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German environmental satellite EnMAP successfully launched into space

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Representatives from science and politics acknowledge the importance of the mission for the analysis of climate and environmental phenomena

The EnMAP satellite flies around the earth - animation
The EnMAP satellite flies around the earth - animation. (OHB-System AG / DLR / GFZ)
The EnMAP satellite in the test chamber.
The EnMAP satellite in the test chamber. (OHB-System AG / GFZ)
The EnMAP satellite at the top of the Falcon 9 rocket - together with 39 micro satellites (left). The important elements of the satellite - for operation (top) and measurements (bottom).
The satellite at the top of the Falcon 9 rocket - together with 39 small satellites (left, Credit: SpaceX). The important elements of the satellite - for operations (top, DLR Space Agency) and measurements (bottom, DLR Space Agency). The hyperspectral instrument consists of two spectrometers. VNIR measures visible light and the near infrared range (420 - 1,000 nm), SWIR the short wavelength infrared range (900 - 2,450 nm). (left: SpaceX, right: DLR Space Agency)
Schematic representation of the EnMAP satellite in operation, measuring the Earth surface..
Schematic representation of the EnMAP satellite in operation. (GFZ / DLR / OHB-System AG)
Illustration of different areas of application of hyperspectral measurement data.
Illustration of different areas of application of hyperspectral measurement data. (GFZ)
People are standing in the foyer of the auditorium, drinking coffee and talking.
EnMAP's "Team Science" meets with guests and partners from science, industry and politics to celebrate the satellite launch. The opportunity to meet in presence (of course with a hygiene concept) shows how much this kind of exchange is missing in Corona times. (Reinhardt und Sommer / GFZ)
Left: Harald Schuh stands in front of the sparsely filled lecture hall and welcomes the guests. Right: Stefan Schwartze stands at the lectern to welcome the guests.
Official welcome by our Administrative Director Stefan Schwartze (right) and the Director of Department 1 Geodesy Harald Schuh (left). An exciting event is getting started, because it is not yet clear whether the unsettled weather in Florida will allow the rocket to launch as planned. (Reinhardt und Sommer / GFZ)
Three pictures of speakers with their presentations in the background.
Saskia Förster, Max Brell and Karl Segl from Section 1.4 Remote Sensing and Geoinformatics speak for the EnMAP science team. They present the scientific foundations of the hyperspectral satellite, the scientific developments of the past 15 years and the diverse application potential. (Reinhardt und Sommer / GFZ)
Potsdam's Lord Mayor Mike Schubert addresses the audience in the lecture hall.
Greetings from Potsdam's Lord Mayor Mike Schubert, who followed the event live with us and later congratulated on the successful launch. (Reinhardt und Sommer / GFZ)
The telephone in the lecture hall in close-up.
The live connection via Zoom to our Scientific Director Niels Hovius, who followed the launch on site in Florida, did not work. From then on, all hopes for a connection to the USA rested on the good old telephone... However, no call out to the USA was possible from the lecture halls phone. Would Niels ring? (Reinhardt und Sommer / GFZ)
Left: Sabine Chabrillat can be seen on the screen - connected via her smartphone from Florida. Right: Anke Schickling is connected via video from Bonn.
At least we were able to contact Sabine Chabrillat (left), the scientific Principal Investigator of the EnMAP project, who conveyed an impression of the tense atmosphere from Florida. Anke Schickling (right) gave an impression of the DLR's parallel event in Bonn. She is responsible for the utilisation preparation of the EnMAP mission at the German Space Agency at DLR. (Reinhardt und Sommer / GFZ)
Sarah Gleeson (left) and Fabian Fassnacht (right) give short presentations. In the background their projected presentations.
Sarah Gleeson (left), Director of Topic 8 "Georesources" of our current research programme PoF IV "Changing Earth – Sustaining our Future" brought her perspective as an "internal external" potential user of EnMAP data - for example for searching resources. Fabian Fassnacht (right), on his first day as a newly appointed professor of remote sensing at the FU Berlin, reviewed his own scientific career in parallel to the EnMAP "career" and showed how the EnMAP PhD programme was the perfect start for him. (Reinhardt und Sommer / GFZ)
On the screen, the rocket shortly before launch. In the auditorium, two people comment.
Now it's getting serious: the rocket really seems to be taking off! Our space engineer Sven Bauer and Karl Segl comment on what can and will happen now, why it smokes and hisses and what else can be seen. (Reinhardt und Sommer / GFZ)
The screen in the lecture hall shows the rocket taking off.
Quite exciting: the rocket takes off. On board - right at the top - the EnMAP satellite and 39 other small satellites. (Uta Deffke)
The rocket takes off: dark smoke and fire below.
Launch of rocket – as seen from SpaceX in Florida. (SpaceX)
Pictures from the rocket looking back to earth. On the left the first rocket stage, on the right the second rocket stage.
The cameras on the rocket transmit a live view back to Earth. On the left, the first rocket stage, which is separated after a short time and lands precisely on drone ship in the Atlantic. In this way, it can be recycled - then for the eighth time already. This saves costs and is sustainable. (Uta Deffke / GFZ)
View up into the lecture hall: people sit and watch, some film the screen with their smartphones.
The guests in the auditorium follow the live stream from Space-X with rapt attention. (Reinhardt und Sommer / GFZ)
Josef Zens and Uta Deffke with microphone on the lecture hall telephone.
In the n+1th attempt, it finally works - the call from Niels from Florida: Very "old school", but quite understandable, he reports on the exciting hours and minutes surrounding the launch, and can confirm to us that the satellite has successfully left the rocket. On the phone: Josef Zens and Uta Deffke, moderators of the evening. (Screenshot GFZ-Stream)
Left: Patrick Hostert is connected to the screen via zoom. Right: Annett Frick is standing at the lectern, the presentation of her company on the screen.
Finally, Patrick Hostert from HU Berlin, long-time member of the scientific advisory board EnSAG and project partner, gives an outlook on the hyperspectral era in optical Earth observation. Annett Frick from the Potsdam company "Luftbild Umwelt Planung (LUP)" reports how they at LUP have been waiting for EnMAP for more than 10 years and want to use hyperspectral data in a number of projects. (Saskia Förster / GFZ)
Left: Cake in EnMAP format and hyperspectral colours. Right: Three people standing together and rejoicing.
Now it's time to celebrate - with a buffet and a piece of Sibylle Itzerott's hyperspectral EnMAP cake (in spectral colours). On the right: Saskia Förster (centre), Charly Kaufmann (left), the long-standing head of the Remote Sensing Section at GFZ and scientific "father" of EnMAP, and Sebastian van der Linden (right) from the partner university in Greifswald. (Reinhardt und Sommer / GFZ)
Martin Herold speaks into the microphone and to another man.
Meanwhile, Martin Herold, head of Section 1.4 "Remote Sensing and Geoinformatics" represents us at the DLR parlallel event in Bonn - as speaker and for networking, here with Helmut Staudenrausch (DLR). (DLR)
Information stands.
In front of the GFZ lecture hall, information stands invite visitors to explore hyperspectral imaging. (Reinhardt und Sommer / GFZ)
Souvenirs to take home: Postcards and an EnMAP stamp
And there are souvenirs... postcards and even a special stamp. (Reinhardt und Sommer / GFZ)
Picture with the portraits of many people.
Colleagues of the EnMAP science project and the EnSAG scientific advisory board who have contributed to the success of the mission over the past 15 years. We would like to thank all of them once again. (Animation: Stéphane Guillaso / GFZ)
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The German environmental satellite EnMAP was successfully launched into space on Friday evening, 01 April 2022, from Cape Canaveral in Florida on board a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket. The "science" team of the EnMAP mission at the German Research Centre for Geosciences Potsdam celebrated the exciting minutes before and during the launch with a diverse and informative event. Lectures, talks and live broadcasts gave an impression of the scientific background, many years of preparations and various current and future fields of application of the mission. Also joining the event was Potsdam's Lord Mayor Mike Schubert, who was equally excited and congratulated on the successful launch.

