The just-launched latest addition to the Copernicus satellite Earth observation family will half the time needed to provide precision land-use data to benefit farmers, builders, fishermen and anyone who needs rapid access to up-to-the-minute data on conditions on the ground.
Better Maps for Fishermen and Farmers thanks to Latest EU Satellite Launch
Elżbieta Bieńkowska, Commissioner for Internal market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs said: “Today’s successful launch of a new Copernicus satellite is another sign of the excellence of Europe in space. Copernicus is the most advanced Earth observation system in the world. With this launch more data will become available to develop new and innovative services and applications.”
Copernicus – Europe’s Earth observation programme – can now build up an image covering the entire planet in just 5 days, cutting the time needed to image the globe by half. The latest Copernicus satellite (Sentinel-2B) was successfully launched on 7 March from Europe’s Spaceport in French Guiana. It joins Sentinel-2A, which has been in orbit since 23 June 2015.
Together, the two Sentinels produce high-resolution data that is already being used to create satellite-enabled products and services. This is providing new opportunities for businesses thanks to the fact that the European Union has provided free, full and open access to the data. In turn, these businesses are creating highly qualified jobs in Europe.
Faster and more precise provision of data will bring concrete benefits to citizens worldwide. These include reduced costs of precision farming services, increased productivity of fish farmers thanks to the monitoring of toxic algal blooms and savings for construction companies via a work progress monitoring application.
