Following three days of intensive work, mission control today declared the newly launched Sentinel-2B satellite fit and ready for commissioning.

The 1100 kg Sentinel was launched on Tuesday atop a Vega rocket from Europe's Spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana. Joining its orbiting twin, the new satellite will double the high-resolution coverage from the Sentinel-2 mission for the EU's Copernicus environmental monitoring system.

Information from the mission is helping to improve agricultural practices, monitor the world's forests, detect pollution in lakes and coastal waters, and contribute to timely disaster mapping.