Europe’s pollution-monitoring satellite is ready to leave the Airbus site in Stevenage to begin its journey to Russia — to be launched aboard the Rokot rocket in September.

Sentinel-5 Precursor is part of the Copernicus global monitoring programme, which aims to acquire continuous and accurate Earth observation data and ‘provide services to improve the management of the environment, understand and mitigate the effects of climate change and ensure civil security’.

Three Airbus sites were involved in the development and manufacture of the Sentinel-5 Precursor and its components. Stevenage in the UK was the prime site, working alongside facilities in Toulouse (France) and Friedrichshafen (Germany).

Colin Paynter, managing director of Airbus Defence and Space in the UK, said: “For Sentinel-5 Precursor, we used the commercially successful AstroBus platform, enabling us to meet challenging delivery and cost efficiency targets.

“This mission will give Europe a new way to measure global pollution levels in much greater detail.”

Sentinel-5 Precursor features a Tropospheric Monitoring Instrument, developed by Airbus DS Netherlands for the European Space Agency and the Netherlands Space Office.

This will measure ozone, nitrogen dioxide, sulphur dioxide, methane and other atmospheric pollutants at a higher resolution than previous instruments.

Business Secretary Greg Clark said: “The UK-built Sentinel-5 Precursor satellite and the success of the Copernicus Programme demonstrate what we can achieve through collaboration with our European partners — and the UK’s vital role in the programme, thanks to our Earth observation expertise.”