The “Aeolus" satellite, named after the guardian of wind in Greek mythology, has been launched by Europe from French Guyana.
The satellite will probe the lowermost 30 kilometers of the atmosphere in measuring winds around the Earth.
The satellite is equipped with a single instrument: a Doppler wind lidar -- an advanced laser system
It is part of the “Copernicus project”, a joint initiative of the European Union and the European Space Agency (ESA) - to track environmental damage and assist disaster relief operations
The launch is Ariane space’s 50th launch for the European Space Agency
Aeolus is the 5th of the ESA's planned Earth Explorer missions.