Ten years ago, on 1 March 2002, the largest Earth observation satellite ever built was launched from Kourou , French Guiana. This eight-tonne satellite, called Envisat, has now circled the Earth more than 50,000 times. With ten sophisticated instruments, it is continuously observing and monitoring Earth’s land, atmosphere, oceans and ice caps.
Envisat’s various instruments have made it possible for us to know things about our planet that we would never have known without it. For example, last summer a radar on Envisat monitored record-low sea ice cover in the Arctic. Other instruments have enabled us to see holes in the planet’s thinning ozone layer and pollutants over major industrial cities and burning forests.
Envisat also makes it possible to learn more about climate change, as well as the Earth’s land and sea temperature. It allows us to map sea ice and to monitor oil spills.
This 10 year-old satellite will continue to supply us with all of this crucial Earth observation data until at least 2013. By then, the next generation of satellites – the Sentinels- will be fully operational and will have taken over Earth’s giant eye in the sky!
