Falcon 9 • MTG-S1

A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launched the Meteosat Third Generation – Sounder 1 (MTG-S1) spacecraft to geostationary Earth orbit on behalf of the European Organization for the Exploration of Meteorological Satellites (EUMETSAT). About 8.5 minutes after liftoff, the first stage booster, tail number B1085, which flew for a ninth time, landed on the droneship, ‘Just Read the Instructions,’ positioned in the Atlantic Ocean. In addition to its Infrared Sounder instrument, the spacecraft also hosts the European Union’s Copernicus Sentinel-4 mission. The MTG-S1 is designed to observe the full lifecycle of convective storms from space and create more accurate forecasts. The spacecraft was originally manifested as the payload for the third flight of an Ariane 6 rocket, but was shifted to a Falcon 9 in June 2024.