MTG-I1 is currently undergoing a 12-month commissioning phase, in which its instruments, the Flexible Combined Imager and the Lightning Imager, are switched on and the data they produce are calibrated.

“The high-resolution and frequent repeat cycle of the Flexible Combined Imager will greatly help the World Meteorological Organization community to improve forecasts of severe weather, long-term climate monitoring, marine applications, agricultural meteorology, and will make an important contribution to the Early Warnings For All Initiative, in particular on the African continent,” added Natalia Donoho, Head of the World Meteorological Organization Space Systems and Utilization Division, WMO. That additional detail from the higher resolution imagery, coupled with the fact that images will be produced more frequently, means forecasters will be able to more accurately and rapidly detect and predict severe weather events.” But the level of detail seen for the clouds in this image is extraordinarily important to weather forecasters.

“It might sound odd to be so excited about a cloudy day in most of Europe. Phil Evans, Director General at Eumetsat, added, “This remarkable image gives us great confidence in our expectation that the MTG system will herald a new era in the forecasting of severe weather events. This will enable weather forecasts to monitor the evolution of rapidly developing severe weather more accurately in that region. The new image also reveals a greater level of detail of cloud structures at high latitudes. These details are not as clearly visible, or not visible at all, in images from the instruments on the current second-generation spacecraft. Instruments onboard the third generation of Meteosat meteorological satellites produce imagery with a much higher resolution, and more frequently, than those on the Meteosat Second Generation satellites.ĭetails such as cloud vortices over the Canary Islands, snow cover on the Alps and sediment in the water along the coast of Italy are visible in the image. “This image represents not just what can be achieved through European expertise but our determination to ensure the benefits of new technology are felt by communities in Europe and beyond.” The level of detail MTG-I1’s image reveals, unachievable over Europe and Africa from a geostationary orbit until now, will give us a greater understanding of our planet and the weather systems that shape it. ESA’s Director of Earth Observation Programmes, Simonetta Cheli, said, “This image is a great example of what European cooperation in space can achieve.

The good earth 1931