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2010-09- 07 09:42:00

GOCE gravity mission back in action

ESA’s GOCE gravity mission has recovered from a glitch that prevented the satellite from sending its flow of scientific data to the ground. News of the recovery comes earlier than expected, thanks to the fervent efforts of a team of experts.

Water mission reveals insight into Amazon plume

ESA s SMOS water mission has taken another step forward by demonstrating that it will lead to a better understanding of ocean circulation. Using preliminary data, scientists can clearly see how surface currents affect the Amazon plume in the open sea.

Earth observation aids disaster relief in Pakistan

Devastating around a third of the country, it is estimated that the floods in Pakistan have affected up to 20 million people. As part of the effort to support humanitarian relief, satellite data are being used to generate essential maps of the flooded areas.

Greenland glacier gives birth to giant iceberg

Envisat has been observing a rare event in the Arctic since early August - a giant iceberg breaking off the Petermann glacier in North-West Greenland.

MetOp-B module passes crucial vacuum test

The Payload Module of ESA’s latest meteorological satellite, MetOp-B, has been hauled out of the largest vacuum chamber in Europe: its ability to operate in the harsh conditions of space has been proved.

Agreement between ESA and EMSA furthers maritime safety

ESA and the European Maritime Safety Agency have signed a further Agreement to ensure that satellite data are available to enhance maritime safety and help combat pollution from shipping.

Revisit the Living Planet Symposium

More than 1400 scientists and users from around the world gathered this past week in Bergen, Norway, for ESA’s Living Planet Symposium to present their latest findings on Earth s environment and climate using data from observation satellites. Selected highlights from the symposium were streamed live on the web and are now available for replay.

CryoSat-2 exceeding expectations

Today, participants at the Living Planet Symposium have been hearing about ESA s most recently launched mission, CryoSat-2. In orbit for almost three months, the satellite is in excellent health with scientists very encouraged by the first ice-thickness data presented at the symposium.

ESA makes first GOCE dataset available

The first products based on GOCE satellite data are now available online through ESA’s Earth observation user services tools. ESA launched the satellite in March 2009 on a mission to map Earth s gravity with unprecedented accuracy and spatial resolution.

Envisat monitors oil spill proximity to Loop Current

As fears grow that the Loop Current in the Gulf of Mexico could soon catch the oil slick and drag it south towards coral reefs in the Florida Keys, scientists are monitoring the situation closely with ESA’s Envisat radar data.

Envisat monitoring changes in oil spill

ESA’s Envisat has captured the changes in direction of the rapidly-growing oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico as strong winds over the weekend pushed it around and hampered clean-up efforts.

Eurockot to launch two ESA Earth observation missions

ESA has awarded a contract to Eurockot for the launch of two of its Earth observation missions. The first will be the next Earth Explorer: Swarm, a constellation of three satellites to study Earth s magnetic field.

Successful launch for ESA’s CryoSat-2 ice satellite

ESA PR 07-2010. Europe s first mission dedicated to studying the Earth’s ice was launched today from Kazakhstan. From its polar orbit, CryoSat-2 will send back data leading to new insights into how ice is responding to climate change and the role it plays in our Earth system .

Australian field campaign validates SMOS data

To ensure the integrity of an Earth observation mission, it is often essential to compare the data being delivered from space with measurements taken on the ground. Accordingly, the first field campaign to validate soil moisture data from ESA s SMOS mission has just been carried out down under .

Weather satellite sets new service record

Europe’s series of Meteosat satellites has been improving the accuracy of weather forecasts for over 30 years. Meteosat-6 has recently broken the record for the operational life of one of these robust missions.

Earth Observation Summer School at ESRIN

Young Earth scientists from all over the world are gathering this August in ESRIN, ESA’s centre for Earth observation, in Frascati, near Rome, Italy, for the fifth ESA Earth Observation Summer School.

Envisat helps improve safety in icy Southern Ocean

An award-winning new website is using realtime imagery from ESA s Envisat satellite to provide a wealth of information on sea ice to aid safe passage through the treacherous waters of the Antarctic.

Great strides for GMES

While the recent Living Planet Symposium focused mainly on the latest findings on Earth s environment and climate using data from Earth observation satellites, it also provided the forum to present the progress that the GMES initiative has made since the last symposium in 2007.

Scientists receive first CryoSat-2 data

A better understanding of how Earth s ice fields are changing has come another step closer as the first data from ESA s ice mission are released to selected scientists around the world for fine-tuning.

SMOS shines at symposium

Today, a focus at ESA s Living Planet Symposium is on the innovative SMOS mission, which recently became operational. Early results are proving very encouraging with its first observations due to be released in early July.

