Sentinel-3B, which joins its orbiting twin Sentinel-3A launched in 2016, using both radar and optical sensors from a height of 815 km will systematically cover all of the Earth’s land surfaces and oceans, gathering data that will help improve oceanographic and atmospheric forecasts. It will also improve our understanding of the oceans’ “health”, as well as fishery and water resources, agriculture, forests, biodiversity, public health and food security. At the same time, it will allow us to accurately monitor changes in sea heights and the shrinking polar ice.
Telespazio has a leading role in the Ground Segment of the Sentinel-3 mission. In particular, Telespazio has developed the payload data ground segment (PDGS), used for processing Sentinel-3 data, allowing users to access the information and the applications enabled by these satellites, within three hours from the acquisition of data by Sentinel-3A and Sentinel-3B. The PDGS has been deployed on six different sites, located in France, Norway, Italy and Germany.
Moreover, Telespazio is involved in satellite operations of Sentinel-3A and Sentinel-3B as well as for the end-to-end management of the maintenance and upgrading of the PDGS behalf of ESA.
Sentinel-3B features on board a series of state-of-the-art instruments for the monitoring of our Planet. Among these, the SLSTR (Sea and Land Surface Temperature Radiometer), built by an international consortium led by Leonardo, delivers very precise measurements of the Earth’s surface, with a resolution of 1,000 meters. It includes two channels for the observation of fires.
With the launch of Sentinel-3B the orbiting satellites of the European Copernicus Earth observation programme become seven. Infact, before this the following had already been orbited: Sentinel 1A, launched in 2014; 2A, launched in 2015; 1B and 3A, launched in 2016; 2B and 5P, launched in 2017.