this by supporting Europe’s Galileo system since 1999, providing ground control and mission services, as well as security systems. “Users are ever more demanding about the accuracy of positioning systems, and we work with providers on upgrades to existing solutions,” said Mr Schott.
Communication development
“The roll-out of 5G networks is another application of satellite communication technology in which CGI specialises,” he added. “We bring together fixed-network and satellite planning techniques.” This is just an example of the new strategies, applications and services that go to create integrated communications solutions for a variety of sectors. CGI also plans and delivers major-satellite constellations, such as a project to make affordable internet access widely available.
Operational support
Satellite operations is the fourth of the five key sectors served by CGI’s space operations. “Our satellite mission software suite handles all aspects of a spacecraft mission, from planning to implementation to operation,” said Mr Schott, with CGI designing and managing ground infrastructure using software intensive systems. “For example, we conduct high-fidelity simulation and modelling solutions that replicate satellite subsystems, ground stations, orbits and the environment in 3D,” he added.
These systems have numerous applications, with Mr Schott citing the example of how they are used to gain better understanding of global food systems. “These can take account of the Earth’s biosphere, atmosphere and hydrosphere, incorporating socio-economic and physical measurements to help create more accurate predictions,” he said. Digital- twin Earths enable the visualisation, monitoring and forecasting of natural and human activity, and how human activity affects these.
Space data applications
Space applications and services downstream of these systems extract information from satellite data including weather, navigation, telecommunications, and geographical data. “Today’s organisations use satellites to deliver faster, better services at lower cost, and our space applications and services facilitate this,” said Mr Schott.
The mapping and monitoring of wild- fires is an example, in which these mod- els can be used to minimise damage and aid recovery. There are also applications in the health, transportation, government, agriculture, maritime, oil and gas, trading, finance and insurance industries.
An example of how CGI in Luxembourg contributes outside the group is its recent partnership with a manufacturer and operator of nanosatellites. This involves developing and implementing gateways to autonomous operations platform. “This cooperation is part of CGI’s strategy to help space players in Luxembourg to grow their investments by using space data to solve their business challenges and drive business opportunities,” said Mr Schott.
Five business lines
EARTH OBSERVATION
Delivering timely information about how our planet is affected by all aspects of human and natural activity helps to ensure resilience as we adapt to climate change, while also working to minimise energy waste. Satellite data is blended with terrestrial data to provide the value-added information businesses and governments require.
SATELLITE NAVIGATION
Users of sat nav are more demanding than ever, with them seeking more precise and time-related positioning. CGI is part of a pan- European effort – based on the Galileo system to refine the accuracy of these systems, by providing ground control, mission services and data security support.
SATELLITE COMMUNICATION
Satellites have enabled considerable advances in communication technology over the decades, and this innovation continues to progress. A current focus is the roll-out of 5G mobile technology, with CGI contributing, including by bringing fixed networks and satellite systems together.
SATELLITE OPERATIONS
CGI’s satellite mission software suite handles all aspects of a spacecraft mission, from planning to implementation to operation. These systems have many uses, such as the creation of digital-twin Earths which enable the visualisation, monitoring and fore-casting of natural and human activity, and how human activity affects these.
DOWNSTREAM APPLICATIONS
Space applications, and services downstream of these systems, extract information from satellite data. This includes weather, navigation, telecommunications, and geographical data. CGI works to deliver this information more quickly and effectively.
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