Meteosat 30 years
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Since the launch of the first Meteosat on 23 November 1977, 30 years of imagery combined with 
increasing computer power have given meteorologists the tools to significantly improve weather 
forecasting, with direct benefits for us. The weather-pattern images provided by the Meteosat 
series of satellites from their geostationary position above the Greenwich Meridian, together 
with meteorological products, such as wind vectors, derived from satellite data, gradually 
became familiar to meteorologists, who started to exploit them in their daily work. The cash 
value of Meteosat’s contribution to weather forecasting amounts to about €40 million a year.
  
http://www.esa.int/SPECIALS/MSG/SEMSS363R8F_0.html