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\t\t\t\t\t\t15\/01\/2026<\/span> After more than 10 years in orbit, the first Copernicus Sentinel-2 satellite, Sentinel-2A, is still finding new ways to contribute to Earth observation. With its younger siblings, Sentinel-2B and Sentinel-2C, now leading the mission\u2019s core task of delivering high-resolution, \u2018camera-like\u2019 images of Earth\u2019s surface, the European Space Agency is pushing Sentinel-2A beyond its original remit.<\/p>\n In recent trials, this elderly satellite was even switched on at night to see how it would perform in the dark \u2013 and the results have been strikingly positive, offering encouraging news for the follow-on Copernicus Sentinel-2 Next Generation mission, currently in development.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Copernicus is the Earth observation component of the European Union\u2019s Space programme.<\/p>\n When Sentinel-2A was launched in 2015, it marked a major milestone \u2013 combining a high-resolution multispectral optical imager with a 290 km-wide swath, to return spectacular views of Earth\u2019s changing lands for a new perspective of our land and coastal areas for agriculture, and forest and water management \u2013 in particular for the Copernicus Land Monitoring Service.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n The satellite, however, has gone above and beyond \u2013 also returning new information about our marine biology, methane emissions and changing polar ice.<\/p>\n Since the Sentinel-2 mission is based on two identical satellites in the same orbit, 180\u00b0 apart for optimal coverage and data delivery, Sentinel-2B was launched in 2017. Sentinel-2C followed in 2024 to replace Sentinel-2A.<\/p>\n The satellites all carry a 13-band multispectral imager, which, like a camera, relies on light to capture images \u2013 in this case, using sunlight reflected by Earth\u2019s surface and the atmosphere to observe the planet.<\/p>\n However, the satellites experience darkness during night-time passes. Under normal operations, the imagers are switched off when the satellites passes over night-shrouded parts of the planet.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n In essence, the current generation of Sentinel-2 satellites, which will also include Sentinel-2D in the future, were never designed to image at night \u2013 but the plan is that the follow-on Sentinel-2 Next Generation mission will indeed do so over certain regions.<\/p>\n As Sentinel-2A approaches the end of its operational life, it continues to support the operational Sentinel-2 mission \u2013 but, in addition, engineers and scientists are using some its remaining time in orbit to test new ideas for the future and to prepare for the Next Generation mission. One such experiment has been to see how it would fare when switching it on at night.<\/p>\n As these test images featured in this article show, it did remarkably well.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n ESA\u2019s Sentinel-2 Next Generation Mission Scientist, Simon Proud, said, \u201cWe are extremely pleased with these results, which help pave the way for the Sentinel-2 Next Generation mission.<\/p>\n \u201cNot only has Sentinel-2A been able to capture images of gas flares from oil production in the Middle East, which are of course pretty bright, but also more subtle characteristics such as a wildfire in India and fishing boats off the coast of South Korea \u2013 all during the night-time.<\/p>\n \u201cThe current Sentinel-2 mission remains outstanding, delivering a wealth of data for Copernicus operational services, the commercial sector and for science, but we are now further pushing the boundaries of what an optical mission can do.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n \u201cThese experiments are providing invaluable insight as we design Sentinel-2 Next Generation, which is being developed with the ambitious goal of delivering even higher resolution imagery and imaging some parts of the planet even when the Sun is down.<\/p>\n \u201cRight now, we are establishing key features that the next generation mission should see at night, and we are assessing the technical feasibility of night imaging.<\/p>\n \u201cThe results from Sentinel-2A show that for all of our night-time targets, including city lights, gas flares and fishing monitoring, the Sentinel-2 Next Generation mission will contribute a significant amount of useful information to the community.<\/p>\n \u201cNight-time imagery, for example, is extremely useful for security and for monitoring city lights, which are an indication of urban growth.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n ESA\u2019s Sentinel-2 Mission Manager, Ferran Gascon, added, \u201cThis experiment was carefully prepared by the mission teams, and it has naturally put strain on the Sentinel-2A satellite, but it has been well worth exploring what this ageing satellite can do to help prepare for the future. Switching on the satellite to image at night required a great deal of energy, but Sentinel-2A did very well.<\/p>\n \u201cEven after 10 years in orbit and this demanding experiment, the satellite is still in remarkably good health and continues to deliver a wealth of data to many users that benefit from the satellite for a wide range of everyday applications.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n
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