rvin bse g S O ys th t r e a m E

THE EARTH OBSERVER March/April 2001 Vol. 13 No. 2

In this issue . . . EDITOR’S

SCIENCE MEETINGS Michael King EOS Senior Project Scientist Minutes of the Aqua Science Working Group Meeting ...... 3

MODIS Science Team Meeting ...... 11 Representatives from the CloudSat, PICASSO-CENA, PARASOL, Aura and Aqua science teams are beginning discussions of the afternoon satellite con- MODIS Land Team Annual Validation stellation. The intent is to coordinate orbits and resultant data acquisitions for Review Meeting ...... 16 more comprehensive and consistent monitoring of Earth processes from sat- ellites. These discussions build on the morning constellation, which involves Aura Science Team Meeting ...... 18 Terra, Landsat 7, EO-1 and SAC-C. These four spacecraft are currently in a common orbit plane and altitude, enabling cross-validation of data collec- EOS Aura Ground System Review . . . 20 tions and multiplying the science returned from each mission. The afternoon constellation will further complement the inherent benefi ts of formation SCIENCE ARTICLES fl ying, and may eventually lead to combined data products.

Using Landsat Thematic Mapper Images Following the publication of Volume 2 of the EOS Data Products Handbook to Detect Land Cover Change in South last year (describing science data products from ACRIMSAT, Aqua, Jason-1, Africa ...... 26 Landsat 7, Meteor 3M/SAGE III, QuikScat, QuikTOMS, and VCL), Volume 1 (describing data products from TRMM, Terra and Data Assimilation) is Science Working Group on Data: A Data being rewritten and updated. Many of the initial data products described Distribution Workshop ...... 29 in Volume 1 have now been revised due to new data handling capacities, processing algorithms, and metadata content. In addition, more detailed The Large Scale Biosphere-Atmosphere information on fi le specifi cations and processing frequency will be included. Experiment in Amazonia (LBA): new The publication date for Volume 1 of the Data Products Handbook will likely research results start to form building be later this year. blocks for integration ...... 31 Technical brochures describing the ICESat and Aqua missions are being ANNOUNCEMENTS produced by the EOS Project Science Offi ce, and are complemented by sepa- rate brochures produced for AIRS, AMSR-E and CERES. In addition, a new EOS Scientists In The News ...... 36 MODIS brochure describing the instrument on both Terra and Aqua is being produced. These brochures are intended to inform science professionals Earth Science Education Program and other colleagues of the scientifi c objectives and capabilities of the mis- Update ...... 37 sions and instruments. These and many other EOS mission and instrument publications are available from the EOS Project Science Offi ce Web site at What is ECHO? ...... 38 eos.nasa.gov.

Science Calendar ...... 39 Finally, I’m happy to report two new additions to the EOS Project Science Offi ce staff. Chris Shuman has joined Goddard Space Flight Center and The Earth Observer Information/Inquiries ...... Back cover (Continued on page 2) THE EARTH OBSERVER

will serve as the ICESat Deputy Project Scientist. Shuman received his Ph.D. in Geosciences from the Pennsylvania State University, and was previously a visiting research fellow with the Universities Space Research Association at Goddard, and an Assistant Research Scientist at the Uni- versity of Maryland, College Park. Douglas Rabin has also been named the SORCE Deputy Project Scientist. Rabin is the Head of the Solar Physics Branch at Goddard, and will be a positive connection to the The Solar and Heliospheric Observatory mission, Living With a Star, and other solar missions.

May 3, 2001 Seal Pups trapped in the White Sea

According to the Russian Polar Research Institute for Fisheries and Oceanography, between 250,000 and 300,000 Greenland seal pups face death by starvation over the next two months due to a cruel trick by mother nature. The seals, most of them less than two months old, are trapped on ice sheets that remain locked in the White Sea, located near Archangel in Northern Russia. Typically, during the spring thaw the ice sheets break up and fl ow with the currents northward into the Barents Sea, the seals’ spring feeding grounds. The seal pups hitch a ride on the ice fl oes, living on food caught by their mothers until they arrive in the Barents Sea. Unfortunately, their mothers departed for the Barents Sea weeks ago leaving the pups with only their own individual stores of fat to sustain them.

