The European space agency's mission to assess the state of the world's ice cover is likely to launch in February.
The Cryosat spacecraft will go into orbit on a Dnepr rocket from Baikonur, Kazakhstan, the agency has announced.
The satellite is a rebuild of the mission that was destroyed in 2005 when its launcher failed just minutes into its flight.
More: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/8255605.stm