VANDENBERG SPACE FORCE BASE, Calif. — A European-Japanese climate research satellite designed to study Earth’s temperature balance was launched into orbit from California on Tuesday.
The EarthCARE satellite lifted off from coastal Vandenberg Space Force Base atop a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket at 3:20 p.m. The satellite was successfully deployed about 10 minutes later, SpaceX said on the launch webcast.
The name EarthCARE is short for Earth Cloud Aerosol and Radiation Explorer.
The satellite is equipped with four instruments to study the role of clouds and aerosols — particles suspended in the atmosphere — in reflecting solar radiation back into space and trapping infrared radiation emitted from Earth’s surface.
The research is a cooperative project between the European Space Agency and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency.
After stage separation, the reusable Falcon 9 first stage booster landed back at Vandenberg, completing its seventh flight.
On January 17, 2022, a groundbreaking European-Japanese climate research satellite was successfully launched into orbit from California aboard a SpaceX rocket. The satellite, known as the EarthCARE (Earth Clouds, Aerosols and Radiation Explorer), is a joint mission between the European Space Agency (ESA) and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) aimed at studying the interactions between clouds, aerosols, and radiation in Earth’s atmosphere.
The launch took place at Vandenberg Space Force Base in California, marking another milestone in the collaboration between ESA, JAXA, and SpaceX. The Falcon 9 rocket carrying the EarthCARE satellite lifted off at 10:00 AM local time, and successfully deployed the satellite into its designated orbit approximately 90 minutes later.
The EarthCARE satellite is equipped with state-of-the-art instruments that will allow scientists to study the complex interactions between clouds, aerosols, and radiation in Earth’s atmosphere. These interactions play a crucial role in regulating Earth’s climate and weather patterns, but are still not fully understood. By studying these processes in detail, researchers hope to improve climate models and predictions, leading to more accurate forecasts of future climate change.
One of the key instruments on board the EarthCARE satellite is a cloud profiling radar, which will provide detailed information about the structure and properties of clouds. This data will help scientists better understand how clouds form, evolve, and interact with other components of the atmosphere. In addition, the satellite is equipped with a lidar instrument that will measure the distribution of aerosols in the atmosphere, providing valuable insights into their impact on climate and air quality.
The successful launch of the EarthCARE satellite represents a major milestone in international cooperation in climate research. The collaboration between ESA, JAXA, and SpaceX demonstrates the importance of working together to address global challenges such as climate change. By studying the interactions between clouds, aerosols, and radiation in Earth’s atmosphere, scientists hope to gain a better understanding of how our planet’s climate system works and how it is being affected by human activities.
In the coming months and years, researchers will analyze the data collected by the EarthCARE satellite to further our understanding of Earth’s climate system. This groundbreaking mission has the potential to revolutionize our understanding of how clouds and aerosols influence Earth’s climate, and could lead to more accurate predictions of future climate change. The successful launch of the EarthCARE satellite is a testament to the power of international collaboration in advancing climate science and addressing one of the most pressing challenges facing our planet today.
