ESA
Ice mission CRISTAL opens its wings ↗
26 Oct 2026, 10:00 UTC · Original language
LAUNCH / Vega-C
CRISTAL-A
Planned for Q4 2027 · Provisional
Planned with Vega-C from Guiana Space Centre, French Guiana. Dates may change.
Source: Launch Library 2 / The Space Devs · Last successful recall: 29 Oct 2026, 17:16 UTC. Older data status – not successfully updated for more than two hours.
Date and mission
- Date according to source
- Planned for Q4 2027
- Status according to source
- Provisional
- Rocket
- Vega-C →
- Launch provider
- Avio S.p.A
- Launch Site
- Guiana Space Centre, French Guiana →
- Launch Platform
- Ariane Launch Area 1 (ELV)
- European reference
- European rocket & European participation
- Payload participation
- European Space Agency
- Source last changed
- 26 Oct 2026, 14:57 UTC
We only show dates as accurately as the source provides them. A European launch provider or launch site alone does not constitute a fully European mission or supply chain.
Current source reports
Spaceflight News API ↗ · Retrieved: 29 Oct 2026, 20:13 UTC
Original source description (English)
First of two Copernicus Polar Ice and Snow Topography Altimeter (CRISTAL) satellites, carrying a dual-frequency radar altimeter along with a microwave radiometer to measure and monitor changes in sea-ice thickness, overlying snow depth and ice-sheet elevation.
Track launch
For a calendar entry, the date is still too vague or the launch is no longer pending.
No livestream has been stored in the source yet.
Automatically translated from German; some interface labels are reviewed. View original →. Some new text is still available in German.