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 The satellites, comprising ESA's Swarm project, were launched from
Russia's Plesetsk Cosmodrome on a Rockot vehicle at 7.02 a.m. EST
and were placed in near-polar orbit at an altitude of 490 kilometers
(304 miles) about 91 minutes later.
Data that Swarm is due to collect for the next four years will help
improve scientists' relatively blurry understanding of the magnetic
field that shields life on Earth from deadly solar radiation and
helps some animals migrate.
Scientists say the magnetosphere is weakening and could all but
disappear in as little as 500 years as a precursor to flipping
upside down.
It has happened before — the geological record suggests the magnetic
field has reversed every 250,000 years, meaning that, with the last
event 800,000 years ago, another would seem to be overdue.
While the effects are hard to predict, the consequences may be
enormous. Satellites, essential among others for communications,
could be more exposed to solar wind, and the oil industry uses
readings from the magnetic field to guide drills.
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"Swarm is an essential mission, not only for Europe but also for the
world," ESA Director General Jean-Jacques Dordain told Reuters
following the launch. "We cannot live on planet Earth without this
(magnetic) shield."
The Swarm mission was developed and built by European aerospace
group EADS's Astrium unit.
(Reporting by Maria Sheahan; editing by Ron Askew)
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