Fucino Valley in central Italy

Today’s Video of the Day from the European Space Agency features Fucino Valley in central Italy, which is home to the Fucino Space Centre. 

“In the centre-left of the image lies a lush valley known as the Fucino Valley. The densely packed rectangles are agricultural fields, with the main vegetables grown here being potatoes, carrots, tomatoes and lettuce,” says ESA.

“The fields divide a region that used to hold the country’s third-largest body of water, Lake Fucino, which now provides over 13 000 hectares of fully workable and highly fertile land.”

From the Fucino Space Centre, the Telespazio will manage the early orbit activities of the Meteosat Third Generation Imager (MTG-I) satellite. 

The Meteosat Third Generation satellite system will revolutionise weather forecasting, including storm predictions, and will allow for more precise monitoring of Earth’s atmosphere, land and oceans.

The MTG-I satellite is set to launch on December 13 from Europe’s Spaceport in French Guiana.

“MTG-I is the first of a new generation of satellites providing crucial insights for the early detection and prediction of fast-developing severe storms, weather forecasting and climate monitoring,” says ESA.

“The complete satellite system will bring about a significant improvement in the ability to observe meteorological phenomena, ensuring higher-level forecasting capabilities, particularly for ‘nowcasting’ – the short-term monitoring and forecasting of rapidly evolving meteorological phenomena.”

Video Credit: ESA 

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By Chrissy Sexton, Earth.com Staff Writer