When was the Envisat satellite sent into orbit?
A satellite named Envisat that was made in Europe by ESA (European Space Agency) it was sent into orbit on May 1st 2002.
What does Envisat Monitor?
Envisat looks at the earths environment and all the layers of the atmosphere. It looks at how things are changing and what state there in. If anything were to happen to even just one of these things and we did not know about it there could be a big chain reaction. This would probably cause a huge disaster.
Here is some images Envisat has captured!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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Is This The EndA few weeks after celebrating Envisat's tenth year in orbit ESA lost connection with the satellite. This took place on the 8th of April in 2012. Later on the satellite Pleiades was able to get an image of Envisat. (To the right) This image shows that there was no damage done to this satellite. A group of engineers were hard at work trying to regain communication but after a few months engineers through in the towel. On May 9th it was declared that Envisat's mission was over.
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The BenefitsIf I asked you
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The ProblemsWell what state is the satellite in right now? It is drifting through space looking for another satellite to crash into. Which would cause both satellites to break up into thousands of little pieces that will crash into even more satellites or even space ships. This would just keep going causing a huge chain reaction.
So what if the ESA creates a new satellite there will still be a chance that the same thing could still occur. It could just shut down not showing any sign of what happened. which would send millions of dollars down the drain (well technically up into space). |
Information Gained
Envisat has showed us the way land has moved after an earthquake or volcanic eruptions. This helps scientists understand the forces that are behind them. With this information we can teach workers how to survive these natural disasters.
How I feel
I think that ESA should risk making a new satellite and sending it into orbit. I think that with all the information that we receive telling us about the earth is worth it. Maybe ESA could work at making a new satellite that's got more advanced technology that would be able to regain communication with the satellite. if they could add just a little bit more to it things may go better.