After the initial studies for the Moon mission performed by the Centre of Aerospace Technology, GMV has entered the team in the role of technical leader.

GMV is a privately owned technological enterprise group with an international presence. Founded in 1984, GMV mainly operates in nine large sectors for both public and private organisations: Aeronautics, Space, Defense, Health, Security, Transportation, Telecommunications and Information Technologies.

GMV employs more than 1,000 staff, most of whom work in the Space business (about 550) and have outstanding experience and capabilities, including consultancy, system engineering, software development and turn-key systems integration, characterized by the common denominator of innovation for the areas of global navigation satellite systems and applications, flight dynamics, satellite control centers, mission analysis, mission planning and scheduling, payload data segments, science operations centers, user segments and space segment, satellite communications, simulation, systems engineering and GNC, and on-board and embedded software.

GMV has an important experience in lunar missions. NASA’s LRO mission, launched in 2009, was planned with a GMV software development, FlexPlan. GMV is also involved in the ESA’s Lunar Lander project, due for 2018, for an European landing in the south pole of the Moon: under a contract led by OHB, GMV developed the preliminary design and demonstration of the performance features of the descent and landing system, including the whole autonomous guidance, navigation and control (GNC) system, associated with the descent and landing phases (from the lunar module parking orbit 100 km above the moon to the actual touchdown).

GMVs focal point in the team is Pablo Colmenarejo. Pablo obtained his Mc.S. in Aeronautical Engineering from the Polytechnical University of Madrid, Spain. He is Head of GNC division at GMV. With 15 years of experience he has led and has been personally involved at technical level in most of the ESA recent activities related to the exploration (e.g. Mars Sample Return mission) within the GNC domain.