Fifty Years of Achievement

 

1

Presented by Gary Davis, Director, Office of Systems Development

NOAA/NESDIS/OSD

NOAA’s Environmental Satellite Program: Past, Present, and FutureNOAA’s Environmental Satellite Program: Past, Present, and Future

Fifty Years of Achievement

 

2

Space-Based Remote Sensors Changed Way We See Our World

GOES-12 EastExplorer Launch TIROS-1

NOAA-18

Fifty Years of Achievement

 

3

Birth Of U.S. Weather Satellite Program

• Traces back to the Department of Defense (DoD) rocket, sensor, and satellite development projects beginning the decade following World War II

• With little theory and very little experience available to guide these projects, DoD development teams learned their space trade on the job, often resulting from analyses of catastrophic failures

• DoD developed instruments to measure atmospheric conditions that the rockets were encountering as they were propelled to then extraordinary altitudes

• Measurements recovered from salvaged recorders or from radio transmissions were the basis for meteorological satellites research

• Still cameras became part of the payload and recovered film depicted images of the Earth’s surface and cloud cover from space

Fifty Years of Achievement

 

4

27 Mar 1958 Eisenhower approved plan for outer space exploration. Advanced Research Project Agency (ARPA) designated to undertake several space projects.

2 Apr 1958 Eisenhower proposed establishment of NASA, into which NACA was absorbed, to perform space research for civilian and military programs

29 Jul 1958 The National Aeronautics and Space Act was signed (PL 85-568) established NASA

30 Jan 1964 Basic agreement between NASA and U.S. Weather Bureau created a National Operational Meteorological Satellite System.

Birth Of U.S. Weather Satellite Program

3 Nov 1957 Soviet Union launched Sputnik 2

7 Nov 1957 President Dwight Eisenhower named James Killian, Special Assistant for Science and Technology and Chairman of the President's Science Advisory Committee

5 Mar 1958 Advisory Committee on Government Organization re-designated the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA) and approved to lead civil space President Eisenhower and James Killian

Fifty Years of Achievement

 

5

Two Credible Space Agencies: NASA and DoD

• Research and development efforts to improve space capabilities and better data interpretation

• May 1961 – President Kennedy announces US intention to conduct an operational weather satellite programs day and night observations of global cloud cover

– open broadcasts of the information collected by the on-board sensors

– Broadcasts to be available for collection by any ground station in line of sight of the satellite without restriction on the collection and use or any requirement to pre-notify the United States

Fifty Years of Achievement

 

6

“WAS”: Rockets and Cameras

View of Earth from a camera on V-2 #13, launched October 24, 1946

Fifty Years of Achievement

 

7

“WAS”: Rockets and Cameras

July 26, 1948

Fifty Years of Achievement

 

8

“WAS”: Rockets and Cameras

Sounding rocket launched at 1815 GMT on October 5, 1954 from White Sands, New Mexico

First Cyclone seen from space.

Fifty Years of Achievement

 

9

Pioneers of Earth’s Observation

“Now the clouds move and not the satellite.”Professor Suomi reaction to the images taken from the first spin scan

cloud camera

Dr. Francis W. Reichelderfer,

Dr. Tetsuya “Ted” Fujita David Johnson Dr. Harry Wexler Professor Suomi

Fifty Years of Achievement

 

10

Long-Time Friends

• Johnson directed ~ $75K to be used to built spin scan camera.

• Joint collaboration to “sell NASA to take the risk and fly the first camera on ATS-1!

• Handshake agreement between Suomi and Johnson moved 8 families to the Madison from the Washington Lab.

