The Changing Earth

Three candidate Earth Explorer Core missions are currently going through extended feasibility studies (Phase-A). One missions will be selected for implementation and lead to the launch of ESA's seventh Earth Explorer.

Through a peer-reviewed selection process, this on-going user-driven approach provides tools to further understand and monitor our planet.

In 2009, the Biomass, CoReH₂O and PREMIER missions were selected for feasibility study and their resulting Reports for Mission Selection were published in June 2012.

Biomass aims to take measurements of forest biomass to assess terrestrial carbon stocks and fluxes. The mission employs a novel P-band synthetic aperture polarimetric radar operating at 435 MHz and a 6 MHz bandwidth. In addition to valuable data on forest biomass, the choice of radar sensor means that the mission could also provide new information on ice-sheet thickness and internal structures in cold regions, subsurface geology in arid regions, as well as data on soil moisture, permafrost and sea-surface salinity.

PREMIER aims to advance our understanding of the processes that link trace gases, radiation and chemistry in the upper troposphere and lower stratosphere. The radiative effects of water and clouds are at a maximum in this region. It is also a region characterised by small-scale processes that have not been studied by previous missions. PREMIER is based on an infrared limb-imaging spectrometer and a millimetre-wave limb-sounder. By linking with MetOp and the National Polar-orbiting Operational Environmental Satellite System data, PREMIER also aims to provide insights into processes occurring in the lower troposphere.

Earth Explorer 8

As a result of the Call for Proposals for the eighth Earth Explorer released in October 2009, the Florescence Explorer (FLEX) and CarbonSat mission concepts are currently in Phase A/B1.