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 40
Ensuring the Climate Record from
the NPP and NPOESS Meteorological Satellites
A
Statement of Task
Background Researchers studying the issues surrounding global climate change have a particular
need for the kind of repetitive, long-term, high-quality measurements that can be provided from the
vantage point of space. Operational weather satellites provide perhaps the only means for securing these
measurements. The next generation of operational sensing systems are currently being designed, and
the National Polar-orbiting Operational Environmental Satellite System (NPOESS), scheduled for launch
beginning in 2009, provides an important component of this operational monitoring system. NPOESS is
being developed with the goal of meeting converged operational data needs of NOAA and DOD, as well
as some of the data needs in NASA Earth observation programs.
As part of its planning to transition appropriate research satellite measurements into the
operational domain, NASA, working with the NPOESS Integrated Program Office, is developing
the NPOESS Preparatory Program (NPP). NOAA is supporting the NPP program as part of its
risk reduction demonstration and validation for NPOESS sensors, algorithms, and processing.
NPP will provide a launch in 2005 of critical sensors (VIIRS, ATMS, and CrIS) that are planned
for flights on NPOESS. The intent is to develop an operational prototype for the provision of
satellite-based climate data as well to provide an early test of space and ground segments for
NPOESS.
At this time, attention is being given to defining operational climate measurement needs and
assessing their implications for instrument design. However, it is equally important to ensure that
the data systems will meet climate research needs. Effective data management systems are a
significant challenge to the federal agencies.
Plan The Committee on Earth Studies (CES) will provide a preliminary assessment of data
processing, management, and archiving issues that should be considered in the near term as
plans are developed to maximize the utility to climate researchers of data anticipated from several
planned satellites. These include the satellites in the NPOESS Preparatory Program (NPP), the
National Polar-Orbiting Environmental Satellite System (NPOESS), and, if approved, the Windsat
program.
The committee's report will focus on the broad requirements for the data system for these
satellites. As the report will be a preliminary assessment, it will also include recommendations on
how to establish a process by which additional input on data and data management needs can be
obtained. Where possible, the committee will note where incremental investments can provide
significant improvements towards meeting the needs of climate research.
The committee's report will address issues that include:
—How to ensure that data sets of known quality will be readily available to the climate research
community (along with associated meta-data on instrument calibration and performance);
—How to ensure that original multi-year radiance data are both affordable and easily retrievable
from long-term archives.
In this context, issues such as consensus algorithms, data streams, quality assurance, media
evolution, on-line and automated data retrieval, data set reprocessing and cataloguing will be
addressed. Related issues for consideration include the importance of establishing user models
for the climate community, which will, for example, explore climate data user access patterns as
an input to system design.
OCR for page 41
Schedule In consultation with other relevant NRC units, the Committee on Earth Studies will
lead a 2-day workshop in Washington on February 7 and 8, 2000, that will provide a forum for
preliminary discussion of the data system needs for long-term satellite-based climate
observations. The workshop will use current plans for data management for NPOESS and NPP
and lessons learned from previous experience with operational and research satellite data
management systems as a point of departure. Participants at the workshop will include agency
officials, climate-change researchers, and scientists familiar with the workings of existing data
archives. The committee will then meet in closed session on February 9 and 10, 2000, to begin
drafting its report.
