The European Space Agency (ESA) is Europe’s gateway to space. Its mission is to shape the development of Europe’s space capability and ensure that investment in space continues to deliver benefits to the citizens of Europe and the world.
Find out more about space activities in our 23 Member States, and understand how ESA works together with their national agencies, institutions and organisations.
Exploring our Solar System and unlocking the secrets of the Universe
Go to topicProtecting life and infrastructure on Earth and in orbit
Go to topicUsing space to benefit citizens and meet future challenges on Earth
Go to topicMaking space accessible and developing the technologies for the future
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Equipped with advanced radar technology, the Copernicus Sentinel-1 mission delivers continuous, all-weather, day-and-night imaging of Earth’s surface, setting new standards for spaceborne radar. This ambitious mission supports various Copernicus environmental services and climate change research, and provides critical mapping capabilities to aid disaster response such as flood events.
The Sentinel-1 constellation consists of two satellites in the same orbit but positioned 180° apart to optimise global coverage and data delivery for Copernicus, the Earth observation component of the European Union’s Space Programme, managed by the European Commission.
The first satellite, Sentinel-1A, launched in April 2014, was followed by Sentinel-1B in 2016. Sentinel-1C and Sentinel-1D, which include an automatic identification system for maritime surveillance, introduce enhancements over the first two satellites.