the EARS system is a Eumetsat project for data retransmission. 'EARS' means 'Eumetsat Advanced Retransmission Service'.

The object of the EARS system is to provide the European meteorological community with sounder data covering data-sparse areas, within 30 minutes of the instrument observations.

EARS comprises three separate polar satellite instrument data services:

• the existing EARS-ATOVS;
• the EARS-AVHRR;
• and the pilot EARS-ASCAT.

Each of the EARS services retransmits observations from an instrument, or an instrument group, and aims to provide a homogeneous service across the NOAA and Metop polar orbiting satellite platforms.

System Overview:
  

LOFAR is a very large connected radio telescope, using a new concept based on a vast array of omni-directional antennas.

LOFAR is a Low-Frequency Array for radio astronomy, built by ASTRON, the Netherlands Institute for Radio Astronomy and operated by ASTRON's radio observatory. ASTRON is part of the Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research.

The project is based on an interferometric array of radio telescopes using about 25,000 small antennas concentrated in at least 48 larger stations. 40 of these stations are distributed across the Netherlands, five stations in Germany, and one each in Great Britain, France and Sweden. Further stations may also be built in other European countries. The total effective collecting area is up to approximately 300,000 square meter, depending on frequency and antenna configuration. The data processing is performed by a Blue Gene/P supercomputer situated in the Netherlands at the University of Groningen. LOFAR is also a pathfinder for the Square Kilometre Array. The Square Kilometre Array will be the world's largest and most sensitive radio telescope. The SKA will be built in Southern Africa and in Australia.

It is a global enterprise bringing together 11 countries from the 5 continents.

Cap Gemini S.A. is a French multinational corporation headquartered in Paris, France.

It provides IT services and is one of the world's largest consulting, outsourcing and professional services companies with a staff of 121,026 operating in 48 countries. India currently is the single largest employee base for Capgemini, with the headcount 40,000 by October 2012. It was founded in 1967 by Serge Kampf, the current chairman, in Grenoble, France. 

Capgemini's regional operations include North and South America, Northern Europe & Asia Pacific and Central & Southern Europe. Services are delivered through four disciplines; Consulting, Technology, Outsourcing and Local Professional Services. The latter is delivered through Sogeti, a wholly owned subsidiary.

Moog Inc. is a worldwide designer and manufacturer of motion and fluid controls and control systems for applications in aerospace, defense, industrial and medical device markets.

Moog Inc. products and systems include military and commercial aircraft flight controls, satellite positioning controls, controls for steering tactical and strategic missiles, thrust vector controls for space launch vehicles.

NPO Energomash is a Russian manufacturer, which focuses primarily on the development and production of liquid propellant rocket engines.

NPO Energomash is based in Khimki, Moscow state, with satellite facilities in Samara, Perm, and St. Petersburg, and employs close to 5500 workers. Originally founded in 1946 as OKB-456, the company is noted for its long history of large scale LOX/Kerosene engine development, notably the RD-107, RD-170, and RD-180 engines, as well as UDMH/N2O4 engines RD-253 and RD-275 used on the Proton rockets. These engines have functioned as prime movers for such vehicles as R-7, Proton, Soyuz, Energia, Zenit and Atlas V.

NPO Energomash acquired its current name on May 15, 1991, in honor of its chief designer.

The Max Planck Institute for Solar System Research (MPS) is a research institute in Astronomy / Astrophysics, located in Lindau (Katlenburg-Lindau), Germany.

The exploration of the solar system is the central theme for the scientific research done at this Institute. It is organised in three departments: one for the Sun and Heliosphere, one for Planets and Comets, and the other for Physics of the interior of the Sun and Sun-like stars (formerly known as Helio and Asteroseismology Research Group). In addition, since 2002 there is also an International Max Planck Research School. 

BepiColombo is Europe's first mission to Mercury.

It will set off in 2015 on a journey to the smallest and least explored terrestrial planet in our Solar System. When it arrives at Mercury in January 2022, it will endure temperatures in excess of 350 °C and gather data during its 1 year nominal mission, with a possible 1-year extension. The mission comprises two spacecraft: the Mercury Planetary Orbiter (MPO) and the Mercury Magnetospheric Orbiter (MMO). BepiColombo is a joint mission between ESA and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), executed under ESA leadership.

The National Space Biomedical Research Institute (NSBRI) is a NASA-funded consortium of institutions studying the health risks related to long-duration spaceflight and developing solutions to reduce those risks.

The NSBRI was founded in 1997. NSBRI's headquarters facility is located in the BioScience Research Collaborative in Houston, Texas. The Institute shares the facility with Baylor College of Medicine's Center for Space Medicine.

Neptec Design Group is a privately owned Canadian company, headquartered in Ottawa with an office in Houston Texas.

Neptec specializes in the design, development, implementation and operation of intelligent 3D machine vision systems and is comfortable and experienced in working in high quality, mission-critical environments.

Neptec has been a NASA prime contractor since 1995 and in that capacity has achieved multiple awards and the highest possible annual contractor performance rating two years in a row. Neptec has delivered space-certified flight machine vision systems on three different NASA programs and has supported over 40 Space Shuttle missions with more than 30,000 hours logged in Mission Control.

• Neptec develops technologies for space, defence and industry.
• Neptec has major Intellectual Property (IP) protection by patent filings.
• Neptec maintains complete R&D, engineering design and management capabilities.

The National Space Agency of the Republic of Kazakhstan, also known as KazCosmos, or KazKosmos, is Kazakhstan's national space agency, and was officially established on March 27, 2007.

KazSat 1: The previous year, on June 18, 2006, the communications satellite KazSat 1 was launched from Baikonur Cosmodrome, marking the beginning of Kazakhstan's independent space program. In 2008 communications with the satellite ended, and it was declared lost.

KazSat 2: The next planned satellite, KazSat 2, has experienced a series of delays, but was launched on July 16th 2011 on board a Proton rocket. KazSat 2 was built by Krunichev and Thales Alenia Space Italy.

KazSat 3: KazCosmos signed also the contract with ISS-Reshetnev and Thales Alenia Space Italy on June 21st 2011 for the third telecommunications satellite, named KazSat 3.