Members Can Post Anonymously On This Site
USSF establishes 2nd Field Command, Guetlein assumes command
-
Similar Topics
-
By Space Force
In partnership with the Air Force Research Laboratory, the United States Space Force is currently accepting proposals for USSF University Consortium/Space Strategic Technology Institute 4, focused on Advanced Remote Sensing.
View the full article
-
By NASA
Earth Observer Earth Home Earth Observer Home Editor’s Corner Feature Articles Meeting Summaries News Science in the News Calendars In Memoriam More Archives 5 min read
Updates on NASA Field Campaigns
Snippets from The Earth Observer’s Editor’s Corner
PACE-PAX
PACE–PAX had as its primary objective to gather data to validate measurements from NASA’s PACE mission. A secondary objective was validation of observations by the European Space Agency’s recently launched Earth Cloud, Aerosol, and Radiation Explorer (EarthCARE) mission. The operations spanned Southern and Central California and nearby coastal regions, logging 81 flight hours for the NASA ER-2, which operated out of NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center (AFRC) in Edwards, CA, and 60 hours for the Twin Otter aircraft, which was operated by the Center for Interdisciplinary Remotely Piloted Aircraft Studies (CIRPAS) at the Naval Postgraduate School (Monterey, CA) out of Marina Municipal Airport in Marina, CA – see Photo.
Photo. The Twin Otter aircraft operated out of the Center for Interdisciplinary Remotely Piloted Aircraft Studies (CIRPAS) during the Plankton, Aerosol, Cloud, ocean Ecosystem–Postlaunch Airborne eXperiment (PACE–PAX) campaign. The image shows the Twin Otter aircraft missing the approach at Marina Airport to check instrument performance on the aircraft against identical instrumentation on an airport control tower. Photo credit: NASA NASA’s ER-2 aircraft flies at an altitude of approximately 20 km, well above the troposphere. PACE–PAX researchers used the unique high-altitude vantage point to make observations of the atmosphere, ocean, and land surface in a similar manner to that of PACE. In so doing, they can verify the accuracy of data gathered by the satellite in orbit. Meanwhile, the Twin Otter flew at a much lower altitude in the atmosphere (~3 km). The instrumentation onboard the Twin Otter was used to sample and measure cloud droplet size, aerosol size, and the amount of light scattered or absorbed by the particles. These aircraft observations are the same atmospheric properties that PACE observes from its broader vantage point in polar orbit. In addition to the PACE and aircraft observations, the R/V Shearwater operated 15 day trips out of Santa Barbara, CA, gathering additional surface-based observations along with other vessels and floats.
Field campaigns, such as PACE–PAX, are designed to collect measurements at different scales and conditions for comparison to satellite observations. When it comes to doing this successfully, timing is everything. PACE–PAX observations were carefully coordinated so that the two aircraft were in flight and taking observations at the same time, so observations were being obtained at the surface (e.g., on the ship) as well as the satellite passing overhead. This takes a tremendous amount of effort on the part of the organizers.
BlueFlux
BlueFlux was set up to study the wetland ecosystems of South Florida. Wetland ecosystems represent the ever-changing line between land and sea, and are exceptionally vulnerable to climate disturbances, such as sea level rise and tropical cyclones. As these threats intensify, wetland ecology – and its role as a critical sink of CO2 – faces an uncertain future.
BlueFlux observations will contribute to the development of a new, remote-sensing data product called “Daily Flux Predictions for South Florida,” which will help research teams led by Ben Poulter [GSFC] explain and quantify the changing relationship between wetlands and atmospheric greenhouse gas concentrations (GHG). The goal is to refine global GHG budget analyses and provide regional stakeholders with information to evaluate how Florida’s wetlands are responding to natural and anthropogenic pressures in real time.
The “Daily Flux Predictions for South Florida” product will use retrievals of surface spectral reflectance captured by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) instrument on NASA’s Aqua and Terra satellites to estimate the rate at which various gasses are exchanged between Earth’s surface and the atmosphere. Such flux measurements in coastal wetlands are historically limited on account of the relative inaccessibility of these ecosystems. To contribute to a more robust understanding of how Florida’s coastal ecology fits into the carbon cycle, BlueFlux conducted a series of airborne fieldwork deployments out of the Miami Homestead Air Reserve Base and the Miami Executive Airport in Miami-Dade County, which are adjacent to the eastern border of the Everglades National Park. The full study region – broadly referred to as South Florida – is narrowly defined by the wetland ecosystems that extend from Lake Okeechobee and its Northern estuaries to the saltwater marshland and mangrove forests along the state’s southernmost shore.
