Proba Missions

It has been a busy year for the European Space Agency’s Proba-3 mission. The satellite duo has already created more than 50 artificial solar eclipses in orbit since the mission operations began less than a year ago. The resulting data confirm Proba-3's ability to provide the missing puzzle piece in our observations of the Sun's enigmatic atmosphere – the corona.

Editor's note: This page is no longer being updated, but will be preserved as a record. Click here for the latest information on Proba-V.Proba-V was launched from Europe’s Spaceport, in the northeast of South America in French Guiana, an overseas department of France.

Editor's note: This page is no longer being updated, but will be preserved as a record. Click here for the latest information on Proba-V.Proba-V was flown to orbit on the second flight of the Vega launcher on the night of 6/7 May, ESA’s newest rocket aimed at carrying small and medium satellites, to increase the flexibility and competitiveness of Europe’s launcher family. It incorporates a wide range of new materials to keep its own mass low: the lighter Vega is, the more payload it can haul to orbit.

Editor's note: This page is no longer being updated, but will be preserved as a record. Click here for the latest information on Proba-V.Now safely in orbit, a complex commissioning period begins, where payloads and systems are gradually activated and their performance validated. This commissioning phase will include cross-calibration of Proba-V’s Vegetation instrument with Spot-5’s equivalent, ensuring they are observing the same targets in the same way, effectively passing the observational torch.