Earth Observation Satellites from ESA

ESA Agency Summary

Agency Information

Agency Name Full

European Space Agency

CEOS Member

yes

Agency Country

Europe

Agency Website

www.esa.int

Agency Mission Timeline

click here

Agency Series

Series	Missions
CO2M	Sentinel CO2M-A, Sentinel CO2M-B, Sentinel CO2M-C
EPS	Metop-A, Metop-B, Metop-C
ERS	ERS-1, ERS-2
Meteosat	Meteosat-1, Meteosat-2, Meteosat-3, Meteosat-4, Meteosat-5, Meteosat-6, Meteosat-7, Meteosat-8, Meteosat-9, Meteosat-10, Meteosat-11
METOP-SG A	METOP-SG A1, METOP-SG A2, METOP-SG A3
METOP-SG B	METOP-SG B1, METOP-SG B2, METOP-SG B3
MTG-I (imaging)	MTG-I1 (imaging), MTG-I2 (imaging), MTG-I3 (imaging), MTG-I4 (imaging)
MTG-S (sounding)	MTG-S1 (sounding), MTG-S2 (sounding)
Sentinel-1	Sentinel-1 A, Sentinel-1 B, Sentinel-1 C, Sentinel-1 D, S1NG-A, S1NG-B
Sentinel-2	Sentinel-2 A, Sentinel-2 B, Sentinel-2 C, Sentinel-2 D, S2NG-A, S2NG-B
Sentinel-3	Sentinel-3 A, Sentinel-3 B, Sentinel-3 C, Sentinel-3 D, S3NGO-A, S3NGO-B, S3NGT-A, S3NGT-B
Sentinel-4	Sentinel-4 A, Sentinel-4 B
Sentinel-5	Sentinel-5 A, Sentinel-5 B, Sentinel-5 C
Sentinel-6	Sentinel-6 A Michael Freilich, Sentinel-6 B

Agency Missions

Current Missions

timeline

Mission	Launch	EOL	Instrument(s)
Odin	20 Feb 2001	Dec 2025	OSIRIS, SMR
SCISAT-1	12 Aug 2003	Mar 2026	ACE-FTS, MAESTRO
Meteosat-9	22 Dec 2005	Apr 2027	GERB, MSG Comms, SEVIRI
SMOS	02 Nov 2009	Dec 2025	MIRAS (SMOS)
CryoSat-2	08 Apr 2010	Dec 2028	DGXX, Laser Reflectors (ESA), SIRAL
Meteosat-10	05 Jul 2012	Sep 2030	GERB, MSG Comms, SEVIRI
Metop-B	17 Sep 2012	Nov 2027	A-DCS3, AMSU-A, ASCAT, AVHRR/3, GOME-2, GRAS, HIRS/4, IASI, MHS, S&R (NOAA), SEM (POES)
ePOP on CASSIOPE	29 Sep 2013	Dec 2025	CER, FAI, GAP, IRM, MGF, NMS, RRI, SEI
Swarm	22 Nov 2013	Dec 2025	ACC, ASM, EFI, GPS Receiver (Swarm), Laser Reflectors (ESA), STR, VFM
Sentinel-1 A	03 Apr 2014	Dec 2025	C-Band SAR
Sentinel-2 A	23 Jun 2015	Jul 2025	MSI (Sentinel-2)
Meteosat-11	15 Jul 2015	Dec 2033	GERB, MSG Comms, SEVIRI
Sentinel-3 A	16 Feb 2016	Mar 2026	DGXX-S, OLCI, SLSTR, SRAL
Sentinel-2 B	06 Mar 2017	Apr 2027	MSI (Sentinel-2)
Sentinel-5 precursor	13 Oct 2017	Sep 2027	TROPOMI
Sentinel-3 B	25 Apr 2018	Aug 2028	DGXX-S, OLCI, SLSTR, SRAL
Metop-C	07 Nov 2018	Dec 2027	A-DCS3, AMSU-A, ASCAT, AVHRR/3, GOME-2, GRAS, IASI, MHS, SEM (POES)
Sentinel-6 A Michael Freilich	21 Nov 2020	Dec 2027	AMR-C, DGXX-S, GNSS POD Receiver, GNSS-RO Receiver, LRA (Sentinel-6), Poseidon-4 Altimeter
MTG-I1 (imaging)	13 Dec 2022	May 2033	FCI, LI
EarthCARE	28 May 2024	31 May 2027	ATLID, BBR (EarthCARE), CPR (EarthCARE), MSI (EarthCARE)
AWS	16 Aug 2024	15 Aug 2029	AWS Instrument
Sentinel-2 C	05 Sep 2024	05 Sep 2034	MSI (Sentinel-2)
Sentinel-1 C	05 Dec 2024	30 Apr 2034	AIS, C-Band SAR

