The MTG-I1 weather satellite, built by prime contractor Thales Alenia Space was successfully launched by an Ariane 5 rocket from the Guiana Space Center, Europe’s Spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana.
MTG-I1 is the first imaging satellite in the Meteosat Third Generation (MTG) program, designed to improve weather forecasting in Europe and Africa. Designed as a follow-on to the Meteosat Second Generation (MSG) series, the MTG program is a collaborative venture between the European Space Agency (ESA) and EUMETSAT to ensure the continuity of high-resolution weather monitoring to 2040 and beyond. Built by Thales Alenia Space in cooperation with OHB, the MTG satellites will operate in geostationary orbit, 36,000 km above the Earth, and have a lifespan of 8.5 years.