Arctic Weather Satellite gets a close inspection

ESA’s Arctic Weather Satellite has been at the Vandenberg Space Force Base in California since 1 June 2024 where it is undergoing final preparations for liftoff on the SpaceX Falcon 9 Transporter-11 mission. The photograph shows engineers checking the satellite’s sun sensors and thermal multilayer protection after it had been integrated onto the Falcon 9 launcher interface plate.

Weighing just 125 kg and measuring 1.0 m x 5.3 m x 0.9 m, the Arctic Weather Satellite is small but has big ambitions.

Embracing the New Space approach to prove new concepts in a cost-effective and timely manner, the mission is designed to show how a potential polar-orbiting constellation of satellites could provide data for very short-term weather forecasts and nowcasts in the Arctic and northern latitude nations, a region that lacks these kind of accurate forecasts. Importantly, the constellation would also contribute to more accurate weather forecasting around the world.