The Living Planet Programme (LPP) is a programme within the

European Space Agency , owners = , headquarters = Paris, Île-de-France, France , coordinates = , spaceport = Guiana Space Centre , seal = File:ESA emblem seal.png , seal_size = 130px , image = Views in the Main Control Room (1205 ...

which is managed by the Earth Observation Programmes Directorate. LPP consists of two classes of

Earth observation Earth observation (EO) is the gathering of information about the physical, chemical, and biological systems of the planet Earth. It can be performed via remote-sensing technologies (Earth observation satellites) or through direct-contact sensors ...

missions (listed below) including research missions known as Earth Explorers, and the Earth Watch class of missions whose objective is to develop support operational applications such as numerical

weather forecasting Weather forecasting is the application of science and technology forecasting, to predict the conditions of the Earth's atmosphere, atmosphere for a given location and time. People have attempted to predict the weather informally for millennia a ...

or resource management.

List of Earth Explorers missions

Selected missions

Currently there are ten approved Earth Explorer missions, four (SMOS, CryoSat-2, SWARM, Aeolus) of which are in orbit and operating: *

GOCE ''Goce'' is an opera composed by Kiril Makedonski (1925–1984), written by Venko Markovski and dedicated to Gotse Delchev. The work was commissioned to be the very first opera performed by the Macedonian National Opera Company. It premiered on Ma ...

– Gravity Field and Steady-State Ocean Circulation Explorer; it was launched on 17 March 2009. It reentered the atmosphere on 11 November 2013. * SMOS – Soil Moisture and Ocean Salinity satellite will study ocean salinity and soil moisture; it was launched on 2 November 2009. *

CryoSat CryoSat is an ESA programme to monitor variations in the extent and thickness of polar ice through use of a satellite in low Earth orbit. The information provided about the behaviour of coastal glaciers that drain thinning ice sheets will be key t ...

– a program designed to map the Earth's ice cover. **

CryoSat-1 CryoSat-1, also known as just CryoSat, was a European Space Agency satellite which was lost in a launch failure in 2005. The satellite was launched as part of the European Space Agency's CryoSat mission, which aims to monitor ice in the high lati ...

was lost in 2005 when the Russian SS-19

Rockot Rokot (russian: Рокот meaning ''Rumble'' or ''Boom''), also transliterated Rockot, was a Russian space launch vehicle that was capable of launching a payload of into a Earth orbit with 63° inclination. It was based on the UR-100N (SS-1 ...

launch vehicle malfunctioned and was terminated. **

CryoSat-2 CryoSat-2 is a European Space Agency (ESA) Earth Explorer Mission that launched on April 8th 2010. CryoSat-2 is dedicated to measuring polar sea ice thickness and monitoring changes in ice sheets. Its primary objective is to measure the thinnin ...

was launched on 8 April 2010. *

Swarm Swarm behaviour, or swarming, is a collective behaviour exhibited by entities, particularly animals, of similar size which aggregate together, perhaps milling about the same spot or perhaps moving ''en masse'' or migrating in some direction. ...

– a trio of satellites to map the Earth's magnetic field. The ''SWARM'' constellation was launched successfully on 22 November 2013. *

Aeolus In Greek mythology, Aeolus or Aiolos (; grc, Αἴολος , ) is a name shared by three mythical characters. These three personages are often difficult to tell apart, and even the ancient mythographers appear to have been perplexed about which A ...

– the Atmospheric Dynamics Mission Aeolus uses an innovative laser to measure global winds. Aeolus was successfully launched on 22 August 2018. Approved, but yet to launch : * EarthCARE – Earth Clouds Aerosols and Radiation Explorer will examine the formation and effects of clouds. Due to launch in 2024. *

BIOMASS Biomass is plant-based material used as a fuel for heat or electricity production. It can be in the form of wood, wood residues, energy crops, agricultural residues, and waste from industry, farms, and households. Some people use the terms bi ...