Impressions of the event are available in the picture gallery above.

EnMAP stands for "Environmental Mapping and Analysis Program". Over the next few years, the hyperspectral mission will take images of the Earth's surface in around 250 colours ("spectral bands") and thus provide information on the condition of vegetation, soils and waters more precisely than ever before. Even short-term changes can be recorded with the help of the satellite, which is about the size of a wardrobe. The EnMAP environmental mission is led by the German Space Agency at the German Aerospace Center (DLR) on behalf of the Federal Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate Action (BMWK). The mission is under the scientific management of the German Research Centre for Geosciences (GFZ) in Potsdam. The satellite and the hyperspectral instrument were developed and built by OHB-System AG. The total cost is around 300 million euros.

Anna Christmann: "The innovative mission helps to record the effects of the climate crisis and environmental pollution."

"Without Earth observation from space, it would be very difficult to quantify the global extent of the climate crisis and its consequences," says the Federal Government Commissioner for Aerospace, MdB Dr. Anna Christmann. "The innovative and powerful EnMAP satellite mission of DLR and GFZ will give us precise information about the state of the Earth's ecosystems with its hyperspectral images. This will help us to record the effects of the climate crisis, biodiversity loss and environmental pollution. With EnMAP, Germany is making an important contribution to European space technology and to an intact planet."

Niels Hovius: "The launch marks a milestone in GFZ history."

The Scientific Director (interim) of the GFZ, Prof. Niels Hovius, emphasises the scientific importance of the mission and the diverse applications: These ranged "from the exploration of deposits and soil mapping to the monitoring of water quality, the early detection of plant stress and the recording of environmental pollution. EnMAP will provide important data to accurately determine the consequences of climate change and other environmental changes on Earth." Hovius added: "The launch marks a milestone in GFZ history. Colleagues at the GFZ have been working on the mission's research programme together with the international EnMAP Science Advisory Group for many years." The Potsdam team is also coordinating the large EnMAP-PI project for the scientific preparation and support of the mission. This includes, among other things, the development of open source software tools for hyperspectral data analysis, the independent validation of EnMAP data, and a wide range of training and networking activities for the user community. EnMAP-PI is jointly supported by the partner institutions Humboldt University Berlin, University of Greifswald, AWI Bremerhaven and LMU Munich.

