Esa Biomass mission kicks off to measure forest carbon and study soils and ice caps
The Esa biomass forest mission, as the international agency puts it, 'uses advanced space technology to provide new data on forests and their changes'.
2' min read
2' min read
From space to study soils and measure carbon in forests. This is the goal of the Biomass mission, the Esa satellite designed to provide information on the world's forests "on their crucial role in the Earth's carbon cycle", developed by more than 50 companies led by Airbus UK. Liftoff on 29 April aboard a Vega-C rocket from Europe's Kourou spaceport in French Guiana. The Esa biomass forest mission, as the international agency puts it, 'uses advanced space technology to provide new data on forests and their changes'.
Subsurface mapping in deserts
.Its 'P-band radar (frequency range in Gigahertz 0.225-0.390) penetrates clouds and forest layers, broadcasting signals from forest elements'. Biomass 'is the first satellite equipped with a P-band synthetic aperture radar', capable of penetrating the forest canopy and measuring the woody biomass, trunks, branches and stems, where most forest carbon is stored.
The mission also enables the mapping of subsurface geology in deserts, ice cap structures and forest soil topography. "Biomass data," emphasise the Esa, "will improve knowledge of habitat loss and its effects on biodiversity.
Less than an hour after the launch, Biomass separated from the upper stage of the rocket and subsequently, the team at Esa's European Space Operations Centre in Germany received 'the first important signal, transmitted via the Troll ground station in Antarctica, that Biomass is operating as planned in orbit'. The team will continue with its verifications in the coming days.
Esa director: vital data on carbon
"I would like to extend my congratulations to everyone involved in the development and launch of this extraordinary mission. Biomass now joins our esteemed family of Earth explorers, missions that have consistently brought groundbreaking discoveries and advanced scientific understanding of our planet," is the comment of Simonetta Cheli, Esa's Director of Earth Observation Programmes. "With Biomass, we are poised to acquire vital new data on how much carbon is stored in the world's forests, helping to fill key gaps in our knowledge of the carbon cycle and ultimately the Earth's climate system.
