Shoot Dynamics
ESA's FLEX Mission: Revealing the Hidden Glow of Plants from Space
The European Space Agency's FLEX (FLuorescence EXplorer) mission marks a major milestone in Earth observation. For the first time, a satellite has been specifically designed to measure Sun-Induced Fluorescence (SIF)—an extremely faint light emitted by plants during photosynthesis. Although invisible to the human eye, this subtle glow provides valuable information about how actively plants are photosynthesizing and how they respond to drought, heat, and other environmental stress.
