Missions

By Aries Keck, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center Original www.nasa.gov Press Release (published 3/1/12) The Dual-frequency Precipitation Radar (DPR) built by the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) for the Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM) mission's Core Observatory arrived on Friday, March 16 and was unloaded today at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md. Comprised of two radars, the DPR is one of two instruments that will fly on the Core Observatory scheduled for launch in February 2014. Engineers from the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) and NASA Goddard...

By Rob Gutro, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center Original www.nasa.gov Press Release (published 3/1/12) The Global Precipitation Measurement Microwave Imager (GMI) instrument has arrived at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md. for integration into NASA's upcoming Earth science spacecraft. The instrument was built at the Ball Aerospace and Technologies Corp., Boulder, Colo. The GPM Microwave Imager instrument being placed in the acoustic chamber at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center on March 1, 2012. Credit: NASA / Ball Aerospace Engineers at NASA Goddard will integrate both the...

In the clean room at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt Md., the Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM) mission's Core satellite is steadily taking shape. Set to measure rainfall worldwide after launch in 2014, GPM's two solar panels are the latest components currently undergoing rigorous testing before being integrated with the spacecraft, a process that began seven months ago when the main structural elements went on an unusual ride. GPM moves from the clean room to the test chamber on a dolly without wheels. Compressed air is pumped out under airpads that float the Spacecraft on...

GPM is designed to advance scientific understanding of the Earth's water and energy cycle but also provides near real-time data for a wide array of societal applications. As a science mission with integrated application goals, the GPM mission has five scientific objectives: Advancing Precipitation Measurement from Space GPM advances precipitation measurement capability from space using a combination of active and passive remote-sensing techniques. These measurements are used to calibrate, unify and improve global precipitation measurements by a constellation of research and operational...

The CERES instrument The Clouds and the Earth’s Radiant Energy System (CERES) instrument is one of five instruments that is being flown aboard the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) observatory. The data from the CERES instrument was used to study the energy exchanged between the Sun; the Earth’s atmosphere, surface and clouds; and space. However, it only operated during January - August of 1998, and March 2000, so the available data record is quite brief. Balancing the Earth's Energy Budget The Earth’s daily weather and climate are controlled by the balance between the amount of solar...

The Lightning Imaging Sensor is a small, highly sophisticated instrument that detects and locates lightning over the tropical region of the globe. Looking down from a vantage point aboard the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) observatory, 250 miles (402 kilometers) above the Earth, the sensor provides information that could lead to future advanced lightning sensors capable of significantly improving weather "nowcasting." Using a vantage point in space, the Lightning Imaging Sensor promises to expand scientists' capabilities for surveying lightning and thunderstorm activity on a global...

The Precipitation Radar was the first spaceborne instrument designed to provide three-dimensional maps of storm structure. These measurements yield invaluable information on the intensity and distribution of the rain, on the rain type, on the storm depth and on the height at which the snow melts into rain. The estimates of the heat released into the atmosphere at different heights based on these measurements can be used to improve models of the global atmospheric circulation. The Precipitation Radar has a horizontal resolution at the ground of about 3.1 miles (five kilometers) and a swath...

The Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission’s (TRMM) Microwave Imager (TMI) is a passive microwave sensor designed to provide quantitative rainfall information over a wide swath under the TRMM satellite. By carefully measuring the minute amounts of microwave energy emitted by the Earth and its atmosphere, TMI is able to quantify the water vapor, the cloud water, and the rainfall intensity in the atmosphere. It is a relatively small instrument that consumes little power. This, combined with the wide swath and the good, quantitative information regarding rainfall make TMI the "workhorse" of the rain...

The Visible and Infrared Scanner (VIRS) is one of the primary instruments aboard the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) observatory. VIRS is one of the three instruments in the rain-measuring package and serves as a very indirect indicator of rainfall. It also ties in TRMM measurements with other measurements that are made routinely using the meteorological Polar Orbiting Environmental Satellites POES) and those that are made using the Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellites (GOES) operated by the United States. VIRS, as its name implies, senses radiation coming up from the...

Diagram of the GPM Core Observatory Carrying both a dual frequency radar instrument and a passive microwave radiometer, the Core Spacecraft serves as a calibration standard for the other members of the GPM spacecraft constellation. The Core Spacecraft was developed and tested in-house at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center. The GPM Core Observatory orbit inclination of 65 degrees is such that it enables the orbit to cut across the orbits of other microwave radiometers, sample the latitudes where nearly all precipitation occurs, and sample at different times of day. The GPM Core Observatory GMI...