The European Space Agency (ESA) has launched the Biomass satellite into orbit, whose main task is to monitor the state of the forest cover on Earth and assess its ability to absorb carbon dioxide. This is reported by UNN with reference to ESA.
Details
The innovative ESA Biomass satellite is designed to provide scientists with unprecedented understanding of the condition and global reserves of forests and their crucial role in the Earth's carbon cycle.
The device was launched into a solar-synchronous orbit at an altitude of almost 666 km by a Vega-C rocket from the European spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana. An hour later, after separating from the carrier, the satellite reached the designated location.
After the launch at 11:15 Central European Time, already at 12:28 dispatchers at the ESA European Space Operations Center in Germany received a crucial first signal transmitted via the Troll ground station in Antarctica that Biomass is operating properly in orbit - the ESA said in a statement.
2024 was the warmest year in Europe's history - C3S and WMO report15.04.25, 23:40 • [views_4572]
The critical stage of Biomass verification includes a series of complex maneuvers to deploy the satellite's 12-meter mesh reflector, supported by a 7.5-meter boom. Once this stage is complete, Biomass will join ESA's portfolio of pioneering missions.
The Biomass satellite joins our esteemed family of Earth explorers – missions that have consistently delivered groundbreaking discoveries and cutting-edge scientific knowledge about our planet. Thanks to it, we will obtain vital new data on how much carbon is stored in the world's forests, which will help fill key gaps in our knowledge of the carbon cycle and, ultimately, the Earth's climate system.
Let us remind you
The European Space Agency's (ESA) Sentinel-2 Earth remote sensing mission showed part of one of the natural wonders of the world - the Great Barrier Reef in the Coral Sea off the east coast of Australia.