In a normal year, the seal pups’ trip from the White Sea out to the Barents takes about six weeks, and the seals have adapted to rely upon this mechanism of mother nature. During their yearly migration, the mother seals usually stay with their pups and feed them until their pelts turn from white to grey—a sign that the pups are mature enough to swim and feed themselves. Unfor- tunately, this year unusually strong northerly winds created a bottleneck of ice near the mouth of the White Sea, thus blocking the fl ow of ice and trapping the pups.

These images of the White Sea were acquired by the Moder- ate-resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS), fl ying aboard NASA’s Terra spacecraft. The top image, taken May 3, 2001, shows the large ice shelf still trapped in the White Sea. The bottom image was taken by MODIS almost this same time last year (April 23, 2000). Notice there was much less ice in the White April 23, 2000 Sea this time last year as most of it was enroute to the Barents Sea. (Images courtesy Jacques Descloitres, MODIS Land Rapid Response Team.)

2 March/April 2001 • Vol. 13 No. 2

GPS. The latest word is that the Flight Planning Board meets on February 8 and will likely slip Jason/TIMED Minutes of the Aqua Science to August. Meanwhile, a commercial Boeing launch called Earthwatch is Working Group Meeting sliding into the October slot. ICESat has a December slot and Iridium has moved to March 2002. If Aqua does — Steve Graham ([email protected]), Aqua Outreach Coordinator — Claire Parkinson ([email protected]), Aqua Project Scientist not launch in September/October 2001, then it will likely be early 2002.

Parkinson thanked Sabelhaus and indi- cated that the Aqua mission is fortunate in having someone of Sabelhaus’s expe- rience and caliber available for taking over the Project Manager’s job. She then mentioned that Volume 2 of the EOS The Aqua Science Working Group met Data Products Handbook is now at the Goddard Space Flight Center available and copies can be obtained (GSFC) on February 8, 2001, chaired by Sabelhaus from [email protected] or by Claire Parkinson, the Aqua Project Sci- then gave an phoning Lee McGrier at (301) entist. Parkinson opened the meeting update on the status of 867-2037 or Steve Graham at (301) at 8:30 a.m. with a welcome and the the Aqua launch, noting that 867-2036. In addition, the AMSR-E logo announcement that George Morrow, the there are three units on the and brochure have been printed and are Aqua Project Manager, will be leaving spacecraft that are currently causing being distributed. the Aqua project on February 9 and concerns: the Formatter Multiplexer will be replaced by Phil Sabelhaus. Par- Unit/Solid State Recorder (FMU/SSR), Following Parkinson’s comments, kinson elaborated on the critical work the transponder, and the transponder Ramesh Kakar, the Aqua Program Sci- performed by Project Managers and interface electronics (TIE). The Aqua TIE entist at NASA Headquarters, spoke thanked Morrow for all he has done will be removed from the spacecraft about the recompetition of the Terra and to ensure that the mission will reach and sent back to B. F. Goodrich for Aqua science teams. The present science the objectives laid out by the scientists. inspection, because a similar Aura TIE team contracts run out on December 21, Morrow then explained that he has has recently failed vibration testing. 2001, and Procurement may or may not greatly enjoyed working on the Aqua The system Comprehensive Perfor- allow contract extensions beyond that mission but has decided to take a job mance Test (CPT), scheduled to start date. A new NASA Research Announce- with Jackson and Tull, a private aero- February 8, was delayed to allow time ment (NRA) for recompeting the team space company, as Vice President for to complete the procedure dry runs; the efforts is under development, with Jim their Aerospace division. He thanked current estimated start date is February Dodge and Jack Kaye (both of NASA everyone for working with him and 14. [Editors note: The Dry Run System CPT Headquarters) working on it. It is noted that he will be present at Vanden- was successfully completed on March 6. No expected that the new NRA will recog- berg Air Force Base with many others to new signifi cant hardware issues were identi- nize three broad categories: algorithm watch the launch of Aqua. fi ed.] Additional problems include paint maintenance, science data analysis, and cracking on the Earth shade on AIRS forward compatibility. Kakar noted that Morrow then introduced Phil Sabelhaus and excess oil in the CERES deployment the sum of funding in the three cat- as the incoming Aqua Project Manager. mechanisms. The latter problem is being egories would approximate the avail- Sabelhaus offered a brief history of his addressed by placing the deployment able funding in the science team funding involvement with NASA Earth Science mechanisms in a thermal chamber at an line. missions, including Project Manager of elevated temperature in order to bake TOMS/EP, TOMS on ADEOS, GOES, out the excess oil. It is not clear at this time if separate Landsat, Aura, and VCL. He is happy NRAs will be needed for the two plat- to have the opportunity to be involved Sabelhaus noted that the Delta Launch forms or if one will suffi ce. It is possible with the Aqua mission, especially at this Manifest is fi lling up and is crowded that an NRA for Terra will be released critical and exciting stage, and is com- in the June/July timeframe with Jason/ this summer and the new NRA for Aqua mitted to the mission’s success. TIMED, MAP, Genesis, Geolite, and (concentrating on AIRS/AMSU-A/HSB