Manja Schüle: "Forward-looking and indispensable impulses for international geo, environmental and climate research"

Brandenburg's Minister of Research, Dr Manja Schüle, was pleased with the successful launch and commented: "A completely new view of our Earth: thanks to the EnMAP satellite mission, we will receive even more reliable information about man-made changes and damage to our ecosystems in the future. These are the best prerequisites for developing innovative measures to adapt to climate change. The launch vehicle was launched in Cape Canaveral - the scientific management of the research project is in Potsdam. Once again, the GeoForschungsZentrum is providing such forward-looking and indispensable impulses for international geo, environmental and climate research."
 

About the EnMAP satellite

The heart of the EnMAP satellite is a hyperspectral instrument. It records the sunlight reflected by the Earth in more than 240 narrow spectral bands. They cover the wavelength range between 420 and 2450 nanometres, i.e. the entire spectrum of visible light (420 to 780 nanometres) and large parts of the adjacent near-infrared radiation. With these spectrally high-resolution data, the Earth can be observed in a previously unattained level of detail. Minerals or pollutants can be detected and identified, plants can be determined and their nutrient supply monitored, or the degree of pollution of bodies of water can be detected. EnMAP has a ground resolution of 30 metres and can record every point on the earth with a repetition rate of 27 days in a vertical view, which can be shortened to four days by panning.

Important facts and figures:

Start: 01. April 2022 on board a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Cape Canaveral (USA)
Orbit altitude: 653 km
Seize of the satellite: 3 x 2,1 x 1,5 meter
Weight of the satellite: ca. 850 kg
Operational life-time: 5 years
Mission operation and command: German Space Operations Center GSOC Oberpfaffenhofen and Weilheim (DLR)
Data reception and processing: DLR Ground Station Neustrelitz, DLR Institut für Methoden der Fernerkundung (IMF)


Successful start: What happens next?

After the successful launch of the satellite - a good hour after the start of the rocket - the first signals were received from the ground station in Spitsbergen. In the firsttwo weeks, the satellite will be navigated into its final orbit - during the so-called LEOP (Launch Early Orbit Phase) - and prepared from launch mode for measurement operations. First, subsystems of the satellite that are essential for its general functioning are put into operation, then the measuring instruments. A first - still uncalibrated - test image will show whether the sensor basically works.

This will be followed by a commissioning phase of about six months:
The aim is to bring all devices and functional units on the satellite and in the ground stations into their nominal, i.e. productive, mode. An important point here is the calibration of the sensor, which is planned for the period from the end of April to mid-May. From then on, it will be possible to correct the EnMAP data. Field teams from the GFZ and our partners will take reference measurements in selected test areas from mid/late May, as soon as the EnMAP satellite flies over and records them. These data will be used to validate the quality of the sensor and the processors in the ground segment (DLR). The GFZ is responsible for the regular independent validation of the EnMAP data products during mission operation.

(Text + picture gallery revised: 06.04.2022)

Training for users:

Anyone wishing to use the satellite's data can obtain appropriate training in the extensive training programme developed by the GFZ and its partner institutions:

HyperEDU - A new online learning platform for hyperspectral remote sensing.
https://www.enmap.org/events_education/hyperedu/

Eo-College
https://eo-college.org/courses/beyond-the-visible/


Scientific Contact:

Prof. Sabine Chabrillat
Scientific Director of EnMAP
Group Leader in Section 1.4 Remote Sensing and Geoinformatics
Helmholtz Centre Potsdam
GFZ German Research Centre for Geosciences
Telegrafenberg
14473 Potsdam
Tel.: +49 331 288-1108
E-Mail: sabine.chabrillat@gfz-potsdam.de

Dr. Saskia Förster
Scientist in Section 1.4 Remote Sensing and Geoinformatics
Helmholtz Centre Potsdam
GFZ German Research Centre for Geosciences
Telegrafenberg
14473 Potsdam
Tel.: +49 331 288-28615
E-Mail: saskia.foerster@gfz-potsdam.de

Dr. Karl Segl
Group Leader in Section 1.4 Remote Sensing and Geoinformatics
Helmholtz Centre Potsdam
GFZ German Research Centre for Geosciences
Telegrafenberg
14473 Potsdam
Tel.: +49 331 288-1193
E-Mail: karl.segl@gfz-potsdam.de


Media contact:

Josef Zens
Head of Public and Media Relations
Helmholtz Centre Potsdam
GFZ German Research Centre for Geosciences Helmholtz Centre Potsdam
GFZ German Research Centre for Geosciences
Telegrafenberg
14473 Potsdam
Phone: +49 331 288-1040
Email: josef.zens@gfz-potsdam.de

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