@SimonettaCheli

Director of @esa #EarthObservation Programmes and Head of ESRIN (ESA establishment in Italy)

esa.int/Applications/Observing_the_Earth
Joined January 2022
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564Media
Contact confirmed! 🎉 First signals have been received from FLEX and @CopernicusEU Sentinel-3C following their launch aboard Vega-C. Congratulations to all the teams behind today’s success. More: esa.int/Applications/Observi… 📷 ESA–S. Corvaja
FLEX and Sentinel-3C lofted into orbit.

ALT FLEX and Sentinel-3C lofted into orbit.

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Liftoff 🚀 FLEX and @CopernicusEU Sentinel-3C are on their way to orbit. A very special moment here in Kourou! 📸 ESA-S. Corvaja
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Almost time for FLEX and @CopernicusEU Sentinel-3C! After years of work across @esa and our partners, both satellites are set to begin their journey to orbit together aboard Vega-C. Looking forward to an exciting night for Earth Observation.
European Space Agency
@esaSep 14
FLEX and Sentinel-3C are ready for liftoff on Vega-C from Europe's Spaceport. ▶️ Tune in tonight on 15 September from 02:50 CEST. 🚀 Liftoff is scheduled for 03:21 CEST. While the FLEX mission will monitor the health of Earth’s vegetation, Sentinel-3C, together with the two Sentinel-3 satellites already in orbit, will monitor oceans, land, ice and atmosphere for Copernicus, the Earth observation component of the European Union’s Space Programme. 🔗esa.int/Applications/Observi…
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Simonetta Cheli retweeted
European Space Agency
@esaAug 28
Media invitation 📢 Ahead of our #FLEX mission and #Copernicus Sentinel-3C launch, media are invited to join our online briefings on 4 September in English, French, German and Italian. Register by 2 September and discover how these satellites will advance our understanding of Earth's vegetation, oceans, land, ice and atmosphere. 🔗esa.int/Newsroom/Press_Relea…
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We have a mission!
European Space Agency
@esaAug 27
Success! ✅ MTG-I2 is on its way to geostationary orbit. After acquiring signal, the satellite has been confirmed healthy. As the third satellite in the Meteosat Third Generation constellation, MTG-I2 will provide weather forecasters with unprecedented views of Europe and Africa, helping to improve forecasts and deliver earlier warnings of severe weather. 🔗 esa.int/Newsroom/Press_Relea…
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Simonetta Cheli retweeted
European Space Agency
@esaAug 27
Success! ✅ MTG-I2 is on its way to geostationary orbit. After acquiring signal, the satellite has been confirmed healthy. As the third satellite in the Meteosat Third Generation constellation, MTG-I2 will provide weather forecasters with unprecedented views of Europe and Africa, helping to improve forecasts and deliver earlier warnings of severe weather. 🔗 esa.int/Newsroom/Press_Relea…
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Simonetta Cheli retweeted
European Space Agency
@esaAug 27
LIFTOFF! 🚀 Ariane 6 #VA270, launching MTG-I2, completing Europe's Meteosat constellation.
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Tomorrow, MTG-I2 is set to launch aboard Ariane 6 from Europe’s Spaceport. I am very pleased to see this important mission reach launch day. It will strengthen weather forecasting and severe storm monitoring across Europe and North Africa. Looking forward to liftoff!
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Honoured to have hosted at ESRIN this joint leadership address bringing together ESA, DG DEFIS and EUSPA, on the occasion of the 5th Joint Seminar between our institutions. Together, we continue to build a stronger, more integrated European space landscape.
Josef Aschbacher
@AschbacherJosefJun 3
At the ESA–DG DEFIS–EUSPA Joint Seminar, we reaffirmed a shared ambition: strengthen Europe’s position in space and make it a pillar of security, competitiveness, and resilience. Our partnership is already delivering through Galileo, Copernicus, and IRIS², but the next Multiannual Financial Framework will be decisive. Europe cannot afford fragmentation. We have the talent, capabilities, and partnerships. Now we must turn ambition into delivery. ESA stands ready to play its full part.
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Yesterday in Brussels, I had the pleasure of participating in the AU–EU Space Dialogue together with Commissioner @KubiliusA. This Dialogue remains an essential platform for Africa and Europe to exchange perspectives on their space priorities and to strengthen cooperation.
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Simonetta Cheli retweeted
European Space Agency
@esaMar 4
#MediaInvitation: journalists are invited to join an information session with ESA DG @AschbacherJosef and ESA Council Chair @krpoun on the outcomes of the 345th ESA Council meeting. The briefing takes place 19 March at 14:00 CET/13:00 GMT, with registration open until 16 March. Info and registration 👇 esa.int/Newsroom/Press_Relea…
ESA Director General Josef Aschbacher

