Ten years ago, on 17 July 1991, ESA launched the highly successful ERS-1 satellite. ERS-1 uses active radar instruments to observe the Earth day and night, even through thick clouds. Hundreds of scientists are now using its data, which have also found many routine applications in weather forecasting, crop forecasting, climate monitoring and oceanology. ERS-1 was switched off in 1999, exceeding its design lifetime by a factor of four.
This ESA TV Exchange Programme includes footage required to cover this anniversary, with footage from spacecraft development, launch and operations, and some of the most important science results and applications. The Programme is made of an A-roll with English voiceover (split audio) and a B-roll with clean international sound.

10th Anniversary of ERS-1 Satellite
00:36
Our Earth is a unique place - a miraculously balanced system of water, land and an atmosphere, all warmed by our star the Sun.
00:53
But it is also fragile. The Earth system is dynamic and has always been changing; the sun's rays are dangerous as well as life-giving; and man himself has started to change the balance. It is essential that we learn more about planet Earth and our ecosystem if we are to survive the impact of global change.
01:21
The launch of Sputnik in 1957 gave hope to Earth Scientist for a vision - to observe the Earth from a platform in space - the highest vantage point which gives access to the most remote places.
01:41
Ten years ago, 17 July 1991, ESA, the European Space Agency, launched a satellite with a very special vision: ERS-1, the first Remote Sensing Satellite.
01:75
ERS would fly in polar orbit, 800 Km up, covering the whole Earth, including the polar icecaps, every 35 days. It would survey areas barely covered, or n