Image from Last Data Sent to Earth by Envisat
40.4N 3.7W
Spain and Portugal - April 8th, 2012
Radar image of the Envisat satellite
On the 8th of April, the European Space Agency unexpectedly lost control with its Envisat satellite, which has been transmitting data for the last 10 years and has completed over 50,000 orbits of our planet. This image of the Iberian Peninsula was generated from the last data trasmitted by the satellite. ESA’s mission control is working to re-establish contact with the satellite.
While it is known that Envisat remains in a stable orbit around Earth, efforts to resume contact with the satellite have, so far, not been successful.
From the ground, the German government’s Tracking and Imaging Radar, a 34-meter-diameter dish located near Bonn, took a radar image of Envisat that appears to confirm that the satellite has not broken apart following an in-orbit collision.
