Article Posted on : - Sep 13, 2010

Metop-A, was launched in October 2006 on a Soyuz rocket from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. Photo: ESA

EVRY (BNS): Arianespace will launch a Metop-C satellite for the European meteorological satellite organisation EUMETSAT in the last quarter of 2016.

The Soyuz launch vehicle of Arianespace will launch the satellite from its Guiana Space Center in French Guiana, according to an Arianespace news release.

The Metop programme – Meteorological Operational Polar Satellite – is a joint effort of EUMETSAT, the European Space Agency (ESA), the French Space Agency (CNES) and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).

Metop-C contains three satellites that are designed to provide a continuous stream of constantly calibrated meteorological data.

The Metop-C satellite will weigh 4,250 kg at launch. It will be fitted with a dozen of instruments designed to take atmospheric measurements (pressure, humidity, temperature, ozone concentration, etc.) at different altitudes and to map temperatures and wind fields on the ocean surface.

Earlier in 2006, Metop-A was launched by Starsem, a subsidiary of Arianespace, using a Soyuz rocket at the Baikonur Cosmodrome. Arianespace will also launch Metop-B in the second quarter of 2012.

Built by Astrium, Metop-C is the 13th satellite for which EUMETSAT has chosen an Arianespace launch.