Vega-C Sentinel-3C & FLEX — launch date, time, visibility & where to look
Sentinel-3C is the third satellite in the Sentinel-3 constellation, which provides high-accuracy optical, radar and altimetry data for marine and land services. The Fluorescence Explorer (FLEX) satellite is a part of ESA's Earth Explorer program. The satellite will map vegetation fluorescence to quantify photosynthetic activity.
Countdown to liftoff
Targeting Sep 14, 2026, 9:21 PM Eastern · Sep 15, 2026, 1:21 AM UTC
Launch time
- Sep 15, 2026, 1:21 AM UTC
- Sep 14, 2026, 9:21 PM Eastern
- Sep 14, 2026, 6:21 PM Pacific
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Sky outlook at the pad
Daily cloud cover and rain chance at Guiana Space Centre, French Guiana (liftoff is still beyond the 7-day forecast window):
- Today
- Mon
- Tue
- Wed
- Thu
- Fri
- Sat
Forecast at the launch site; check your own sky too: cloud over you can hide a launch the pad forecast says is clear.
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Visibility map: how far away can you see it?
Each ring shows how far away Vega-C is line-of-sight visible that many seconds into flight: about 89 miles by T+30s, 192 miles by T+60s, and roughly 305 miles by T+90s. City dots are colored by the expected view quality; the table below has the direction to look from each.
Which cities can see this launch?
Estimated visibility from major towns near US launch sites, assuming clear skies and an open horizon. The 10 most likely first:
| City | Visibility | Look toward | Distance to pad |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miami, FL | Not visible | — | 2301 mi |
| Fort Lauderdale, FL | Not visible | — | 2312 mi |
| West Palm Beach, FL | Not visible | — | 2330 mi |
| Port St. Lucie, FL | Not visible | — | 2368 mi |
| Fort Pierce, FL | Not visible | — | 2374 mi |
| Vero Beach, FL | Not visible | — | 2385 mi |
| Sebastian, FL | Not visible | — | 2396 mi |
| Palm Bay, FL | Not visible | — | 2410 mi |
| Indialantic, FL | Not visible | — | 2411 mi |
| Melbourne, FL | Not visible | — | 2413 mi |
Show all 94 cities
| City | Visibility | Look toward | Distance to pad |
|---|---|---|---|
| Satellite Beach, FL | Not visible | — | 2416 mi |
| Cocoa Beach, FL | Not visible | — | 2423 mi |
| Port Canaveral, FL | Not visible | — | 2427 mi |
| Merritt Island, FL | Not visible | — | 2428 mi |
| Rockledge, FL | Not visible | — | 2430 mi |
| Titusville, FL | Not visible | — | 2444 mi |
| Mims, FL | Not visible | — | 2448 mi |
| Kissimmee, FL | Not visible | — | 2461 mi |
| New Smyrna Beach, FL | Not visible | — | 2467 mi |
| Orlando, FL | Not visible | — | 2470 mi |
| Sanford, FL | Not visible | — | 2475 mi |
| Lakeland, FL | Not visible | — | 2479 mi |
| Daytona Beach, FL | Not visible | — | 2479 mi |
| Tampa, FL | Not visible | — | 2501 mi |
| Palm Coast, FL | Not visible | — | 2504 mi |
| St. Augustine, FL | Not visible | — | 2522 mi |
| Jacksonville, FL | Not visible | — | 2556 mi |
| Gainesville, FL | Not visible | — | 2560 mi |
| Brunswick, GA | Not visible | — | 2583 mi |
| Myrtle Beach, SC | Not visible | — | 2583 mi |
| Charleston, SC | Not visible | — | 2584 mi |
| Hilton Head Island, SC | Not visible | — | 2595 mi |
| Savannah, GA | Not visible | — | 2604 mi |
| Virginia Beach, VA | Not visible | — | 2631 mi |
| Norfolk, VA | Not visible | — | 2642 mi |
| Valdosta, GA | Not visible | — | 2654 mi |
| Cape Charles, VA | Not visible | — | 2655 mi |
| Newport News, VA | Not visible | — | 2661 mi |
| Exmore, VA | Not visible | — | 2662 mi |
| Wallops Island, VA | Not visible | — | 2665 mi |
| Chincoteague, VA | Not visible | — | 2669 mi |
| Onancock, VA | Not visible | — | 2669 mi |
| Ocean City, MD | Not visible | — | 2681 mi |
| Pocomoke City, MD | Not visible | — | 2683 mi |
| Berlin, MD | Not visible | — | 2685 mi |
| Tallahassee, FL | Not visible | — | 2688 mi |
| Salisbury, MD | Not visible | — | 2700 mi |
| Rehoboth Beach, DE | Not visible | — | 2702 mi |
| Cape May, NJ | Not visible | — | 2709 mi |
