ESA formally ended GIOVE-A’s mission at the end of June, but said it would continue to gather radiation data and results from a GPS receiver under the care of prime contractor Surrey Satellite Technology Ltd. (SSTL).

   GIOVE-A, launched by a Russian Soyuz rocket in 2005, helped ESA to secure sections of RF spectrum needed for its GNSS program and flight-tested atomic clocks and other equipment in space. The agency said the spacecraft long exceeded it original purpose and design life.