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Artist’s rendition of satellites orbiting the Earth – rottenman/123RF Stock Photo

2025 will, once again, see a myriad of Earth Observation (EO) satellite launches and listed below is a snapshot of some of the anticipated launches, although these will be complimented by many others, particularly from the small satellite rideshare launches. Some of the exciting and interesting launches we can look forward to in each quarter of the year are:

Quarter One

• AIST-2T 01 & 02 are a pair of Russian optical EO satellites built by the Progress Rocket Space Centre to obtain stereo images of the Earth’s surface for the creation of 3-D models. They have a maximum spatial resolution of 1.2 m in panchromatic mode, with a swath width of 32 km. They are due to be launched on the 17^th March from the Vostochny Cosmodrome in Russia.
• NASA-ISRO SAR (NISAR) satellite is due to launch in March 2025. It is a joint mission between NASA and the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), which will carry both L-band and S-Band synthetic aperture radar (SAR) instruments. The NASA provided L-Band instrument has a spatial resolution between 3 and 48 metres, while the ISRO provided S-Band instrument’s spatial resolution is between 3 and 24 metres, with both instruments operating on a swath of 242 kilometre. The data acquired will be used to monitor forests, wetlands, ground water, sea level rise, glacier flow rates, ice mass monitoring and other applications.
• Biomass is part of the ESA Earth Explorer program, and is due to launched in March. It will be using a P-band SAR to collect data on the state of forests, how they are changing, and to improve understanding of the role forests play in the carbon cycle.

Quarter Two

• Sentinel-1D, a C-band SAR satellite, is scheduled for launched in June 2025. This satellite is expected to replace Sentinel-1A that was originally launched a decade ago on the 3^rd April 2014. Alongside Sentinel-1C, which last month went into orbit, these satellites provide dataset continuity for the Copernicus SAR data, hopefully, for the next ten years!
• WorldView Legion 5 & 6 are also due to be launched in June. These are the final two in a six strong constellation, with the first four launched in 2024. These carry a very high-resolution optical imager with 9 spectral wavebands offering a spatial resolution of 1.16 metres, together with one panchromatic band offering a spatial resolution of 29 centimetres. The swath width for all bands is 3 kilometres.
• GOSAT-GW (Greenhouse Gases Observing Satellite Greenhouse gases and Water cycle) is another scheduled for a June launch. This is a Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) next generation satellite to monitor greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide in the Earth’s atmosphere, alongside collecting data on the water-cycle. The data will be used to support an understanding of the impacts of climate change.

 Quarter Three

• KOMPSAT-7A (Korean Multi-purpose Satellite) is due to be launched in September. It is a follow-up to KOMPSAT-3A, developed by the Korea Aerospace Research Institute, and aims to provide high-resolution satellite images for South-Korea’s governmental and institutional requirements. It will offer a spatial resolution of 1.3 metres in multispectral mode, and 30 centimetres in panchromatic mode, and 4 metres in infra-red mode.
• Metop-SG A1 is also due to be launched in September. It’s full name is Meteorological operational satellite Second Generation A1, and it is the first launch for EUMETSAT’s second generation of Metop weather satellites. It will be carrying multiple instruments including Sentinel-5, an Ultra-violet, Visible and Near-infrared Sounder, and will be focused on air quality and composition-climate interaction with the main data products being O3, NO2, SO2, HCHO, CHOCHO and aerosol. In addition, the satellite will also have a Meteorological Imager, a Multi-viewing Multi-channel Multi-polarisation Imager, and an Infrared Atmospheric Sounder Interferometer – New Generation.

Quarter Four

• Sentinel-6B, also known as Jason Continuity of Service (Jason-CS) mission, is scheduled for a launch at the end of November 2025. This will eventually take over from the Sentinel-6 Michael Freilich satellite, which itself was a follow on to the Jason series of oceanographic satellites, and it will ensure continuity of sea level observation datasets including sea-surface height, wind speed, and wave height – which is critical to understanding how climate change is impacting the planet.

Conclusion

This is a mere teaser of the EO missions expected to be launched this year, alongside many others we did not have space to write about this week. It looks like 2025 is going to be another interesting and exciting year for the industry, and we will keep you updated throughout the year on these developments.