ALT ESA Director General Josef Aschbacher

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Today marks an important milestone in the long‑standing cooperation between @esa and @isro. This morning, we signed a new Implementing Arrangement that strengthens our joint work on calibration and validation activities and scientific studies for Earth Observation missions.
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A pleasure to welcome Minister-President of the Flemish Government, Matthias Diependaele to @esa ESRIN today.
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He was presented with our key activities in EO and had the opportunity to tour the site, highlighting Europe’s shared ambitions in space and the growing importance of EO for decision‑making, innovation and societal resilience.
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See you in Amsterdam!
European Space Agency
@esaFeb 26
🚀 Meet us at the Amsterdam Space Symposium on 3-4 March. The event features our Director of Technology Dietmar Pilz and our Director of Earth Observation Simonetta Cheli. 🔗 amsterdamspacesymposium.com #amsterdamspacesymposium #spaceforclimate
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Simonetta Cheli retweeted
Josef Aschbacher
@AschbacherJosefFeb 12
I had a constructive first meeting in Washington, D.C. with my counterpart at NASA, @NASAAdmin. We had a very constructive discussion on space exploration and are fully aligned on our shared objectives: the Moon, LEO, and Mars. Looking forward to continuing the discussions.
NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman
@NASAAdminFeb 11
I was pleased to welcome Director General @AschbacherJosef and our @esa partners to NASA Headquarters today. As we move forward with our return to the Moon, the European Space Agency remains a key partner across much of NASA’s portfolio. Their contributions will be important as we build a sustained lunar presence and prepare for missions beyond.
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This morning at the 18th European Space Conference, I signed the formal agreement between @esa and @eumetsat for the procurement of the Sterna satellites🛰️🛰️🛰️🛰️🛰️ esa.int/Applications/Observi…
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Seeing the first Infrared Sounder images from @eumetsat MTG-S1 satellite really brings this mission and its potential to life!
ESA Earth Observation
@ESA_EOJan 27
The first official images from @eumetsat's MTG-S1 satellite are in👀 These images from 15 December 2025 show Earth’s atmosphere in terms of temperature and humidity — data that will support more accurate weather forecasting, especially for nowcasting rapidly evolving storms. How to read them: In the temperature image (left), warmer land surfaces appear red and colder appear blue. In the humidity image (right), blue indicates higher humidity, while red marks drier regions. esa.int/Applications/Observi… 📸 @Thales_Alenia_S, @OHB_SE, @esa and @eumetsat.
Global surface and cloud-top temperatures by MTG-Sounder. In this image, the dark red corresponds to high temperatures, mainly on the warmer land surfaces, while blue corresponds to lower temperatures, typically on the top of clouds.

ALT Global surface and cloud-top temperatures by MTG-Sounder. In this image, the dark red corresponds to high temperatures, mainly on the warmer land surfaces, while blue corresponds to lower temperatures, typically on the top of clouds.

Global air humidity by MTG-Sounder. Blue colours correspond to regions in the atmosphere with higher humidity, while red colours correspond to lower humidity in the atmosphere.

ALT Global air humidity by MTG-Sounder. Blue colours correspond to regions in the atmosphere with higher humidity, while red colours correspond to lower humidity in the atmosphere.

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Simonetta Cheli retweeted
Josef Aschbacher
@AschbacherJosefJan 19
This week I’m in Davos for #WEF26 with ESA's @AstroSamantha Cristoforetti, contributing to discussions on space security, Earth observation, and the future of space exploration. Follow ESA’s activities live from @wef👇 esa.int/About_Us/Corporate_n… 📷Copyright: World Economic Forum/Jason Alden
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Simonetta Cheli retweeted
Josef Aschbacher
@AschbacherJosefJan 8
2026 will be a defining year for ESA. From @Soph_astro’s εpsilon mission and the first Ariane 64 and next Galileo launches, to powering humanity’s return to the Moon, BepiColombo entering orbit around Mercury, major data releases from Gaia and Euclid, ESA’s HERA arriving at Didymos, and new climate missions like FLEX, this will be one of the most mission-dense and strategically important years in @ESA’s history. Together with our Member States and partners, we are strengthening Europe’s role in space for science, security, sustainability, and exploration. 🌍✨ Watch the replay of my 2026 DG press conference here: esa.int/ESA_Multimedia/Video…
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