The satellite was successfully launched on October 2002, the 17^th.

CNES was prime contractor for the SPI spectrometer, one of the two main instruments, in partnership with numerous French and foreign research laboratories.

Since November 2002, the Integral Spectrometer and IBIS delivered their first images and first spectra. The scientific data confirm the excellent operation of SPI and IBIS instruments and of the satellite. The first results were promising with observations of numerous gamma bursts, discovery of numerous sources in the Galaxy center region, cartography of the electron/positron annihilation line in this same region...
After quite 8 years, INTEGRAL provides the astrophysical research with a major contribution concerning the gamma burst, the 511 keV annihilation gamma ray line, the nucleosynthesis, discovering new gamma ray sources, revealing a new gamma sky map.

INTEGRAL results in some figures:

Number of scientific publications on the 12th October 2010: 1397 (numbers by ESA)
Scientific impact: between 1000 and 2000 scientific publications (estimation from the numbers of reference of publications recorded by ESA)
Number of sources discovered by INTEGRAL on the 7th July 2010: more than 700 (CEA source, Jérôme Rodrigez) dont 20 objets de natures inconnues
Number of revolution: 977

On October 2 2009, ESA's Science Programme Committee approved the extension of INTEGRAL mission operations until December 31 2012, subjected to a mid-term review in 2010.
On November 19 2010, ESA's Science Program Committee approved an extension of INTEGRAL mission operations until December 31 2014, subjected to a mid-term review in 2012.