Flux measurements were made along each flight track using a payload known as the CARbon Airborne Flux Experiment (CARAFE) flying at between about 90 m and 3000 m. The researchers configured airborne observations, along with additional ground-based flux measurements, to match the spatial and temporal resolution of spectra collected by MODIS sensors, which produce surface reflectance retrievals at a 500 m daily resolution. Mirroring the scale of MODIS observations was necessary to both train the flux product’s underlying machine-learning algorithms and validate the accuracy of predictions made using satellite data alone. Data collected during BlueFlux fieldwork campaigns is available to the general public through NASA’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) Distributed Active Archive Center (DAAC). The “Daily Flux Predictions for South Florida” data product will also be accessible through NASA’s ORNL DAAC by early 2025.
Steve Platnick
EOS Senior Project Scientist
Share
Details
Last Updated Nov 14, 2024 Related Terms
Earth Science View the full article
-
By Space Force
U.S. Space Force Lt. Gen. Philip Garrant, Space Systems Command commander, joined by Chief Master Sgt. Jacqueline Sauvé, SSC senior enlisted leader, introduce Garrant's plan during an AMA forum Oct. 22, 2024.
View the full article
-
By NASA
Credit: NASA Two proposals for missions to observe X-ray and far-infrared wavelengths of light from space were selected by NASA for additional review, the agency announced Thursday. Each proposal team will receive $5 million to conduct a 12-month mission concept study. After detailed evaluation of those studies, NASA expects to select one concept in 2026 to proceed with construction, for a launch in 2032.
The resulting mission will become the first in a new class of NASA astrophysics missions within the agency’s longstanding Explorers Program. The new mission class, Probe Explorers, will fill a gap between flagship and smaller-scale missions in NASA’s exploration of the secrets of the universe.
“NASA’s Explorers Program brings out some of the most creative ideas for missions that help us reveal the unknown about our universe. Establishing this new line of missions – the largest our Astrophysics program has ever competed – has taken that creativity to new heights,” said Nicola Fox, associate administrator, Science Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters in Washington. “Both of the selected concepts could enable ground-breaking science responsive to the top astrophysics priorities of the decade, develop key technologies for future flagship missions, and offer opportunities for the entire community to use the new observatory, for the benefit of all.”
The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine’s 2020 Decadal Survey, Pathways to Discovery in Astronomy and Astrophysics for the 2020s, recommended NASA establish this new mission class, with the first mission observing either X-ray or far-infrared wavelengths of light. Mission costs for the new Probe Explorers are capped at $1 billion each, not including the cost of the rocket, launch services, or any contributions.
NASA evaluated Probe Explorers proposals based on their scientific merit in alignment with the Decadal Survey’s recommendations, feasibility of development plans, and use of technologies that could support the development of future large missions.
The selected proposals are:
Advanced X-ray Imaging Satellite
This mission would be an X-ray imaging observatory with a large, flat field-of-view and high spatial resolution. It would study the seeds of supermassive black holes; investigate the process of stellar feedback, which influences how galaxies evolve; and help determine the power sources of a variety of explosive phenomena in the cosmos. The observatory would build on the successes of previous X-ray observatories, capturing new capabilities for X-ray imaging and imaging spectroscopy. Principal investigator: Christopher Reynolds, University of Maryland, College Park Project management: NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland Probe far-Infrared Mission for Astrophysics
This observatory would be a 5.9-foot (1.8-meter) telescope studying far-infrared wavelengths, helping bridge the gap between existing infrared observatories, such as NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope, and radio telescopes. By studying radiant energy that only emerges in the far-infrared, the mission would address questions about the origins and growth of planets, supermassive black holes, stars, and cosmic dust. Principal investigator: Jason Glenn, NASA Goddard Project management: NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California The Explorers Program is the oldest continuous NASA program designed to provide frequent, low-cost access to space using principal investigator-led space science investigations relevant to the Science Mission Directorate’s astrophysics and heliophysics programs. Since the Explorer 1 launch in 1958, which discovered Earth’s radiation belts, the Explorers Program has launched more than 90 missions, including the Uhuru and Cosmic Background Explorer missions that led to Nobel prizes for their investigators.
The Explorers Program is managed by NASA Goddard for the Science Mission Directorate, which conducts a wide variety of research and scientific exploration programs for Earth studies, space weather, the solar system and universe.
For more information about the Explorers Program, visit:
https://explorers.gsfc.nasa.gov
-end-
Alise Fisher
Headquarters, Washington
202-617-4977
alise.m.fisher@nasa.gov
Share
Details
Last Updated Oct 03, 2024 EditorJessica TaveauLocationNASA Headquarters Related Terms
Science Mission Directorate Astrophysics Division Astrophysics Explorers Program View the full article
-
By Space Force
U.S. Space Command and the Department of Commerce are migrating the provision of public services relating to spaceflight safety, currently provided via space-track.org, from USSPACECOM to OSC’s new Traffic Coordination System for Space.
View the full article
-
-
Check out these Videos
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.