Sofradir Wins Contract from Galileo Avionica

In Paris, Sofradir, a leading developer and manufacturer of advanced infrared detectors for military, space and industrial applications, has announced that it has signed a contract with Galileo Avionica SpA of Italy, a worldwide supplier of space equipment and a member of the Finmeccanica Group. Sofradir will supply the Italian company with Saturn, its largest shortwave infrared (SWIR) detector, which Galileo will use in a satellite program called Prisma (Precursor Hyperspectral Mission Application. Prisma, a system of earth observation instruments, or hyperspectral imagers, will provide researchers with new data for environmental protection. Under the contract, Sofradir will develop a specific and hermetic package suited for passive cooling and will manufacture two types of detectors: very near IR (VNIR), sensitive from 0.4 to 1 µm and SWIR sensitive from 0.9 to 2.5 µm. The flight models will be delivered to Galileo Avionica in 2010.