The British-built Aeolus satellite has begun firing its laser down on Earth to map the planet's winds. It is a big moment for the European Space Agency mission, the technology for which took 16 ...

Aeolus launched on a Vega rocket from French Guiana at 18:20 local time (22:20 BST). The rocket was due to lift off on Tuesday, but the launch was postponed - ironically - due to high altitude winds.

Artwork: "Aeolus has absolutely proved the principle," says Dr Florence Rabier Europe's Aeolus satellite was launched last year to gather data to improve weather forecasts, and its observations ...