activeESA / European Commission
Copernicus Earth Observation
World's largest Earth observation program with the Sentinel satellite constellation. Provides free, open data for climate monitoring, agriculture, disaster response, and maritime surveillance. Expanding with 6 new Copernicus Expansion missions (CHIME, CIMR, CO2M, CRISTAL, LSTM, ROSE-L) addressing climate change priorities.
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Budget
€8.4B (2021–2027 EU allocation)
Timeline
2014–ongoing
Key Milestones
Sentinel-1A launched — first Copernicus satellite (SAR radar)
2014
Sentinel-1C launched replacing Sentinel-1B (failed 2022)
2024
CO2M (CO2 Monitoring) satellite in integration — first to measure anthropogenic CO2 from space
2025
LSTM (Land Surface Temperature) and CHIME (hyperspectral) satellites launch
2026
Contractors
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Sources
- copernicus.eu
- esa.int/copernicus