Group photo of 2023 PMM Science Team Meeting Attendees
Above image: Attendees of the 2023 PMM Science Team Meeting.

Notification of Upcoming GPM Orbit Boost

The GPM Core Observatory satellite is scheduled to undergo a series of orbit boost maneuvers which will raise its altitude from 400km to 435km. These boosts are tentatively scheduled for Nov. 7 and 8, 2023. As a result of these maneuvers, the observing parameters of data collected by the GPM Microwave Imager ( GMI) and Dual-frequency Precipitation Radar ( DPR) instruments will change, including the footprint sizes and Earth incidence angle. The algorithms which process these data must be updated to accommodate these changes, including the Level 2 GPROF, DPR, and CORRA algorithms; the Level 3
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Updated: Nov. 8, 2023 George Huffman, GPM Project Scientist The GPM Core Observatory (GPM-CO) satellite performed two orbit boost maneuvers on Nov. 7 and 8, 2023 that raised its altitude from 400km to 435km. The goal of these boosts is to restore the GPM-CO's lifespan closer to the original estimates of ending in the early 2030’s. Recent lifespan estimates have been getting shorter due to unexpectedly high solar activity, which causes additional atmospheric drag on the spacecraft. The primary goal of restoring GPM-CO’s lifespan is to allow the GPM mission to overlap with the satellites