| Ocean City, NJ | Not visible | — | 2717 mi |
| Richmond, VA | Not visible | — | 2720 mi |
| Dover, DE | Not visible | — | 2741 mi |
| Annapolis, MD | Not visible | — | 2763 mi |
| Philadelphia, PA | Not visible | — | 2774 mi |
| Washington, DC | Not visible | — | 2778 mi |
| Baltimore, MD | Not visible | — | 2784 mi |
| Pensacola Beach, FL | Not visible | — | 2828 mi |
| Gulf Shores, AL | Not visible | — | 2853 mi |
| Grand Isle, LA | Not visible | — | 2941 mi |
| South Padre Island, TX | Not visible | — | 3263 mi |
| Port Isabel, TX | Not visible | — | 3265 mi |
| Laguna Vista, TX | Not visible | — | 3270 mi |
| Bayview, TX | Not visible | — | 3278 mi |
| Brownsville, TX | Not visible | — | 3278 mi |
| Los Fresnos, TX | Not visible | — | 3280 mi |
| Port Aransas, TX | Not visible | — | 3296 mi |
| Harlingen, TX | Not visible | — | 3296 mi |
| Rockport, TX | Not visible | — | 3300 mi |
| Corpus Christi, TX | Not visible | — | 3315 mi |
| McAllen, TX | Not visible | — | 3328 mi |
| Laredo, TX | Not visible | — | 3430 mi |
| San Diego, CA | Not visible | — | 4539 mi |
| Long Beach, CA | Not visible | — | 4610 mi |
| Pasadena, CA | Not visible | — | 4612 mi |
| Los Angeles, CA | Not visible | — | 4616 mi |
| Mojave, CA | Not visible | — | 4625 mi |
| Malibu, CA | Not visible | — | 4642 mi |
| Thousand Oaks, CA | Not visible | — | 4652 mi |
| Oxnard, CA | Not visible | — | 4671 mi |
| Bakersfield, CA | Not visible | — | 4676 mi |
| Ventura, CA | Not visible | — | 4678 mi |
| Santa Barbara, CA | Not visible | — | 4703 mi |
| Solvang, CA | Not visible | — | 4730 mi |
| Buellton, CA | Not visible | — | 4733 mi |
| Fresno, CA | Not visible | — | 4733 mi |
| Los Alamos, CA | Not visible | — | 4738 mi |
| Lompoc, CA | Not visible | — | 4748 mi |
| Orcutt, CA | Not visible | — | 4749 mi |
| Vandenberg Village, CA | Not visible | — | 4749 mi |
| Santa Maria, CA | Not visible | — | 4750 mi |
| Guadalupe, CA | Not visible | — | 4758 mi |
| Pismo Beach, CA | Not visible | — | 4763 mi |
| San Luis Obispo, CA | Not visible | — | 4766 mi |
| San Jose, CA | Not visible | — | 4855 mi |
Where to look
A rocket lifts off below the horizon for distant viewers, then climbs into view as it gains altitude and flies downrange. Closer to the pad you'll see it within seconds; a few hundred miles away it can take three to six minutes to rise over the horizon. Find an open view in the direction shown for your city and start watching at liftoff.
Before you go
- Launch times change: scrubs and delays are common. Re-check the day of.
- Clear skies matter. Low cloud near the pad or along the trajectory can hide the rocket.
- Twilight launches are the most dramatic; daytime launches are the hardest to see at distance.
- Trajectory and timing here are estimates from a representative ascent profile.
Vega-C Sentinel-3C & FLEX launch FAQ
When is the Vega-C Sentinel-3C & FLEX launch date and time?
Vega-C Sentinel-3C & FLEX is currently targeting Sep 15, 2026, 1:21 AM UTC / Sep 14, 2026, 9:21 PM Eastern / Sep 14, 2026, 6:21 PM Pacific. Status: Go for Launch. Launch dates slip often; the countdown on this page tracks the latest target, or set a free alert to get the final time.
Where does Vega-C Sentinel-3C & FLEX launch from?
From Guiana Space Centre, French Guiana, operated by Avio S.p.A. If you are within a few hundred miles, the city-by-city table on this page shows the expected view from your area and which direction to look.
How far away can you see the Vega-C Sentinel-3C & FLEX launch?
Roughly 305 miles with clear skies: within about 89 miles of the pad the rocket clears the horizon in the first half-minute, and by T+90 seconds it is high enough to be line-of-sight visible around 305 miles away. Night launches can be visible even farther as the exhaust plume catches sunlight. The visibility map on this page shows the range rings and which cities fall inside them.
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Explore more
Launch data from TheSpaceDevs Launch Library 2. Page generated August 30, 2026.