US EditionSatellite mission to ‘weigh’ Earth’s 1.5 trillion trees underway
- On April 29, 2025, the Biomass satellite was deployed into orbit from Kourou, French Guiana, aboard a Vega-C rocket as part of a mission by ESA to investigate Earth's forests.
- The mission was launched to improve the accuracy of measuring forest carbon storage and to address the current gaps in estimating global carbon stocks, particularly in tropical areas where data is limited.
- Biomass uses a novel P-band synthetic aperture radar with a 70 cm wavelength and a deployable 12-meter antenna to penetrate dense forest canopies and assess woody biomass like trunks and branches.
- Simonetta Cheli, ESA’s Director of Earth Observation Programs, stated that the Biomass mission will provide essential new information about the amount of carbon contained within global forests, helping to address important gaps in understanding the carbon cycle, with the satellite expected to operate for a minimum of five years.
- The mission’s outcome aims to improve climate models, support deforestation tracking, and enhance understanding of how land use and climate change affect carbon stocks worldwide.
61 Articles
61 Articles
Satellite mission to ‘weigh’ Earth’s 1.5 trillion trees underway
The European Space Agency has launched its Biomass satellite, a mission designed to enhance the global understanding of how forests affect the Earth’s carbon cycle. The satellite will use advanced radar technology to measure the amount of carbon stored in trees and monitor changes in forest structure, particularly in tropical regions. What is the Biomass satellite designed to do? ESA claimed that Biomass is the first satellite equipped with a P-…
ESA's Biomass Mission is Off to Weigh the World's Forests
Space exploration not only allows us to look out into the universe but it also allows us to look back at Earth. ESA’s Biomass satellite will measure the amount of carbon in the world's forests, tracking how the carbon cycle absorbs and releases carbon over the seasonal cycles. It launched this week from the Kourou Spaceport in French Guiana atop a Vega-C rocket and safely reached its intended orbit. It has a synthetic aperture radar that can pen…
First-of-Its-Kind Satellite to 'Weigh' All the Wood in Forests
Mapping the world's forests, said to include some 1.5 trillion trees, is a big, big job—one that will be made a whole lot easier with Europe's newly launched satellite. The European Space Agency on Tuesday launched Biomass, a satellite with a 40-foot-wide, umbrella-shaped antenna, which has the task...
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ecotopical.comNew report reinforces critical role of Amazonian protected areas in climate fight
A new report adds to the already overwhelming case that protected areas and Indigenous territories in the Amazon Rainforest serve as a critical carbon sink. The report, based on satellite data gathered by Earth imaging company Planet and analyzed by the nonprofit organization Amazon Conservation, reinforces the critical role of protected areas and Indigenous territories in climate action. Although protected areas and Indigenous territories cover…
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