• Johnson and Suomi justified the necessity of an “In-orbit backup” and “two-satellite system” in polar and geostationary orbits. (defense of the 1984 budget to Congress)

Professor Suomi

David Johnson

Fifty Years of Achievement

 

11

David S Johnson1924 – 2004

• Director, National Environmental Satellite Center, Environmental Science Services Administration

• First Assistant Administrator, NOAA for Satellites and Data

• President, American Meteorological Society– Led delegation opening dialogue with the State Meteorological Administration of the Peoples Republic of

China

• Chair National Academy of Sciences Committee to modernize the NWS

• Consultant to the Secretary General of WMO

• Special Assistant to the President of the University Corporation for Atmospheric Research

• Study Director, National Research Council

• NOAA David Johnson Award recognizing young professionals for innovative applications of Earth observation data

Fifty Years of Achievement

 

12

Explorer VIIOctober 13, 1959

Professors Suomi and Parent pose with one of their radiometers. The black ball is part of their heat budget experiment.

Fifty Years of Achievement

 

13

Exciting Moment in NOAA

Fifty Years of Achievement

 

14

• First weather satellite launched from Cape Canaveral, FL– 77 Days– Satellite Weight: 122 kg – Payload: Two TV cameras, two video recorders, and the power, communications,

and other systems needed

• First view of cloud formations as they developed and moved across the continent

Exciting Moment in NOAA

Fifty Years of Achievement

 

15

A Period of Phenomenal Remote Sensing Discovery and Development

• Late 1960s and early 1970s NASA and NOAA developed a relationship– NASA developed the environmental satellite technology for NOAA– NASA received from NOAA insights concerning the conduct of daily satellite

operations, data processing, and timely delivery of products, as well as application of these data.

– NOAA reimbursed NASA for personnel and other costs incurred helping NOAA meet its space mission

• General and specific agreements governed the relationship, responsibilities, and costs of the support provided to NOAA

• NOAA was charged with– determining civilian user satellite services requirements– specifying the required system performance– obtaining the funds to build, launch and operate the satellite/ground systems

• NASA was charged with– Building and launching prototypes (ATS, SMS, NIMBUS, TIROS-N, etc)– Acquiring and launching operational satellites for NOAA

Fifty Years of Achievement

 

16

Polar Satellites 1965

First complete view of the world’s weather (TIROS-9) Jan 1965

1950 1970 1990 2010 2030TIROS-NNOAA 1-11

NOAA 12-19 NPPNPOESSJasonOSVW

COSMIC OCOWind Lidar

TIROS-1TIROS-9

NIMBUS DMSP

Fifty Years of Achievement

 

17

NOAA-19

Delta II 7320

Space Launch Complex 2, Vandenberg AFB

Feb. 6, 2009

10:22 GMT

43 U.S. Polar-orbiting weather/environmental satellites launched

TIROS ESSA ITOS TIROS-N/NOAA

1960-65 1966-69 1970-77 1978 to present

10 9 8 16

NOAA-19 Satellite Launch

Fifty Years of Achievement

 

1818– For Official Use Only – Predecisional, Deliberative Information - Not for Public Release 18

GOES-14 LAUNCH

• Launched on June 27, 2009 at 6:51pm EDT aboard a Delta-IV rocket from Space Launch Complex (SLC) 37B at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida.

• GOES-O reached final geostationary orbit on July 8, 2009 at which time GOES-O was be renamed GOES-14.

17 U.S. Geostationary weather/environmental satellites launched

SMS GOES

1974-75 1975 to Present

2 15

1950 1970 1990 2010 2030SMS-1/2GOES A-H

GOES I-M GOES NOP GOES R-UATS 1-3

Fifty Years of Achievement

 

19

Where are We Going?

• NPOESS and GOES-R

– More timely and accurate 305 day weather forecasts

– Longer lead time for severe weather warnings

– Continue data sets needed for climate research

• Jason-3

• Ocean Vector Winds Mission (QuikScat)

• GPS Radio Occultations

• Restoring demanifested Climate Sensors (CERES, TSIS, APS, OMPS)

• Solar Wind

• Partnering with NASA on other areas

– Decadal Survey

– Joint Center for Satellite Simulation