A rocket launched from French Guiana early Tuesday to put into orbit the latest satellite of a European network for Earth observation, according to dpa. The Sentinel-2A satellite was to be put into orbit 786 kilometres above the Earth after around 55 minutes' flight aboard the Vega rocket, launched by European private company Ariannespace. The Sentinel satellite is the second of a planned six satellites of the European Space Agency's (ESA) Copernicus Programme, which also includes other sea and land monitoring stations. The programme "will provide accurate, timely and easily accessible information to improve the management of the environment, understand and mitigate the effects of climate change and ensure civil security," according to the ESA. The data could also be used to coordinate the response to natural disasters, it said.
