A Storm is Coming – Bringing Weather Data Down to Earth

In October 1987, people in North-West Europe were caught off guard by a powerful storm that caused widespread damage. At that time, Europe’s ability to monitor the weather from space was limited to just two satellites in geostationary orbit. Today, thanks to advancements in satellite technology, we can do much better.

EUMETSAT (European Organisation for the Exploitation of Meteorological Satellites) currently operates a fleet of ten advanced weather satellites, that together gather crucial data about the atmosphere, including temperature, humidity, cloud cover, wind speed, and sea surface temperature. But this information is useless unless it can be beamed down from space and provided to expert meteorologists on the ground.

Find out how EUMETSAT brings this important meteorological data from space down to Earth, allowing for real-time monitoring and early warnings of severe weather events like hurricanes, wildfires, or tornadoes, and monitoring how our climate is changing over time.