. "PATH, Precipitation and All-Weather Temperature and Humidity ." Satellite Observations to Benefit Science and Society: Recommended Missions for the Next Decade. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press, 2008.
The following HTML text is provided to enhance online
readability. Many aspects of typography translate only awkwardly to HTML.
Please use the page image
as the authoritative form to ensure accuracy.
Satellite Observations to Benefit Science and Society: Recommended Missions for the Next Decade
PATH PRECIPITATION AND ALL-WEATHER TEMPERATURE AND HUMIDITY
LAUNCH: 2016–2020
MISSION SIZE: Medium
ORBIT: GEO
AGENCY: NASA
ESTIMATED COST: $450 million
AREAS OF INTEREST: Health, Water, Weather
INSTRUMENT: Microwave array spectrometer
BENEFITS:
More accurate weather forecasts and warnings
Improved prediction of storm track and intensity and improved evacuation planning
Improved forecasts of hurricane storm surge and rainfall accumulation
Frequently updated temperature and moisture data are critical to high-quality forecasts of weather, particularly hurricanes, floods, and other high-impact events. For many years, satellites in low Earth orbit have routinely gathered profiles of temperature, water vapor, and the amount of liquid water within clouds using microwave spectrometers and infrared sounders. Infrared sounders can be used in geostationary orbit to enable more frequent regional observations, although their performance is limited by clouds and precipitation. Limits on microwave technology have thus far kept these spectrometers from accessing the vantage point of geostationary orbit to enable more frequent regional observations under all weather conditions.
PATH will provide the first geostationary platform for a microwave spectrometer and infrared sounder in tandem. The mission will analyze temperature and water vapor in three dimensions, as well as sea surface temperature and precipitation. Data will be gathered every 15 to 30 minutes in both clear and cloudy conditions. PATH will lead to more accurate weather forecasts through greatly improved models of the atmosphere’s lowest kilometer and the processes that shape clouds, rainfall, and snowfall. The frequently updated observations of wind speed and sea surface temperature will increase the accuracy of hurricane track, intensity, and storm surge forecasts. Water vapor and rainfall data will enhance flood prediction.
A geostationary orbit will allow PATH to carry out sampling that would otherwise require an impractically large constellation of satellites. A platform in mid-Earth orbit is another possibility; however, additional instrument development would be needed for this option.
Below are the first 10 and last 10 pages of uncorrected machine-read text (when available) of this chapter, followed by the top 30 algorithmically extracted key phrases from the chapter as a whole. Intended to provide our own search engines and external engines with highly rich, chapter-representative searchable text on the opening pages of each chapter.
Because it is UNCORRECTED material, please consider the following text as a useful but insufficient proxy for the authoritative book pages.
Do not use for reproduction, copying, pasting, or reading; exclusively for search engines.
OCR for page 21
Satellite Observations to Benefit Science and Society: Recommended Missions for the Next Decade
PATH PRECIPITATION AND ALL-WEATHER TEMPERATURE AND HUMIDITY
LAUNCH: 2016–2020
MISSION SIZE: Medium
ORBIT: GEO
AGENCY: NASA
ESTIMATED COST: $450 million
AREAS OF INTEREST: Health, Water, Weather
INSTRUMENT: Microwave array spectrometer
BENEFITS:
More accurate weather forecasts and warnings
Improved prediction of storm track and intensity and improved evacuation planning
Improved forecasts of hurricane storm surge and rainfall accumulation
Frequently updated temperature and moisture data are critical to high-quality forecasts of weather, particularly hurricanes, floods, and other high-impact events. For many years, satellites in low Earth orbit have routinely gathered profiles of temperature, water vapor, and the amount of liquid water within clouds using microwave spectrometers and infrared sounders. Infrared sounders can be used in geostationary orbit to enable more frequent regional observations, although their performance is limited by clouds and precipitation. Limits on microwave technology have thus far kept these spectrometers from accessing the vantage point of geostationary orbit to enable more frequent regional observations under all weather conditions.
PATH will provide the first geostationary platform for a microwave spectrometer and infrared sounder in tandem. The mission will analyze temperature and water vapor in three dimensions, as well as sea surface temperature and precipitation. Data will be gathered every 15 to 30 minutes in both clear and cloudy conditions. PATH will lead to more accurate weather forecasts through greatly improved models of the atmosphere’s lowest kilometer and the processes that shape clouds, rainfall, and snowfall. The frequently updated observations of wind speed and sea surface temperature will increase the accuracy of hurricane track, intensity, and storm surge forecasts. Water vapor and rainfall data will enhance flood prediction.
A geostationary orbit will allow PATH to carry out sampling that would otherwise require an impractically large constellation of satellites. A platform in mid-Earth orbit is another possibility; however, additional instrument development would be needed for this option.
