Guidance, navigation and control systems and avionics applied to reusable hypersonic craft

In early March, GMV went to the workshop on reusable hypersonic craft organized by the European Space Agency (ESA) at the European Astronaut Center (EAC) in Cologne, Germany. The meeting was attended by representatives from the aviation industry and specialized research centers to establish research synergies to develop these hypersonic craft and their applications in aviation.

GMV shared its know-how about advanced avionics technology, hardware, and software, highlighting the guidance, navigation, and control (GNC) subsystem and the challenges posed by implementing it in this field. GMV’s capacity to develop and assess avionics equipment applicable to these craft, such as GPS receptors and power units, was brought to light. 

Francesco Pace, from GMV’s Robotics and EST Space Flight Segment Unit, presented the company's vision and experience in hypersonic vehicles developed over the last few years on institutional projects, especially for ESA and commercial aviation.

Mariella Graziano, director of business strategy and development for EST space system science, exploration, and transportation at GMV, spoke about the strategic importance of hypersonic technology for the future of space exploration, be it for robotics missions or crewed missions.

The goal of the event is to help identify critical technologies and aspects of transport and reentry of spacecraft in the context of ESA human exploration programs. GMV has had a notable trajectory in the field of guidance, navigation and control systems, and avionics, proven in missions like IXV, Space Rider, Hera, and PROBA3 and launcher projects like VEGA, MIURA-1, and THEMIS.