Weather satellite MetOp-SG-A1 was successfully launched on the night of 13 August aboard an Ariane 6 rocket. The satellite includes the advanced measuring instrument Sentinel-5, which is seen as a major step forward in monitoring the sky.
Sentinel-5 provides crucial data for daily forecasts of air quality and long-term climate monitoring. Sentinel-5 builds on TROPOMI, an advanced Dutch space instrument that measures the composition of the atmosphere. TROPOMI was launched in October 2017. Scientific leadership of TROPOMI is in the hands of KNMI.
Part of the European Copernicus programme
The Sentinel-5 measuring instrument is part of the European Copernicus programme. This programme is coordinated and managed by the European Commission (EC). The space component - the Copernicus Space Component - was developed under the leadership of the European Space Agency (ESA). It consists of a series of missions called Sentinel.
In doing so, the Sentinel 4, Sentinel 5 and Sentinel 5P (precursor) missions are all part of a satellite constellation for the Copernicus Atmospheric Monitoring Services (CAMS). These services should provide coherent information on atmospheric variables to support European policy making. Among other things, they provide insights into the ozone layer, UV radiation, air quality and climate applications.
Air quality monitoring
In doing so, Sentinel-5 is specifically aimed at monitoring air quality and so-called composition-climate interactions, which refers to the interaction between the chemical composition of the atmosphere and the Earth's climate system. For this purpose, the instrument collects data related to ozone, nitrogen dioxide, sulphur dioxide, formaldehyde, glyoxal and aerosols. In addition, Sentinel-5 also provides readings related to carbon monoxide, methane and stratospheric ozone.
To collect this data, Sentinel-5 is equipped with a high-resolution spectrometer, operating in the ultraviolet to short-wave infrared range, with 7 different spectral bands:
- UV-1 (270-300 nm)
- UV-2 (300-370 nm)
- VIS (370-500 nm)
- NIR-1 (685-710 nm)
- NIR-2 (745-773 nm)
- SWIR-1 (1590-1675 nm)
- SWIR-3 (2305-2385 nm)
UV1 spectrometer and optical telescopes
TNO played a crucial role in the development of the measurement instrument. It developed a UV1 spectrometer for ultra-precise measurements and two compact, lightweight optical telescopes. Sentinel-5 should provide data for 21 years. To ensure this, all components were built and implemented three times.
Adriaan van 't Hof, Senior Project Manager: "This mission is an example of European cooperation, but also of Dutch innovative strength. We used what we learned at TROPOMI for Sentinel-5. And everything we learned at this complex mission can be applied in subsequent Earth observation missions."
