MTG-I1 ready for testing in Kourou

After arriving in Kourou and being removed from its container in the clean room, MTG-I1 was mounted onto the turnover trolley, which allows the satellite to be manipulated from horizontal to vertical and rotated around its central axis, to ensure the appropriate access for assembly, integration and testing activities.

MTG-I1, the first Meteosat Third Generation satellite, will spend the next weeks at Europe’s Spaceport being readied for liftoff on an Ariane 5 rocket in December. Once in geostationary orbit, this new satellite, which carries two new extremely sensitive instruments, promises to further bolster Europe's leadership in weather forecasting.