GPM Core Observatory

GPM: Engineering Next Generation Observations of Rain and Snow
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JacobAdmin Thu, 01/02/2014

For the past three years, the Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM) Core Observatory has gone from components and assembly drawings to a fully functioning satellite at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md. The satellite has now arrived in Japan, where it will lift off in early 2014.

Faces of GPM: Engineers

Submitted by JacobAdmin on Fri, 12/27/2013
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An interview with Beth Weinstein, a GPM integration and test (I & T) engineer, Lisa Bartusek, GPM Deputy Mission Systems Engineer, and Carlton Peters, associate branch head at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center and the GPM thermal branch development lead.

NASA and JAXA Announce Launch Date for GPM
Environmental research and weather forecasting are about to get a significant technology boost as NASA and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) prepare to launch a new satellite in February. NASA and JAXA selected 1:07 p.m. to 3:07 p.m. EST Thursday, Feb. 27 (3:07 a.m. to 5:07 a.m. JST Friday, Feb. 28) as the launch date and launch window for a Japanese H-IIA rocket carrying the Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM) Core Observatory satellite from JAXA's Tanegashima Space Center. GPM is an international satellite mission that will provide advanced observations of rain and snowfall...

GPM Core Observatory Completes Comprehensive Performance Testing

The GPM spacecraft oriented for inspections after its arrival in the clean room at Tanegashima Space Center. Image Credit: NASA / Michael Starobin On Dec. 15, the Global Precipitation Measurement Core Observatory team completed the post-shipment Comprehensive Performance Test with no significant problems. The testing took seven days to run through each of the spacecraft's systems and subsystems to ensure that the satellite is ready for space. The testing took place at GPM's launch site at Tanegashima Space Center in Japan, and was the first time all systems had been turned on since GPM's

GPM Begins Final Comprehensive Performance Test

The mechanical team has only a few inches of clearance between the L-frame and the satellite. Image Credit: NASA / Michael Starobin The Global Precipitation Measurement mission's Core Observatory began its final Comprehensive Performance Test at Tanegashima Space Center in Japan on Dec. 9, 2013. The test will run 24/7 over the next few weeks as every system and subsystem is turned on and run through its tasks. This is the first time all the Core Observatory systems have been powered on since its shipment to Japan. The results of the tests will be compared to pre-shipment performance test

GPM Undergoes Post-Shipment Inspections

Following arrival in a cleanroom at the Tanegashima Space Center in Japan, the Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM) core observatory was attached to a custom-designed satellite mount which allowed the NASA team on-site to perform preliminary inspections and evaluations of the spacecraft. Image Credit: NASA/Michael Starobin Following the Global Precipitation Measurement Core Observatory’s arrival at the Tangashema Space Center in Japan, efforts by the NASA and Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency team will now focus on final checkouts and preparation for launch in early 2014. After the

GPM Arrives at Tanegashima Space Center

Following arrival at Japan’s Kitakyushu Airport at 10:30 p.m. EST Saturday, Nov. 23, the GPM Core Observatory spacecraft in its shipping container was off-loaded from the C-5 aircraft and moved to a barge to be transported to Tanegashima Island. GPM's shipping container is unloaded from the U.S. Air Force C-5 cargo plane that carried it to Japan. Image Credit: NASA The barge departed Kitakyushu around 6:30 a.m. EST Sunday, Nov. 24, but a third of the way to the island, an unplanned stop had to be made at a port called Saiki to protect the ship from weather and rough seas. The barge arrived at