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A new experimental meteorological satellite no bigger than a box of cereals got a
look at hurricane Florence in a technology test that could influence the
future of storm monitoring from space. the
satellite took its first footage of Hurricane Florence on Tuesday, September 11, just
hours after his instrument was turned on.
TEMPEST-D, which deployed
in low Earth orbit from the International Space Station in July, carries ultramodern miniaturization
microwave radiometer, an instrument that sees through thick clouds to reveal
Inside hidden storms, just like a security scanner can see in the interior
luggage at the airport.
TEMPEST-D (Temporal Experience for the Demonstration of Storms and Tropical Systems) flew over Hurricane Florence on September 11, 2018. The colors reveal the eye of the storm, surrounded by imposing and intense. rain bands. The green areas highlight the extent of rainfall generated by the storm, with the heaviest rain being visible in the yellow and red areas. The image to the left is a visual image of the storm clouds, taken by NOAA's Geoseather Operational Environmental Satellite (GOES). Image Credit: NASA / NOAA / Monterey Naval Research Laboratory / JPL-Caltech
The picture taken by TEMPEST-D (Temporal
Demonstration Experience of Tropical Storms and Systems) captures Florence over the Atlantic Ocean,
revealing the eye of the storm surrounded by towering and intense rainbands. the
green areas highlight the extent of rainfall generated by the storm, with
the most intense rain is shown in yellow and red. TEMPEST-D data are contrasted
with a visible image of Florence showing familiar cyclone-shaped clouds
from the storm but does not reveal what's inside.
TEMPEST-D & # 39; s
mission is to test new low-cost technologies that could be used in the future for
collect more weather data and help researchers better understand storms. the
the level of detail of the small satellite image is similar to the existing one
meteorological satellites produce.
"We were
challenged to adapt this instrument to such a small satellite without compromising
data quality and were pleased to see it working right out of the box, "he said.
Sharmila Padmanabhan, who led the development of the instrument at NASA
Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California.
Contraction
weather satellites could one day help scientists provide more frequent updates
on developing storms.
"TEMPEST-D paves the way for future missions where we can afford
to pilot several of these miniaturized meteorological satellites into constellations. Such as
deployment would allow us to watch the storms as they develop, "said Steven.
Reising, the principal investigator of TEMPEST-D at Colorado State University.
TEMPEST-D is a
technology demonstration mission conducted by Colorado State University and managed
by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, in partnership
with Blue Canyon Technologies and Wallops Flight Facility, Virginia. the
mission is sponsored by NASA's Earth Ventures program and managed by the Earth
Office of Science and Technology The radiometer was built by JPL and
uses a high frequency microwave amplification technology developed by Northrop Grumman
Society.
More
Information about TEMPEST-D is available at:
https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/cubesat/missions/tempest-d.php
News Media Contact
Arielle Samuelson / Smith Spirit
Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, California.
818-354-0307 / 818-354-4269
[email protected] / [email protected]
2018-220
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