After an initial stage where all three satellites flew around 495 km, two satellites fly almost side-by-side at a nominal altitude close to 465 km, while the third one flies some 50 km higher.
The Swarm constellation will consist of three satellites in near-polar Low Earth Orbit (LEO), with one pair flying side-by-side at an initial altitude of about 450 km, and a single satellite flying at about 530 km altitude.
One company, New York-based Sirius Satellite Radio, already has its constellation of three satellites orbiting Earth.
All three satellites have identical instrumentation.
A constellation of three satellites can do more than three single satellites.
All three satellites in the Swarm constellation are identical.
EMSA uses three satellites to detect "ship source pollution".
Astrium won an initial Galileo contract for four satellites.
Since the initial release of "Shoah," Mr. Lanzmann has also made three satellite films, none longer than about an hour and a half.
Three satellite news vans were parked in the lot.