Approved Missions

timeline

Mission	Launch	EOL	Instrument(s)
Biomass	Apr 2025	Oct 2030	P-Band SAR
Sentinel-4 A	Jul 2025	Jan 2036	UVN (Sentinel-4)
MTG-S1 (sounding)	Jul 2025	Jan 2036	IRS, UVN (Sentinel-4)
METOP-SG A1	Aug 2025	Mar 2034	3MI, IASI-NG, METimage, MWS, RO, UVNS (Sentinel-5)
Sentinel-5 A	Aug 2025	Mar 2034	UVNS (Sentinel-5)
HydroGNSS	Oct 2025	Dec 2031	SGR-ReSI-Z
Sentinel-6 B	Dec 2025	Dec 2032	AMR-C, DGXX-S, DORIS-NG, GNSS POD Receiver, GNSS-RO Receiver, LRA (Sentinel-6), Poseidon-4 Altimeter
Sentinel-1 D	Dec 2025	Jun 2035	AIS, C-Band SAR
Sentinel-3 C	Jun 2026	Jun 2036	DGXX-S, OLCI, SLSTR, SRAL
METOP-SG B1	Jul 2026	Jan 2035	A-DCS4, ICI, MWI, RO, SCA
MTG-I2 (imaging)	Sep 2026	Mar 2037	FCI, LI
Sentinel CO2M-B	Mar 2027	Sep 2034	CLIM, CO2I, MAP
ALTIUS	Apr 2027	Dec 2030	ALTIUS Instrument
FLEX	Apr 2027	Dec 2030	FLORIS
FORUM	Aug 2027	Dec 2032	FEI, Fourier Transform Spectrometer
Sentinel CO2M-A	Nov 2027	Apr 2034	CLIM, CO2I, MAP
Sentinel-2 D	Sep 2028	Sep 2038	MSI (Sentinel-2)
Sentinel CRISTAL-A	Nov 2028	May 2036	AMR-C, AMR-CR, IRIS
Sentinel-3 D	Dec 2028	Dec 2038	DGXX-S, OLCI, SLSTR, SRAL
Sentinel LSTM-A	Mar 2029	Sep 2036	Land Surface Temperature Radiometer
Sentinel ROSE-L A	Sep 2029	Mar 2037	L-band SAR
Sentinel CIMR-A	Oct 2029	Apr 2037	Imaging Microwave Radiometer
Harmony	Dec 2029	Dec 2034	Multiview Thermal-Infared, Passive Synthetic Aperture Radar
Sentinel CHIME-A	Dec 2029	Jun 2037	HSI
TRUTHS	Mar 2030	Sep 2035	CSAR, HIS
Sentinel LSTM-B	Mar 2031	Sep 2038	Land Surface Temperature Radiometer
Sentinel ROSE-L B	Sep 2031	Mar 2039	L-band SAR
Sentinel CHIME-B	Dec 2031	Jun 2039	HSI
MAGIC/MCDO	Dec 2032	Dec 2040	LTI, MicroSTAR accelerometer
METOP-SG B2	Feb 2033	Aug 2041	A-DCS4, ICI, MWI, RO, SCA
METOP-SG A2	Feb 2033	Aug 2042	3MI, IASI-NG, METimage, MWS, RO, UVNS (Sentinel-5)
Sentinel-5 B	Feb 2033	Aug 2042	UVNS (Sentinel-5)
MTG-I3 (imaging)	Feb 2033	Aug 2043	FCI, LI
Sentinel CRISTAL-B	Nov 2033	May 2041	AMR-C, AMR-CR, IRIS
Sentinel CIMR-B	Oct 2034	Apr 2042	Imaging Microwave Radiometer
Sentinel-4 B	Dec 2035	Jun 2046	UVN (Sentinel-4)
MTG-S2 (sounding)	Dec 2035	Jun 2046	IRS, UVN (Sentinel-4)
MTG-I4 (imaging)	Dec 2036	Jun 2047	FCI, LI
Sentinel-5 C	May 2039	Nov 2047	UVNS (Sentinel-5)
METOP-SG A3	May 2039	Nov 2047	3MI, IASI-NG, METimage, MWS, RO, UVNS (Sentinel-5)
METOP-SG B3	Feb 2040	Aug 2048	ICI, MWI, RO, SCA

