Cryosat-2 Gets Go-ahead for Launch
26.11.2009 - Logistics, Atmosphere & Space, Ice & Snow, Bi-polar
Now that is has completed its Flight Acceptance Review, Cryosat-2, the European Space Agency's new satellite destined to measure land icethickness, is set to be launched on February 25th, 2009 in Baikonur, Kazakhstan. Built to replace the original CryoSat, which was destroyed in a failed launch attempt in 2005, Cryosat-2 is now ready to be shipped to Baikonur, where it will undergo more tests at the integration facilities before being attached to the launch vehicle.
Once in orbit, the satellite will accurately monitor changes in the thickness of sea ice and ice sheets on land from an altitude of 700 km. The data CryoSat 2 will collect is crucial for scientists who are trying to understand how the Earth reacts to climate change.
Following on the heels of two recently launched satellites (GOCE, which measures the Earth's gravity field, and SMOS, which will measure soil moisture and ocean salinity to better understand the water cycle), Cryosat-2 will be the next of ESA's Earth Explorer satellites in orbit.
