25/02/2026
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With launch deliberate for later this yr, testing is effectively underway to make sure the MetOp Second Technology-B1 climate satellite tv for pc is prepared for its life in orbit round Earth. These checks embrace verifying that its spectacular four-panel, 11-metre-long, photo voltaic wing will deploy appropriately.
The MetOp Second Technology (MetOp-SG) mission depends on a duo of complementary satellites to strengthen Europe’s climate forecasting capabilities from polar orbit.
The primary, MetOp-SG-A1, was launched in August 2025, and engineers are actually getting ready its companion, MetOp-SG-B1, to hitch it in orbit this autumn.
Working collectively, the 2 satellites carry complementary suites of devices – 11 between them – to ship high-resolution measurements of temperature, precipitation, clouds, winds and different key atmospheric and environmental variables.
As one of the vital superior atmospheric monitoring techniques ever deployed, the MetOp-SG mission includes three successive pairs of satellites to produce meteorologists with the worldwide knowledge important for predicting storms, monitoring local weather developments, and bettering the accuracy of on a regular basis climate forecasts for greater than 20 years.
The MetOp-SG B-type satellites carry 5 devices: a scatterometer, to supply ocean-surface wind vectors and land-surface soil moisture, a radio occultation sounder (which can be on the A-type satellites) to supply atmospheric temperature and humidity profiles, in addition to details about the ionosphere, a microwave imager to watch precipitation and to evaluate sea-ice extent, an ice cloud imager to measure cloud-ice water, and an Argos-4 superior knowledge assortment system which gathers and transmits knowledge from floor, buoy, ship, balloon and airborne platforms.
Since final yr, MetOp-SG-B1 has been present process rigorous environmental and practical testing at Airbus services in Toulouse, France. Among the many most placing current milestones has been the deployment of its massive photo voltaic wing.
Spanning 11 metres when totally prolonged, and with a complete floor of about 24 sq. meters, the four-panel photo voltaic wing is the satellite tv for pc’s major supply {of electrical} energy. It converts daylight into the electrical energy wanted to function the satellite tv for pc’s subsystems, communications hyperlinks and scientific devices all through its mission in polar orbit.
Earlier than launch, engineers should verify that the photo voltaic wing’s hinges, hold-down and launch mechanisms and deployment system perform flawlessly.
As soon as in orbit, the photo voltaic wing will unfold robotically shortly after the satellite tv for pc separates from its Ariane 6 rocket, a significant step earlier than it could possibly begin its mission in orbit.
With these checks now full, the following step is to weigh the satellite tv for pc, adopted by placement on a devoted rig to measure its centre of gravity and moments of inertia. These are crucial parameters for the rocket to optimise the satellite tv for pc’s ascent to orbit – a lot as an plane crew verifies passenger load and gasoline earlier than take-off.
Afterwards, the satellite tv for pc shall be flight-ready. Following rehearsals of the procedures to be carried out on the launch website, it is going to be saved in an Airbus cleanroom for about 4 months earlier than cargo to Kourou for launch, at present scheduled for October 2026.