Planned Missions

timeline

Mission	Launch	EOL	Instrument(s)
Space Weather L1-A	2028	2033	COR, Magnetometer, STIS, SWiPS, XFM
EPS-Sterna	2029	2042	-
Sentinel CO2M-C	2029	2037	CLIM, CO2I, MAP
S1NG-A	2032	2040	AIS, C-Band SAR
MAGIC/NGGM	2032	2040	LTI, MicroSTAR accelerometer
S2NG-A	2033	2041	AMSI
S3NGT-A	2033	2041	AMR-CR, Poseidon-5 Altimeter, SAOOH
S1NG-B	2034	2042	AIS, C-Band SAR
S3NGO-A	2034	2042	AOLCI, ASLSTR
S3NGT-B	2035	2043	AMR-CR, Poseidon-5 Altimeter, SAOOH
S2NG-B	2035	2043	AMSI
S3NGO-B	2036	2044	AOLCI, ASLSTR
Sentinel-6 C	2040	2046	AMR-C, DGXX-S, GNSS POD Receiver, GNSS-RO Receiver, LRA (Sentinel-6), Poseidon-4 Altimeter

Considered Missions

timeline

Mission	Launch	EOL		Instrument(s)
EPS-Aeolus	2034	2044		ALADIN-2, RO

Completed Missions

Mission	Launch	EOL	Instrument(s)
Meteosat-1	23 Nov 1977	24 Nov 1979	-
Meteosat-2	19 Jun 1981	02 Dec 1991	-
Meteosat-3	15 Jun 1988	01 Aug 1991	Meteosat Comms, MVIRI
Meteosat-4	06 Mar 1989	08 Nov 1995	Meteosat Comms, MVIRI
Meteosat-5	02 Mar 1991	26 Apr 2007	Meteosat Comms, MVIRI
ERS-1	17 Jul 1991	07 Mar 2000	AMI/SAR/Image, AMI/SAR/Wave, AMI/Scatterometer, ATSR, ATSR/M, ERS Comms, MWR, RA
Meteosat-6	20 Nov 1993	02 May 2011	Meteosat Comms, MVIRI
ERS-2	21 Apr 1995	04 Jul 2011	AMI/SAR/Image, AMI/SAR/Wave, AMI/Scatterometer, ATSR/M, ATSR-2, ERS Comms, GOME, MWR, RA
Meteosat-7	02 Sep 1997	11 Apr 2017	Meteosat Comms, MVIRI
PROBA	22 Oct 2001	31 Oct 2021	CHRIS, HRC
Envisat	01 Mar 2002	08 Apr 2012	AATSR, ASAR, ASAR (image mode), ASAR (wave mode), DORIS-NG, ENVISAT Comms, GOMOS, MERIS, MIPAS, MWR, RA-2, SCIAMACHY
GRACE	17 Mar 2002	27 Oct 2017	GRACE instrument
Meteosat-8	28 Aug 2002	30 Nov 2022	GERB, MSG Comms, SEVIRI
CryoSat	08 Oct 2005	08 Oct 2005	DORIS-NG, Laser Reflectors (ESA), SIRAL
Metop-A	19 Oct 2006	15 Nov 2021	A-DCS3, AMSU-A, ASCAT, AVHRR/3, GOME-2, GRAS, HIRS/4, IASI, MHS, S&R (NOAA), SEM (POES)
GOCE	17 Mar 2009	21 Oct 2013	EGG, GPS (ESA), Laser Reflectors (ESA), LRR, SSTI
PROBA-V	07 May 2013	31 Oct 2021	Vegetation
TDS-1	08 Jul 2014	31 May 2019	SGR-ReSI
Sentinel-1 B	25 Apr 2016	03 Aug 2022	C-Band SAR
GOMX4	02 Feb 2018	31 Mar 2023	ADSB Receiver (GOMX4), HyperScout
Aeolus	22 Aug 2018	30 Apr 2023	ALADIN
Federated Satellite Systems	03 Sep 2020	31 Dec 2021	FMPL-2, HyperScout-2, Phisat-1
SEOSAT/Ingenio	17 Nov 2020	17 Nov 2020	PAN+MS (RGB+NIR)

