MADRID, 13 (EUROPA PRESS)
ESA has launched the first in a new series of MetOp meteorological satellites, marking a technological leap forward in weather and climate monitoring from polar orbit.
The four-ton MetOp-SG-A1 took off aboard an Ariane 6 rocket from Europe's Spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana, at 00:37 UTC on August 13.
As part of this new satellite's sophisticated instrument package is the new Copernicus Sentinel-5, designed to provide crucial data on air pollutants, ozone, and climate-related gases, ESA said in a statement.
Building on the legacy of the first-generation MetOp satellites, the MetOp Second Generation (MetOp-SG) mission ensures the continuous delivery of essential data for global weather prediction and climate analysis, with significantly enhanced capabilities.
20-YEAR COVERAGE
The MetOp-SG mission is comprised of six satellites that will operate in successive pairs for at least the next 20 years. Each of the three pairs consists of one A-type satellite and one B-type satellite, incorporating complementary state-of-the-art instruments to provide high-resolution measurements of temperature, precipitation, clouds, and winds for weather forecasting and climate analysis.
MetOp-SG A1 carries six instruments: a state-of-the-art infrared atmospheric sounder, a microwave sounder, a multispectral imaging radiometer, a novel multi-polarization, multi-channel, multi-view imaging sensor, a radio occultation sounder (also carried on the MetOp-SG-B satellites) and the Copernicus Sentinel-5 spectrometer.
The B-type satellites will carry five instruments: a scatterometer, a radio occultation sounder, a novel microwave imaging sensor, a novel ice cloud imaging sensor, and an Argos-4 data collection system.
These are the first satellites developed by ESA to incorporate an active deactivation system at the end of their mission. Each MetOp-SG satellite is equipped with an additional propellant that allows it to self-destruct in the Earth's atmosphere at the end of the mission.