– designed to calculate the amount of

carbon Carbon () is a chemical element with the symbol C and atomic number 6. It is nonmetallic and tetravalent In chemistry, the valence (US spelling) or valency (British spelling) of an element is the measure of its combining capacity with o ...

stored in the world's forests, and to monitor for any changes over the course of its five-year mission. Due to launch in 2024. *

FLEX Flex or FLEX may refer to: Computing * Flex (language), developed by Alan Kay * FLEX (operating system), a single-tasking operating system for the Motorola 6800 * FlexOS, an operating system developed by Digital Research * FLEX (protocol), a comm ...

– the FLuorescence EXplorer mission will globally monitor steady-state chlorophyll fluorescence in terrestrial vegetation. It is currently scheduled to launch in 2025. *

FORUM Forum or The Forum (plural forums or fora) may refer to: Common uses * Forum (legal), designated space for public expression in the United States *Forum (Roman), open public space within a Roman city **Roman Forum, most famous example *Internet ...

– Far-infrared Outgoing Radiation Understanding and Monitoring; a mission to measure Earth's outgoing radiation emissions across the entire

far-infrared Far infrared (FIR) is a region in the infrared spectrum of electromagnetic radiation. Far infrared is often defined as any radiation with a wavelength of 15 micrometers (μm) to 1 mm (corresponding to a range of about 20 THz to ...

electromagnetic spectrum, in order to gain insight into water vapour and cirrus cloud regulation of the planet's surface temperature. It is currently projected to launch in 2027. *

Harmony In music, harmony is the process by which individual sounds are joined together or composed into whole units or compositions. Often, the term harmony refers to simultaneously occurring frequencies, pitches ( tones, notes), or chords. However ...

(formerly known as Stereoid) – a pair of

synthetic aperture radar Synthetic-aperture radar (SAR) is a form of radar that is used to create two-dimensional images or three-dimensional reconstructions of objects, such as landscapes. SAR uses the motion of the radar antenna over a target region to provide fine ...

satellites that aims to further the study of

ocean circulation An ocean current is a continuous, directed movement of sea water generated by a number of forces acting upon the water, including wind, the Coriolis effect, breaking waves, cabbeling, and temperature and salinity differences. Depth contours, s ...

patterns, glacial dynamics, and changes in land-surface topography. It is currently projected to launch in 2029.

Earth Explorer 11 Candidates

The competition for the Earth Explorer 11 mission began on 10 June 2021. A call for proposal ideas was released on 25 May 2020, with the deadline for submission on 4 December 2020. Four candidates have been chosen to compete for the opportunity: * Cairt (Changing-Atmosphere Infra-Red Tomography Explorer) – a mission to observe

atmospheric chemistry Atmospheric chemistry is a branch of atmospheric science in which the chemistry of the Earth's atmosphere and that of other planets is studied. It is a multidisciplinary approach of research and draws on environmental chemistry, physics, meteoro ...

and dynamics in the altitude range of 5 to 120 km, in order to better understand the relationship between climate change and

atmospheric circulation Atmospheric circulation is the large-scale movement of air and together with ocean circulation is the means by which thermal energy is redistributed on the surface of the Earth. The Earth's atmospheric circulation varies from year to year, but t ...

. * Nitrosat – a mission to precisely measure

nitrogen dioxide Nitrogen dioxide is a chemical compound with the formula . It is one of several nitrogen oxides. is an intermediate in the industrial synthesis of nitric acid, millions of tons of which are produced each year for use primarily in the producti ...

and

ammonia Ammonia is an inorganic compound of nitrogen and hydrogen with the formula . A stable binary hydride, and the simplest pnictogen hydride, ammonia is a colourless gas with a distinct pungent smell. Biologically, it is a common nitrogenous was ...

levels in the atmosphere, which is essential to understanding the role of nitrogen compounds in

aerosol An aerosol is a suspension (chemistry), suspension of fine solid particles or liquid Drop (liquid), droplets in air or another gas. Aerosols can be natural or Human impact on the environment, anthropogenic. Examples of natural aerosols are fog o ...

pollution. * Wivern (Wind Velocity Radar Nephoscope) – a mission to measure cloud wind velocity, rain, snow, and ice water via a

Doppler radar A Doppler radar is a specialized radar that uses the Doppler effect to produce velocity data about objects at a distance. It does this by bouncing a microwave signal off a desired target and analyzing how the object's motion has altered the f ...

nephoscope A nephoscope is a 19th-century instrument for measuring the altitude, direction, and velocity of clouds, using transit-time measurement. This is different from a nephometer, which is an instrument used in measuring the amount of cloudiness. Des ...

