A new fleet of satellites will monitor Earth and protect it against threats.
TECHNOLOGY 693 km above Earth, you will
find the Sentinel-1A satellite, which takes
extremely detailed photos of our planet,
using a 12-m-long radar antenna. At this
point, the satellite has already captured
melting glaciers and flooding.
The 2.3 tonne satellite was launched on 3 April 2014, and that is only the beginning of what ESA has named the most extensive observation programme ever focusing on the surface of the Earth. Approaching 2020, a total of five Sentinel missions will be initiated. The satellites will monitor our planet and provide data and high-resolution radar images of anything from pollution, oceans, landscape changes, and flooding to earthquakes.
In 2016, the Sentinel-1A will be followed by a twin, the Sentinel-1B. Together, the two of them are capable of collecting data from anywhere on Earth within a period of six days. The special radar aerial of the satellites enables them to take photographs of Earth when it is cloudy or even dark. These qualities come in handy in connection with emergencies such as flooding, when relief agencies need fast access to data. The future Sentinel satellites will all be assigned a set of unique tasks.
The 2.3 tonne satellite was launched on 3 April 2014, and that is only the beginning of what ESA has named the most extensive observation programme ever focusing on the surface of the Earth. Approaching 2020, a total of five Sentinel missions will be initiated. The satellites will monitor our planet and provide data and high-resolution radar images of anything from pollution, oceans, landscape changes, and flooding to earthquakes.
In 2016, the Sentinel-1A will be followed by a twin, the Sentinel-1B. Together, the two of them are capable of collecting data from anywhere on Earth within a period of six days. The special radar aerial of the satellites enables them to take photographs of Earth when it is cloudy or even dark. These qualities come in handy in connection with emergencies such as flooding, when relief agencies need fast access to data. The future Sentinel satellites will all be assigned a set of unique tasks.
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