Raytheon Tests Advanced Space-Based Weather Sensor

EARTH OBSERVATION

The National Polar-orbiting Operational Environmental Satellite System (NPOESS) will converge existing polar-orbiting satellite systems under a single national program. Polar-orbiting satellites observe Earth from space. They collect and disseminate data on Earth's weather, atmosphere, oceans, land, and near-space environment.

by Staff Writers
El Segundo CA (SPX) May 10, 2006
Raytheon announced Tuesday it is performing space-qualified vacuum testing on a prototype of the Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite, a key instrument in NOAA's National Polar-orbiting Operational Environmental Satellite System.

VIIRS is one of the most advanced weather-imaging sensors ever produced. Raytheon said in a statement that the VIIRS prototype - called an engineering development unit - is in the third and final stage of testing expected to be completed by mid-summer.

Raytheon's Space and Airborne Systems division is testing VIIRS under a subcontract to NPOESS prime contractor Northrop Grumman. SAS will deliver three flight units, with options for four more.

VIIRS will collect visible/infrared imagery and radiometric data on the atmosphere, clouds, Earth radiation budget, clear-air land/water surfaces, sea surface temperature, ocean color and low-light visible imagery. The sensor will offer improved spatial, spectral and radiometric performance compared with current remote-sensing systems.

NPOESS is the next-generation, low-Earth-orbit environmental satellite system for the United States. It comprises satellites, sensors, a ground-control system and a data-processing and data-dissemination network.

NPOESS will provide civilian, military and scientific communities with regional and global meteorological data, as well as oceanographic, environmental, climatic and environmental remote-sensing information. It also will conduct surface data collection and assist in search and rescue efforts.

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EARTH OBSERVATION

Tibet Provides Passage For Chemicals To Reach The Stratosphere

Pasadena CA (SPX) May 10, 2006
ASA and university researchers have found that thunderstorms over Tibet provide a main pathway for water vapor and chemicals to travel from Earth's lower atmosphere - where human activity directly affects atmospheric composition - to the stratosphere, where the protective ozone layer resides.

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