Working on MetOp Second Generation-B1’s scatterometer

The MetOp Second Generation-B1 satellite has entered its third and most delicate round of pre-launch testing, marking another step towards strengthening Europe’s weather forecasting capabilities. Engineers are now putting the satellite through rigorous electromagnetic compatibility tests to ensure that its many electronic systems can operate without interfering with one another once this new weather satellite is in orbit around Earth next year.

The photograph shows MetOp-SG-B1 being prepared for the anechoic chamber at Airbus’ facilities in Toulouse, France. An engineer is working on the satellite’s scatterometer – an instrument devoted to retrieve the wind profiles over oceans. It is a big radar with three characteristic ‘arms’, and incorporates a powerful pulsed transmitter (in C-band) and a corresponding sensitive receiver.

Read full story: Next MetOp Second Generation weather satellite in the spotlight