3 THE EARTH OBSERVER

and AMSR-E) could appear approxi- CERES Team MODIS Team mately one year after launch. Rather than going into more detail, Kakar Barkstrom then relayed his experience Parkinson then introduced Vince Salo- deferred to Jack Kaye, who was at the with fi rst light images from Terra and monson, the MODIS Science Team afternoon session to expand upon these offered thoughts on possible fi rst light Leader, to present initial results from the issues. images from Aqua. Barkstrom noted Terra MODIS and thoughts on possible that it is not premature to start now fi rst light images from Aqua. Salomon- Next, Kakar offered an introduction preparing for the fi rst Aqua press con- son noted that MODIS is performing to the NASA Earth Science Enterprise ference. The audience to keep in mind well in terms of spatial, spectral, radio- Research Strategy (2000-2010), noting when preparing images is the general metric, geometric, and quantization per- that it should be a guiding strategy for public. Word charts and bar charts formance. All major systems are work- the next decade and that it is based on should be avoided, and the images ing, the focal planes and bands are the following fi ve questions: should be kept simple. well registered and are performing (overall) better than specifi cations, and The Aqua Working Group, or its spokes- • How is the global Earth system calibration looks good. Also, noise and person, needs to decide on the main changing? other factors have been identifi ed and Aqua story to present during the press reduced, leading to a useful state for conference. At the Terra press confer- • What are the primary forcings of the scientifi c use. Finally, studies are con- ence, the main story centered on atmo- Earth system? tinuing to further optimize Level 1B spheric aerosols. It would be helpful to data. Salomonson also noted that there have movies and animations detailing • How does the Earth system respond are 5 MODIS direct readout stations in the concepts, as opposed to still images. to natural and human-induced the U.S., and 25 stations or more are changes? Barkstrom noted that moderately expected to be in place worldwide soon. acceptable formats are global images • What are the consequences of with recognizable features (geography) Regarding Level 1B improvement areas, changes in the Earth system for that are visually interesting. He posed the following Terra MODIS characteris- human civilization? the question of whether or not the U.S. tics have been fi xed or improved on the should be in the center of the visuals. Aqua MODIS: • How well can we predict future Also, Barkstrom praised the MISR team changes in the Earth system? as having done the best preparations for • radiance versus scan-angle response the Terra press conference. Their work for the thermal emissive bands; Under these primary questions, there is a good model to follow for the Aqua are 23 additional questions focusing on press conference, with video sequences • optical cross-talk from band 31 (11 specifi c research areas. Kakar pointed and well-rehearsed responses. µm) into bands 32 (12.0 µm) through out that 6 of the 23 questions concern 36 (14.3 µm); the global water cycle. Lastly, Kakar The Public Affairs Offi ces at NASA reviewed the current missions and Headquarters and GSFC will have the • electronic cross-talk amongst bands launch schedule. primary responsibility for orchestrating 5-7 and bands 20-26; and the press conference. It is anticipated “First Light Images” and Science that we will use the services of the GSFC • non-uniform digital count bin-fi ll Team Presentations Scientifi c Visualization Studio and Earth factors, particularly for bands 31-36. Observatory team and should begin two Next, Parkinson explained the impor- to three months prior to the fi rst press Salomonson showed a chart summariz- tance for NASA public relations of conference rehearsal in order to perfect ing the operational characteristics of the getting good “fi rst images” to show the image formats and color scales. Terra MODIS since “fi rst light” in Febru- publicly a few months after launch Based on the Terra experience, it will ary 2000. Several problems have been and mentioned that Bruce Barkstrom probably require about three iterations stabilized starting in the fall of 2000. The and Vince Salomonson, the CERES before the images are suitable. Also, the MODIS Characterization Support Team and MODIS Team Leaders, respectively, teams should expect to do a complete is now looking at making quantifi ed have been through this process in 2000 rehearsal at an IWG prior to the press estimates of the overall uncertainty in with the Terra spacecraft. conference. the Level 1 product. Preliminary esti- mates show that the uncertainty is being reduced with time and has reached planned levels for Bands 4 and 5. In

