FLEX and Sentinel-3C ready for liftoff on Vega-C

Two Earth observation satellites, ESA’s Fluorescence Explorer satellite, and the third satellite for the Copernicus Sentinel-3 mission, are encapsulated inside the nose cone of a Vega-C launcher and are awaiting liftoff at Europe’s. Two Earth observation satellites, ESA’s Fluorescence Explorer (FLEX) satellite, and the third satellite for the Copernicus Sentinel-3 mission, are encapsulated inside the nose cone of a Vega-C launcher and are awaiting liftoff at Europe’s Spaceport in French Guiana.

Launch is scheduled for tonight: 15 September at 03: 21 CEST (14 September at 22: 21 local time). While the FLEX mission will monitor the health of Earth’s vegetation, Sentinel-3C, together with the two Sentinel-3 satellites already in orbit, will monitor oceans, land, ice and atmosphere for Copernicus, the Earth observation component of the European Union’s Space Programme.

First, it will deploy Sentinel-3C, and then after some launcher manoeuvres, it will be followed by FLEX, which is fitted inside the Vespa+R payload adapter. FLEX is an Earth Explorer mission, ESA’s fleet of small scientific satellites designed to explore different aspects of our Earth environment, from the magnetosphere to ice caps, and from biomass to the atmosphere.

The satellite’s Fluorescence Imaging Spectrometer can detect and measure this incredibly weak signal from an altitude of 814 km. The mission is expected to produce global maps of vegetation fluorescence at a resolution of 300 m × 300 m, offering a new way to study how plants interact with the atmosphere and how carbon and water move through Earth’s ecosystems.

Since the first Sentinel-3 satellite was launched a decade ago, the mission’s data on oceans, land, ice and atmosphere have provided robust datasets for operational applications and scientific research, improving understanding of climate change and underpinning global climate. Sentinel-3C carries four science instruments that capture data quickly across entire regions.

During the routine operations phase Sentinel-3 is managed jointly by Eumetsat and ESA on behalf of the European Commission.

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