According to Eumetsat, Lightning Imager is the first instrument to accomplish this task. It should bring air traffic data and weather forecast.
A new generation of weather satellites is sending back the first images of lightning during thunderstorms from space. Short film sequences show how lightning moves across continents and oceans day and night. “The first satellite instrument capable of continuously detecting lightning in Europe and Africa has now been activated,” the Darmstadt-based European Meteorological Satellite Agency (Eumetsat) said on Monday.
The so-called Lightning Imager aboard a “Meteosat Third Generation” satellite can observe these activities during thunderstorms with four cameras. “Until now we haven’t had that with satellite instruments,” said Gerrit Holl, an expert on weather satellites at the German Weather Service (DWD), the German news agency. Until now, there have only been measurements of Earth rays in Europe. The new data could help air traffic, among other things. “You can also better estimate the severity of a storm.” The DWD is expected to receive data from December onwards.
There are often abrupt changes in lightning activity before severe thunderstorms, said Eumetsat Director General Phil Evans. Observing these activities can help meteorologists predict thunderstorms and severe thunderstorms. Weather services would be able to track the development of storms and thus issue warnings in a timely manner.
The MTG-I1 satellite with Lightning Imager on board was launched in December. Each of the four cameras can record 1,000 frames per second. The rig is currently in the commissioning phase. “MTG-I1” was the first of a group of three to start for more detailed meteorological observation. A second group will start in 2030. They will be controlled from the Eumetsat control center in Darmstadt.
Beyond Gravity Austria provides a kind of “camera coverage” for all six satellites. This cover, about a meter in diameter, protects the spacecraft’s meteorological instruments from dirt during launch. In space, the lid opens and then locks open. In addition, the Viennese company has developed and produced so-called reorientation mechanisms, with the help of which the satellite’s optical instruments can be refocused after strong vibrations during rocket launch. Numerous electronic components also come from Vienna, such as the control electronics for the precise alignment of the solar panels and the large antenna that transmits the measurement data to earth.