4 March/April 2001 • Vol. 13 No. 2

the thermal infrared bands (particularly data by the GSFC DAAC are approx- Salomonson commented on the near- the sea surface temperature bands at 11 imately 1%. The DAAC is processing term challenges facing the science team, and 12 µm) the performance has not Terra at 2X on Silicon Graphics Origin including work to improve the Level reached adequate levels but is improv- 2000s, and is expected to reach 3X with 1B products, to optimize the use of the ing as more efforts continue to reduce the addition of the remaining Aqua products by the scientifi c community, the various uncertainty factors. hardware and installation of the S4P and to maximize the publication and on the Origins to support reprocessing. oral presentation of recent results. The Commenting on the overall status of the MODAPS is shipping 300 GB per day to team is working to fi nd and implement science products, Salomonson said that the DAACs, and 167 TB of MODIS prod- effi ciencies in the processing, reprocess- ~40 products are currently in develop- ucts have been archived at the GSFC, ing, archiving, and distribution of the ment. Most of the products have been EROS Data Center, and National Snow data. released in Beta format for examination and Ice Data Center DAACs. by the scientifi c community, starting in Lastly, Salomonson commented on fi rst the fall of 2000. Work continues on all A MODIS User Survey was conducted light images from Aqua. The present the products to get them to the point at the Fall 2000 AGU meeting. The understanding is that fi rst light for where they can be considered routinely goal of the survey was to address MODIS will occur 39 days after launch, useful for scientifi c or applications whether or not MODIS data distribution versus 68 days after the launch of studies. It is suggested that anyone is lower than it should be. Roughly 350 Terra. In the Terra MODIS case, needed wishing to employ the MODIS products people from fi elds ranging from edu- outgassing/purging did not occur suf- should communicate with the appropri- cation (K-12 and college introductory fi ciently, and actions were necessary to ate MODIS Science Team member to remote sensing courses) to atmospheric eliminate icing on the radiative cooler in ascertain the utility of the product or, at and oceanographic research participated August 2000. The current perception is least, should pay careful attention to the in the survey. The reasons for not order- that the Aqua MODIS schedule is too quality “fl ags” on the products. Addi- ing MODIS data can be grouped into fast, and MODIS fi rst light should prob- tionally, the MODIS Web pages contain four categories: ably occur closer to 50 days after launch. much useful material on quality assur- However, the MODIS Science Team is ance and validation efforts for the prod- 1. Data Maturity - Several people indi- ready to work with the Project to ucts. In general, use by the scientifi c cated that they would wait for more better understand the plans and trade- community is encouraged so as to mature data products because of offs. Salomonson mentioned the impor- obtain feedback and hasten validation. resource limitations. (This is typical tance of using common words rather for new data products.) than scientifi c terms at the “fi rst light” MODIS-associated data processing sys- press conference and of having a central tems (i.e., the GSFC DAAC and the 2. Data Access - Several people had theme. MODIS Adaptive Processing System experienced diffi culties with order- [MODAPS]) reached stable global pro- ing data and have not tried again. AIRS/AMSU-A/HSB Team duction in fall 2000 and are consistently (Information needs to be distributed ingesting, processing, archiving, and regarding the improvements in data After a short break, George Aumann, distributing data. The data systems access.) the AIRS Project Scientist, offered a are resource-constrained and effi ciencies status update on the AIRS/AMSU- in hardware, systems, software, algo- 3. Data Subsetting (spatial, temporal A/HSB program. The AIRS/AMSU-A/ rithms, and even products are being and parameter) - The transfer of HSB instruments have been integrated evaluated. While hopeful for additional large data fi les is diffi cult. Several on the Aqua satellite at TRW for resources, all avenues are being pursued users would fi nd the data more the last six months, and many of for producing consistent, timely data manageable if vertical profi les of the comprehensive performance tests sets. A goal is to produce a consistent, selected parameters for specifi ed (all with spectrometer and detectors at one-year data set starting sometime in geographical regions were available. ambient temperature) have been com- 2001. This effort may begin in June 2001, (Subsetting/data mining efforts are pleted. AMSU-A and HSB time code using the best performing algorithms taking place.) issues in the packets are currently being available at that time. It will cover the resolved. The pre-thermal vacuum scan period from November 2000 to Novem- 4. Data Formats - Some users mirror inspection is scheduled for Feb- ber 2001. expressed concern about the data ruary 18. The thermal vacuum test itself only being available in HDF-EOS will allow testing of AIRS detectors at Regarding production status, EDOS is format. (Use of data format transla- the in-orbit temperature of 60 K. working well and reorders of Level 0 tors is being considered.)

