Meteosat

Meteosat provides a continuous, wide-area view of weather from geostationary orbit. The satellites remain synchronized with Earth’s rotation, allowing instruments to repeatedly observe nearly the same part of the planet rather than passing over different locations like a polar-orbiting satellite. EUMETSAT operates the system for European and international users, while satellite construction and launches have involved European industrial and institutional partners.

The coverage area is especially valuable for Europe, Africa, the Atlantic and parts of the Middle East. Frequent images reveal the development and movement of cloud systems, convection, tropical cyclones, dust storms and volcanic ash. Meteosat observations are assimilated into numerical weather prediction and distributed through meteorological services, aviation authorities, emergency agencies and research institutions.

Meteosat has developed through three principal generations, each adding greater spatial, spectral and temporal capability. The first generation established routine visible and infrared imaging after the launch of Meteosat-1 in 1977; the Meteosat Second Generation series introduced the SEVIRI imager, which observes 12 spectral channels and scans the full disk at intervals of about 15 minutes.¹

Meteosat Third Generation extends these capabilities with the Flexible Combined Imager, improved resolution and faster repeat imaging, while its Lightning Imager detects lightning flashes across a large part of the hemisphere. MTG also includes a sounding mission designed to retrieve information about atmospheric temperature, humidity and stability. These instruments are intended to improve short-range forecasting and the early detection of rapidly intensifying storms.²

Meteosat data are most valuable when rapid changes in the atmosphere matter. Forecasters use sequences of visible, infrared and water-vapour imagery to estimate cloud-top temperatures, identify growing thunderstorms, track frontal systems and monitor weather over oceans where conventional observations are sparse.

The system also contributes to wildfire and smoke monitoring, Saharan dust analysis, volcanic-ash warnings and assessments of atmospheric moisture. Infrared observations can continue through darkness, whereas visible imagery provides fine detail in daylight. Combined with surface stations, radar, aircraft reports and other satellites, Meteosat data support the observing networks used by the World Meteorological Organization and national weather services. Long records from successive satellites also help scientists study changes in clouds, aerosols and land-surface conditions.

Meteosat’s importance extends beyond the familiar weather picture shown on television. Its geostationary position makes it particularly useful for monitoring the African monsoon, tropical convection over the Atlantic and dust transport from the Sahara toward Europe and the Americas. The same fixed viewpoint also permits rapid image sequences that can expose the early stages of storm organization before impacts reach land.

The program is a long-running international infrastructure rather than a single spacecraft. Satellites are placed at different operational positions, and data continuity depends on overlapping spacecraft, ground systems, calibration and reprocessing. Meteosat observations have also been used in climate data records, where consistency between instruments and generations is as important as the newest image. The Third Generation mission adds a dedicated lightning-observation capability, a comparatively specialized service that can support severe-weather warnings and scientific studies of electrical activity in thunderstorms.²

Geostationary orbit

An orbit in which a satellite circles Earth at the same rotational rate as the planet, appearing fixed above a point near the equator.

SEVIRI

The Spinning Enhanced Visible and Infrared Imager carried by Meteosat Second Generation satellites.

Flexible Combined Imager

The principal multispectral imaging instrument on Meteosat Third Generation imaging satellites.

Lightning Imager

An instrument that detects optical emissions from lightning flashes across the observed hemisphere.