Europe launches FLEX and Sentinel-3C on Vega-C to monitor climate

Europe launched two Earth-observation satellites on a Vega-C rocket from French Guiana on 15 September. FLEX will measure plant photosynthesis, while Sentinel-3C monitors oceans and land for the EU's Copernicus programme. The mission strengthens Europe's ability to track climate change and its impacts, including on coastal areas.

Bottom line — With FLEX and Sentinel-3C now in orbit, Europe gains new tools to monitor vegetation health and marine conditions amid accelerating climate change.

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• The Vega-C rocket, designated VV30, lifted off at 03:21 CEST from Europe's Spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana, per ESA.
• Sentinel-3C separated first, about an hour after launch, followed by FLEX roughly an hour later; both sent signals to ground stations, including one in Antarctica, ESA said.
• FLEX, ESA's first satellite dedicated to measuring photosynthetic activity, will use its FLORIS instrument to track how carbon moves between plants and the atmosphere, per ESA.
• Sentinel-3C will measure ocean temperature, wave height, currents, and land use, taking over from Sentinel-3A, which is past its 7.5-year design life, according to EUMETSAT.
• ESA's Simonetta Cheli said the two satellites will fly about one kilometre apart, providing complementary data on vegetation health and atmospheric context, as reported by AFP.
• Mauro Facchini of the European Commission said six Copernicus expansion missions are planned from 2027, including CO2M satellites to monitor carbon emissions, per AFP.
• The launch was the second Vega-C mission managed solely by Italian company Avio, not jointly with Arianespace, according to AFP.
• ESA's Cheli noted that roughly 30 million Europeans live in coastal floodplains threatened by accelerating sea-level rise, making such missions essential, per AFP.

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