Sentinel-1B arrived in French Guiana on 8 March 2016. Over the next weeks the satellite will be prepared for liftoff on a Soyuz rocket. Sentinel-1B will join its identical twin, Sentinel-1A, in orbit around Earth to offer ‘radar vision’ for Europe’s environmental Copernicus initiative. As a constellation of two satellites orbiting 180° apart, revisit times and global coverage are optimised. The mission is used to monitor many aspects of our environment, from detecting and tracking oil spills and mapping sea ice to monitoring movement in land surfaces and mapping changes in the way land is used. It will also play a crucial role in providing timely information to help respond to natural disasters and assist humanitarian relief efforts.