Article · Wikipedia archive · Last revised Jun 6, 2026

Orfeo Programme

The ORFEO programme was an agreement between France and Italy about coordinating Earth observation satellites development and use. The countries agreed to implement co-operation for setting up an Earth observation capability using optical and radar sensors, and to define the context in which the dual-purpose system was to be developed and used. It was composed of 6 high-resolution satellites: 4 COSMO-SkyMed X-band satellites from Italy, and 2 Pléiades optical satellites from France. The agreement was signed on 29 January 2001 in Turin.

Last revised
Jun 6, 2026
Read time
≈ 1 min
Length
140 w
Citations
4
Source
Wikipedia ↗
Pléiades satellite source ↗

The ORFEO programme (Optical and Radar Federated Earth Observation) was an agreement between France and Italy about coordinating Earth observation satellites development and use. The countries agreed to implement co-operation for setting up an Earth observation capability using optical and radar sensors, and to define the context in which the dual-purpose system (military and civilian) was to be developed and used. It was composed of 6 high-resolution satellites: 4 COSMO-SkyMed X-band satellites from Italy, and 2 Pléiades optical satellites from France.123 The agreement was signed on 29 January 2001 in Turin.4

References

References

  1. "Pléiades Overview". earth.esa.int. Archived from the original on 2023-03-27. Retrieved 2025-09-27.
  2. BEYOND SPOT 5: PLÉIADES, PART OF THE FRENCH-ITALIAN PROGRAM ORFEO
  3. "ORFEO ToolBox" (PDF). earth.esa.int. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2024-04-16. Retrieved 2025-09-27.
  4. "Organization". pleiades.cnes.fr. Archived from the original on 2024-02-19. Retrieved 2025-09-27.