Following a short period in storage after arriving at Europe’s Spaceport in French Guiana, the MetOp Second Generation-B1 satellite has been transferred to a cleanroom and removed from its transport container. The team is now preparing to reactivate this ‘sleeping beauty, and begin the final checks and preparations ahead of its launch, planned towards the…

Sentinel-6B enters service

Image: This image of Super Typhoon Champi from Copernicus Sentinel-3 was captured on 21 October 2026 off the coasts of Taiwan and the Philippines.

With its solar arrays integrated and key qualification reviews under way, Europe’s new ice-monitoring satellite, CRISTAL, is moving from assembly into the demanding testing phase that will demonstrate its readiness for the rigours of launch and life in orbit.

Image: This image shows a detailed view of the city of Toulouse in southwest France, with its terracotta tiled rooftops lending it the nickname la ville rose, or the pink city.

Following a 10-day voyage across the Atlantic from Bordeaux in France, the MetOp Second Generation-B1 weather satellite, has arrived at Europe’s Spaceport in French Guiana. After a short storage period, this new satellite will be prepared for launch aboard an Ariane 6 rocket, expected at the end of the year.

Image: Demonstrating that the visible channels of Sentinel-3C’s sea and land surface temperature radiometer are working as expected, on 2 October the instrument captured this image of Hurricane Rachel over the eastern Pacific Ocean, off the coast of Mexico and the Baja California Peninsula.

Image: This image over part of West Antarctica was captured by Copernicus Sentinel-3 on 30 September 2026.