Diary in pictures

Complementing the launch diary, this image gallery provides a glimpse into the range of activities that were carried out to prepare ESA's ice mission for launch. The gallery begins with photos of the satellite being shipped from the ‘IABG’ test centre in Ottobrunn, Germany, to the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan, then photos of the launch campaign activities as they were carried out, and finally the launch. The most recent pictures feature first.

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HI-RES JPEG

Caption: Successful launch for ESA’s CryoSat-2 ice mission Credits: ESA - S. Corvaja, 2010 ID number: SEM1W90OK7G HI-RES JPEG size: 295 kb Related Images: Launchers and space vehicles Spacecraft engineering CryoSat

Description

Europe's first mission dedicated to studying the Earth’s ice was launched today from Kazakhstan. From its polar orbit, CryoSat-2 will send back data leading to new insights into how ice is responding to climate change and the role it plays in our ‘Earth system’. The CryoSat-2 satellite was launched at 15:57 CEST (13:57 UTC) on a Dnepr rocket provided by the International Space Company Kosmotras from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. The signal confirming that it had separated from the launcher came 17 minutes later from the Malindi ground station in Kenya.

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