Abstract
In the previous century, the rapid development of electronics and computers enable the sounding balloons to probe into the sky to collect atmospheric data to forecast the weather and monitor the climate changes. Those balloon soundings are limited above the landmass and much fewer above oceans and the Polar Regions. In the 21st Century, as the booming of micro-satellite constellation, FORMOSAT-3/COSMIC constellation has brought the atmospheric measurements from local to global and even penetrated into the ionosphere to collect data for space weather. The remarkable impacts of the globally collected data from FORMOSAT-3/COSMIC have been demonstrated. The temperature structure over the Polar Regions has been constructed at the first time and the measurements have improved the regional weather model. It has also proven that the forecast accuracy including the severe weather such as accumulated rainfalls and the forecast of hurricane and typhoon paths, etc., can be enhanced. FORMOSAT- 3/COSMIC Follow-On mission is a project to carry on FORMOSAT-3/COSMIC mission, which design life ends in 2011. The mission will collect more data so that the sounding distribution is denser. The effective coverage area of one sounding in the contemplated 12- or 18-micro satellites constellation of the Follow-On mission can be reduced from 550 km x 550 km (FORMOSAT-3/COSMIC’s capability) to 250 km x 250 km. In this paper we will address the lessons learned from FORMOSAT-3/COSMIC constellation, both in space and ground segments, and how to proceed to the Follow-On mission to become an operational constellation as the most accurate orbiting thermometers to measure the atmosphere and ionosphere more optimally and efficiently.
Presentation Slides
Earth Observations with Orbiting Thermometers – Prospective FORMOSAT-3/COSMIC Follow-On Mission
In the previous century, the rapid development of electronics and computers enable the sounding balloons to probe into the sky to collect atmospheric data to forecast the weather and monitor the climate changes. Those balloon soundings are limited above the landmass and much fewer above oceans and the Polar Regions. In the 21st Century, as the booming of micro-satellite constellation, FORMOSAT-3/COSMIC constellation has brought the atmospheric measurements from local to global and even penetrated into the ionosphere to collect data for space weather. The remarkable impacts of the globally collected data from FORMOSAT-3/COSMIC have been demonstrated. The temperature structure over the Polar Regions has been constructed at the first time and the measurements have improved the regional weather model. It has also proven that the forecast accuracy including the severe weather such as accumulated rainfalls and the forecast of hurricane and typhoon paths, etc., can be enhanced. FORMOSAT- 3/COSMIC Follow-On mission is a project to carry on FORMOSAT-3/COSMIC mission, which design life ends in 2011. The mission will collect more data so that the sounding distribution is denser. The effective coverage area of one sounding in the contemplated 12- or 18-micro satellites constellation of the Follow-On mission can be reduced from 550 km x 550 km (FORMOSAT-3/COSMIC’s capability) to 250 km x 250 km. In this paper we will address the lessons learned from FORMOSAT-3/COSMIC constellation, both in space and ground segments, and how to proceed to the Follow-On mission to become an operational constellation as the most accurate orbiting thermometers to measure the atmosphere and ionosphere more optimally and efficiently.
