Following the excitement of launching Sentinel-5P on Friday 13 October, the weekend was much quieter here in Plesetsk.

Time has been mainly spent retrieving equipment from the MIK cleanroom and from the ‘under table room’, packing up and preparing to go home.

For the team at ESA’s European Spacecraft Operations Centre it has been a different story as they were busy with Sentinel-5P’s launch and early orbit phase, which they achieved in record time!

Snapshot of satellite status. (ESA)

So the satellite is now ready to begin the commissioning phase.

The displays offer a snapshot of the temperatures of the Tropomi radiant cooler door inside and outside. The door will remain closed until 7 November. The warm values are temperatures inside the instrument (which need to stay at about 37°C until we open the door. The -61°C and -64°C indicate the temperatures outside the cooler door.

Tropomi radiant cooler door inside and outside temperatures. (ESA)

Back here in Russia, as well as packing up we were also able to pass on the items we bought for the children’s home we visited the other week (see earlier blog post)  and from the generous donations we will be able to pay for some urgently needed roof repairs.

Team with stuff for the children’s home. (ESA)

From the ESA Sentinel-5P launch campaign team in Plesetsk

Read more about Sentinel-5P