Agency Instruments

Operational Instruments

Instrument	Mission(s)
ACC	Swarm
AIS	Sentinel-1 D, S1NG-A, S1NG-B, Sentinel-1 C
AMR-C	Sentinel-6 A Michael Freilich, Sentinel-6 B, Sentinel CRISTAL-A, Sentinel CRISTAL-B, Sentinel-6 C
ASCAT	Metop-B, Metop-C, Metop-A
C-Band SAR	Sentinel-1 A, Sentinel-1 D, S1NG-A, S1NG-B, Sentinel-1 B, Sentinel-1 C
CER	ePOP on CASSIOPE
EFI	Swarm
FAI	ePOP on CASSIOPE
FCI	MTG-I1 (imaging), MTG-I2 (imaging), MTG-I3 (imaging), MTG-I4 (imaging)
GAP	ePOP on CASSIOPE
GERB	Meteosat-9, Meteosat-10, Meteosat-11, Meteosat-8
GNSS POD Receiver	Sentinel-6 A Michael Freilich, Sentinel-6 B, Sentinel-6 C
GOME-2	Metop-B, Metop-C, Metop-A
GPS Receiver (Swarm)	Swarm
GRAS	Metop-B, Metop-C, Metop-A
IRM	ePOP on CASSIOPE
Laser Reflectors (ESA)	GOCE, CryoSat, Swarm, CryoSat-2
LI	MTG-I1 (imaging), MTG-I2 (imaging), MTG-I3 (imaging), MTG-I4 (imaging)
LRA (Sentinel-6)	Sentinel-6 A Michael Freilich, Sentinel-6 B, Sentinel-6 C
MGF	ePOP on CASSIOPE
MIRAS (SMOS)	SMOS
MSI (Sentinel-2)	Sentinel-2 A, Sentinel-2 B, Sentinel-2 D, Sentinel-2 C
NMS	ePOP on CASSIOPE
OLCI	Sentinel-3 A, Sentinel-3 B, Sentinel-3 C, Sentinel-3 D
Poseidon-4 Altimeter	Sentinel-6 A Michael Freilich, Sentinel-6 B, Sentinel-6 C
RRI	ePOP on CASSIOPE
SEI	ePOP on CASSIOPE
SEVIRI	Meteosat-9, Meteosat-10, Meteosat-11, Meteosat-8
SGR-ReSI-CDHS	DoT-1
SIRAL	CryoSat, CryoSat-2
SLSTR	Sentinel-3 A, Sentinel-3 B, Sentinel-3 C, Sentinel-3 D
SRAL	Sentinel-3 A, Sentinel-3 B, Sentinel-3 C, Sentinel-3 D
STR	Swarm
TROPOMI	Sentinel-5 precursor
VFM	Swarm

Prototype Instruments

None.

