Mon Nov 17 05:10:00 UTC 2025: ## Summary:

The Sentinel-6B satellite, the second part of a billion-dollar international mission to monitor rising sea levels, is scheduled to launch from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California on Sunday night. The launch, aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, is planned for 9:21:42 p.m. PST, almost five years after its twin satellite, Sentinel-6 Michael Freilich, was launched. Weather conditions are somewhat uncertain, with a 60% chance of violation due to recent heavy rainfall on the West Coast. The Falcon 9 first stage will attempt a landing back at the launch site. Sentinel-6B, built by Airbus, will join its predecessor in measuring sea levels with high accuracy from orbit, providing critical data for various applications, including navigation, disaster prediction, and understanding ocean dynamics. The mission is a collaboration between NASA, ESA, Eumetsat, NOAA, the European Commission, and CNES.

News Article:

Second Sea Level Monitoring Satellite Set to Launch Amidst Uncertain Weather

VANDENBERG SPACE FORCE BASE, CA – The second satellite in a billion-dollar international effort to track rising sea levels is poised to launch from Vandenberg Space Force Base tonight, weather permitting. The Sentinel-6B satellite is scheduled to lift off atop a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket at 9:21:42 p.m. PST (12:21:42 a.m. EST) from Space Launch Complex-4E, nearly five years to the day after its twin, the Sentinel-6 Michael Freilich, embarked on its mission.

SpaceX will attempt to recover the Falcon 9’s first stage, serial number B1097, which is making its third flight. The booster will aim for a landing approximately 1,400 feet west of the launch pad. This launch marks the 500th flight of a previously flown Falcon 9 booster.

While meteorologists are optimistic, the launch faces a 60% chance of weather-related delays due to recent heavy rainfall affecting the West Coast. “California has been one of the wettest places in the United States this weekend,” noted Launch Weather Officer 1st Lt,. William F. Harbin. He added that conditions are expected to improve by Monday, reducing the delay probability to 40%.

The Sentinel-6B satellite, constructed by Airbus Defence and Space in Germany, will be deployed 57 minutes after launch. From its orbit 830 miles above Earth, the satellite will use advanced radar technology to measure sea levels with unprecedented accuracy, down to within an inch across 90% of the world’s oceans.

The data collected by Sentinel-6B will provide invaluable insights into ocean currents, sea level variations, and wave heights, benefitting industries such as navigation, commercial fishing, and shipping. “This information underpins navigation, search and rescue and industries like commercial fishing and shipping,” said Karen St. Germain, NASA’s director of Earth science. “These measurements form the basis for flood predictions for coastal infrastructure, real estate, energy storage, sites and other assets along our shoreline.”

The Sentinel-6 mission is a collaborative effort between NASA, the European Space Agency (ESA), the European Organisation for the Exploitation of Meteorological Satellites (Eumetsat), the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the European Commission, and the French space agency CNES. The costs of the project were evenly split between the United States and Europe.

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