, in order to improve weather forecast models. *

Seastar Starfish or sea stars are star-shaped echinoderms belonging to the class Asteroidea (). Common usage frequently finds these names being also applied to ophiuroids, which are correctly referred to as brittle stars or basket stars. Starfish ...

– a mission to study sub-mesoscale meteorological dynamics by providing 1 km resolution ocean surface current and wind vectors for coast, shelf, and polar ice zones. Down-selections will be made in 2023 and 2025. The winning candidate is projected to launch in 2031 or 2032.

Non-selected missions

Past candidate missions that were not selected include: * CoReH2O – a mission to study key characteristics in terrestrial snow, ice, and water cycles and their relations to climate change and variability. Competed with BIOMASS and PREMIER for the Earth Explorer 7 mission opportunity. *

PREMIER Premier is a title for the head of government in central governments, state governments and local governments of some countries. A second in command to a premier is designated as a deputy premier. A premier will normally be a head of governm ...

– a mission to study atmospheric processes related to trace gas, radiation, and chemical compositions in the mid to upper troposphere and lower stratosphere in order to understand their role on climate change. Competed with BIOMASS and CoReH2O for the Earth Explorer 7 mission opportunity. * CarbonSat – a mission to determine the global distributions of carbon dioxide and methane and their impact on climate change. Competed with FLEX for the Earth Explorer 8 mission opportunity. * SKIM – a mission to measure ocean-surface currents using the Doppler technique, in order to improve understanding of the ocean current dynamics behind the

hydrological Hydrology () is the scientific study of the movement, distribution, and management of water on Earth and other planets, including the water cycle, water resources, and environmental watershed sustainability. A practitioner of hydrology is calle ...

and

geochemical cycle In Earth science, a geochemical cycle is the pathway that chemical elements take in the surface and crust of the Earth. The term " geochemical" tells us that geological and chemical factors are all included. The migration of heated and compressed ...

s. Competed with FORUM for the Earth Explorer 9 mission opportunity. *

Daedalus In Greek mythology, Daedalus (, ; Greek: Δαίδαλος; Latin: ''Daedalus''; Etruscan: ''Taitale'') was a skillful architect and craftsman, seen as a symbol of wisdom, knowledge and power. He is the father of Icarus, the uncle of Perdix, an ...

– a mission to study the electrodynamic processes of the Earth's

thermosphere The thermosphere is the layer in the Earth's atmosphere directly above the mesosphere and below the exosphere. Within this layer of the atmosphere, ultraviolet radiation causes photoionization/photodissociation of molecules, creating ions; the ...

and

ionosphere The ionosphere () is the ionized part of the upper atmosphere of Earth, from about to above sea level, a region that includes the thermosphere and parts of the mesosphere and exosphere. The ionosphere is ionized by solar radiation. It plays an ...

. Competed with Harmony for the Earth Explorer 10 mission opportunity. * Hydroterra (formerly known as G-Class) – a

geosynchronous A geosynchronous orbit (sometimes abbreviated GSO) is an Earth-centered orbit with an orbital period that matches Earth's rotation on its axis, 23 hours, 56 minutes, and 4 seconds (one sidereal day). The synchronization of rotation and orbital ...

synthetic aperture radar satellite that aims to observe diurnal water cycle processes, in order to improve weather prediction capabilities. Competed with Harmony for the Earth Explorer 10 mission opportunity.

References

{{Use British English, date=January 2014 European Space Agency programmes