Instruments Being Developed

Instrument	Mission(s)
3MI	METOP-SG A1, METOP-SG A2, METOP-SG A3
AIRMO Spectrometer	AIRMO Constellation
ALTIUS Instrument	ALTIUS
AMSI	S2NG-A, S2NG-B
AOLCI	S3NGO-B, S3NGO-A
ASLSTR	S3NGO-B, S3NGO-A
AWS Instrument	AWS
CLIM	Sentinel CO2M-A, Sentinel CO2M-B, Sentinel CO2M-C
CO2I	Sentinel CO2M-A, Sentinel CO2M-B, Sentinel CO2M-C
CSAR	TRUTHS
FEI	FORUM
HIS	TRUTHS
HSI	Sentinel CHIME-A, Sentinel CHIME-B
ICI	METOP-SG B1, METOP-SG B2, METOP-SG B3
Imaging Microwave Radiometer	Sentinel CIMR-B, Sentinel CIMR-A
IRIS	Sentinel CRISTAL-A, Sentinel CRISTAL-B
IRS	MTG-S1 (sounding), MTG-S2 (sounding)
Land Surface Temperature Radiometer	Sentinel LSTM-A, Sentinel LSTM-B
L-band SAR	Sentinel ROSE-L B, Sentinel ROSE-L A
MAP	Sentinel CO2M-A, Sentinel CO2M-B, Sentinel CO2M-C
MWI	METOP-SG B1, METOP-SG B2, METOP-SG B3
MWS	METOP-SG A1, METOP-SG A2, METOP-SG A3
P-Band SAR	Biomass
Poseidon-5 Altimeter	S3NGT-A, S3NGT-B
RO	METOP-SG A1, METOP-SG B1, METOP-SG A2, METOP-SG A3, METOP-SG B2, METOP-SG B3, EPS-Aeolus
SAOOH	S3NGT-A, S3NGT-B
SCA	METOP-SG B1, METOP-SG B2, METOP-SG B3
SGR-ReSI-Z	HydroGNSS
UVN (Sentinel-4)	MTG-S1 (sounding), MTG-S2 (sounding), Sentinel-4 A, Sentinel-4 B
UVNS (Sentinel-5)	METOP-SG A1, Sentinel-5 A, Sentinel-5 B, METOP-SG A2, METOP-SG A3, Sentinel-5 C

Approved Instruments

Proposed Instruments

Instrument	Mission(s)
ALADIN-2	EPS-Aeolus

TBD Instruments

None.

No Longer Operational Instruments

Instrument	Mission(s)
ADSB Receiver (GOMX4)	GOMX4
AIS Receiver (GOMX4)	-
ALADIN	Aeolus
AMI/SAR/Image	ERS-1, ERS-2
AMI/SAR/Wave	ERS-1, ERS-2
AMI/Scatterometer	ERS-1, ERS-2
ASAR	Envisat
ASAR (image mode)	Envisat
ASAR (wave mode)	Envisat
CHRIS	PROBA
EGG	GOCE
ENVISAT Comms	Envisat
ERS Comms	ERS-1, ERS-2
FMPL-2	Federated Satellite Systems
GOME	ERS-2
GOMOS	Envisat
GPS (ESA)	GOCE
GRACE instrument	GRACE-II, GRACE
HRC	PROBA
HyperScout	GOMX4
HyperScout-2	Federated Satellite Systems
LRR	GOCE
MERIS	Envisat
MIPAS	Envisat
MVIRI	Meteosat-5, Meteosat-3, Meteosat-4, Meteosat-6, Meteosat-7
MWR	Envisat, ERS-1, ERS-2
PAN+MS (RGB+NIR)	SEOSAT/Ingenio
Phisat-1	Federated Satellite Systems
RA	ERS-1, ERS-2
RA-2	Envisat
SCIAMACHY	Envisat
SSTI	GOCE
Vegetation	PROBA-V

Instrument	Mission(s)
AMR-CR	Sentinel CRISTAL-A, Sentinel CRISTAL-B, S3NGT-A, S3NGT-B
ATLID	ESA Future Missions, EarthCARE
BBR (EarthCARE)	EarthCARE
FLORIS	FLEX
Fourier Transform Spectrometer	FORUM
LTI	MAGIC/MCDO, MAGIC/NGGM
MSI (EarthCARE)	EarthCARE
Multiview Thermal-Infared	Harmony
Passive Synthetic Aperture Radar	Harmony