MetOp-B is ESA test centre’s latest task of busy year

The Payload Module of the giant MetOp-B weather satellite has been lowered into ESA’s largest vacuum chamber. ESTEC Test Centre engineers will be subjecting it to prolonged space conditions – their latest assignment in a busy year.

GOCE giving new insights into Earth’s gravity

The first global gravity model based on GOCE satellite data has been presented at ESA’s Living Planet Symposium. ESA launched GOCE in March 2009 to map Earth s gravity with unprecedented accuracy and resolution.

Call for Media: ESA’s Living Planet Symposium, Bergen, 28 June–2 July

ESA PR 11-2010. The media are invited to ESA s largest scientific event of the year: the Living Planet Symposium, in Bergen, Norway. The symposium covers all areas of Earth observation, highlighting the results and ESA’s planned missions, as well as bringing together the key scientists and decision-makers worldwide.

Polar scientists herald importance of satellite observations

As Arctic sea-ice recedes inexorably towards another record summer minimum, scientists have highlighted the exceptional contribution that satellites have made to the International Polar Year and charting the effects of climate change.

Experts gather as volcanic dust settles

Following the eruption of Iceland’s Eyjafjallajoekull volcano that spewed huge amounts of ash and grounded numerous flights, more than 50 experts from around the world gathered at a workshop organised by ESA and EUMETSAT to discuss what has been learned and identify future opportunities for volcanic ash monitoring.

Earth observation conference at ILA

ESA will host an Earth observation conference at the ILA Berlin Air Show to present how it is responding to the increasing demand for remote-sensing data as decision-makers are faced with environmental change, natural disasters and civil security issues.

Gulf of Mexico oil spill in the Loop Current

Scientists monitoring the US oil spill with ESA’s Envisat radar satellite say that it has entered the Loop Current, a powerful conveyor belt that flows clockwise around the Gulf of Mexico towards Florida.

New global network validates SMOS soil moisture data

As ESA s SMOS mission nears the end of its commissioning, a new network will provide harmonised global datasets of soil moisture measurements collected from the ground, ensuring the data received from space are as accurate as possible.

Oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico nears the coast

In this latest image acquired by ESA’s Envisat on Thursday at 16:23 UTC, oil from the massive spill in the Gulf of Mexico can be seen as a dark blue swirl advancing toward the Louisiana coast.

ESA calls for Sentinel-3 Mission Advisory Group members

Within the framework of the GMES initiative, ESA is developing a series of ‘Sentinel’ satellites. As part of this development process, the Agency has released a call for Mission Advisory Group members for the Sentinel-3 mission.

ESA missions extend fibre optics to orbit

ESA’s SMOS satellite is on the verge of beginning its operational life, returning snapshots of Earth’s watery skin . The water mission’s success has been made possible by a particular technical distinction: the first mission-critical use of fibre optics.

New tools aid volcanic ash monitoring

While satellites are providing an ideal way of monitoring the cloud of volcanic ash sweeping across much of Europe recently, a ground-based network of lidar instruments has also been providing a valuable source of information to help meteorologists assess this unprecedented event.

ESA Euronews: Tomorrow’s weather

More than 30 years ago, the first meteorological satellite Meteosat revolutionised weather forecasting. Since then, predictions have become more and more reliable.

ESA calls for Sentinel-2 Mission Advisory Group members

Campaign helps reveal secrets of upper atmosphere

The first flight of an instrument on a high-altitude aircraft has shown that it can provide insight into the complexities of the upper atmosphere. This is crucial for the development of a candidate ESA mission aiming to provide vital clues on how atmospheric chemistry and climate are linked.

ESA’s TIGER II to support 20 water projects in Africa

ESA’s TIGER II initiative has selected 20 project proposals across Africa to receive support from Earth-observation technology to learn more about the water cycle and to improve water-monitoring resources.

ESA and Thales Alenia Space enter negotiations for MTG

The tendering process that will result in the supply of Europe s next series of meteorological satellites, Meteosat Third Generation, has reached an advanced stage as ESA invites Thales Alenia Space to enter formal contract negotiations.

Campaign over ice sheets tests Aeolus technology

In a recent airborne campaign, carried out by the German Aerospace Center DLR, the sophisticated lidar technology due to be employed on ESA s Aeolus mission was tested by measuring the strong icy winds that blow off the Greenland and Iceland ice fields.

Signature secures future Sentinels for GMES

Marking another significant step in the GMES initiative, ESA and Thales Alenia Space recently signed a contract worth €270 million to build the second Sentinel-1 and Sentinel-3 satellites.

ESA highlights the potential of satellite data for the European Investment Bank

The European Investment Bank has an annual lending portfolio of around 75 billion euros, operating globally in more than 130 countries. The Bank has been increasingly mainstreaming environmental considerations into its lending portfolio, boosting the need to monitor the impact of the projects it funds. As its environmental commitments have increased, so too has the demand for geospatial information.