Environmental satellite ready for blast off
- 7 years ago
All systems are go for the launch of the European Space Agency’s latest satellite, Sentinel – 5P
WATCH #Sentinel5P launch event live from #ESTEC Friday 13 October 10:30 CEST https://t.co/NripJOkO98 pic.twitter.com/w6Xb95F5MP— ESA (@esa) 11 octobre 2017
An instrument on board, called Tropomi, will measure pollution around the globe once a day, as it flies on a polar orbit mapping a multitude of trace gases. It is designed to answer questions about air quality and the ozone layer.
“You have one satellite instrument measuring the complete globe – it means that you have one calibrated instrument measuring everywhere – it means that you can compare the pollution levels in Europe directly with those in China and United States,” says Pieternel Levelt, principal investigator for Tropomi and head of Satellite R&D at Dutch national weather service KNMI.
By measuring emissions, the sources of pollution and greenhouse gases can be identified. And scientists will be able to follow these globally, and track the efficiency of policies implemented to improve air quality and halt climate change.
WATCH #Sentinel5P launch event live from #ESTEC Friday 13 October 10:30 CEST https://t.co/NripJOkO98 pic.twitter.com/w6Xb95F5MP— ESA (@esa) 11 octobre 2017
An instrument on board, called Tropomi, will measure pollution around the globe once a day, as it flies on a polar orbit mapping a multitude of trace gases. It is designed to answer questions about air quality and the ozone layer.
“You have one satellite instrument measuring the complete globe – it means that you have one calibrated instrument measuring everywhere – it means that you can compare the pollution levels in Europe directly with those in China and United States,” says Pieternel Levelt, principal investigator for Tropomi and head of Satellite R&D at Dutch national weather service KNMI.
By measuring emissions, the sources of pollution and greenhouse gases can be identified. And scientists will be able to follow these globally, and track the efficiency of policies implemented to improve air quality and halt climate change.