A new space-based lightning detector may be the key to forecasting severe storms. A collaboration between the European Space Agency and Italian aerospace company EUMETSAT, Meteostat Third Generation (MTG) is Europe's first lightning imager.

Hovering 36,000 kilometres over the equator above Central Africa, the technology consists of three satellites — two tasked with taking images every 30 minutes and the other being an infrared sounder. Meteorologists will then process and analyse the data sent from the satellites, which could help in predicting extreme weather patterns.

MTG is still in its preliminary stages, but its creators claim that when fully deployed, the satellites will be able to provide up to 50 times more data than existing technology.

As climate change increases the severity and intensity of storms, accurate weather prediction can help protect lives and infrastructure.