Launch boosts European Earth monitoring and connectivity

Thirteen European satellites on the same rideshare launcher have successfully reached orbit, bringing capabilities to Italian and Greek monitoring programmes as well as CubeSats that will test satellite connectivity. The launch took place on Sunday, 3 May, at 09:00 CEST on board a SpaceX Falcon-9 rocket from the Vandenberg Space Force Base in California. The satellites launched were:

• Seven satellites were added to the Hawk for Earth Observation (HEO) constellation for Italy’s IRIDE Earth observation programme.
• Four Hellenic Fire System satellites were launched for Greece’s wildfire detection and tracking system, marking a world first for this type of national satellite capability.
• Two CubeSats were launched, also for Greece, for the Hellenic Space Dawn mission. The CubeSats will test satellite links and optical data transmission capabilities in space.

Read full story: Launch boosts European Earth monitoring and connectivity