Mission introduction

MetOp-1 will be Europe's first operational polar-orbiting weather satellite. It replaces one of two satellite services operated by the United States National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).

MetOp will carry a set of 'heritage' instruments provided by the United States and a new generation of European instruments that offer improved remote sensing capabilities to both meteorologists and climatologists. The new instruments will augment the accuracy of:

• temperature and humidity measurements
• wind speed and wind direction measurements, especially over the ocean
• profiles of ozone in the atmosphere

The present plan is to launch three MetOp satellites sequentially to maintain the service for at least 14 years, starting in 2006.