5 THE EARTH OBSERVER

Regarding software status, AIRS Prod- 1B, cloud-free data. The AIRS science shows a rainfall decrease during the uct Generation Software (PGS) version team will assist with cloud-free iden- warm phase, perhaps due to changes in 2.1 has been delivered to the GSFC tifi cation, cloud-cleared radiance utili- drop size distribution. DAAC, and version 2.1.5 (the last pre- zation, and the forward and tangent launch PGS delivery) will have the model. The next workshop is scheduled Regarding AMSR-E fi rst light images, fi nal interfaces frozen, plus additional for May 2001. Lobl noted that AMSR-E has a strong Quality Assurance indicators. Level 1B heritage and thus the only new mea- software has been revised based on Some initial thoughts on possible fi rst surements to be highlighted are the data from the Lockheed Martin thermal light images from AIRS/AMSU-A/HSB highest spatial resolution passive-micro- vacuum chamber and has been docu- presented by Aumann include: wave data yet in the extratropics (the mented in the Level 1B Algorithm Theo- TRMM Microwave Imager has similar retical Basis Document version 2.2i. • animation of a global map going resolution in the tropics) and the highest from the top of the atmosphere to 6 GHz resolution yet (50 km vs. SMMR’s Global simulated software has been the surface to illustrate global tem- 120 km). Possible fi rst light images used for software development, incor- perature soundings; include extratropical imagery of rain porating real instrument noise and spec- systems over the land and ocean, sea tral characteristics. The global data fi eld • animation of global maps of several ice, soil moisture, snow cover, oceanic has been based on National Centers days of total water from AMSU to wind fi elds near deep low pressure for Environmental Prediction (NCEP) illustrate water transport; and systems, global imagery of sea surface Aviation forecasts including multi-layer temperature (even through clouds), and clouds, liquid water, surface emissivity, • animation of several days of global improved spatial sampling of rainfall. and surface temperature. A “golden images from an upper tropospheric day” exercise was completed over the sounding channel to illustrate After Lobl, Yasuyuki Ito, the ADEOS-II period January 22-25, 2001. This exercise “water wind.” Science Project Manager at the Earth involved testing the data fl ow, display, Observation Research Center (EORC) retrieval and analysis software. The A special section in the Journal of Geo- of the National Space Development team is currently analyzing the data. physical Research with fi rst results from Agency of Japan (NASDA), presented a AIRS/AMSU-A/HSB is being planned, status update on ADEOS-II and AMSR- Regarding validation activities, the AIRS with refereed papers from each AIRS E/Aqua, plus thoughts on possible fi rst team is working towards the original Science Team member. The papers light images. Ito began with a brief over- schedule of DAAC delivery of validated would be submitted at Launch + 12 view of the Earth observation satellite PGS by Launch + 12 months. Validation months, but will be in print no sooner programs of Japan, including a break- support teams will be integrated into the than 10-12 months after submission. down of the organization of the Offi ce of plan as soon as the teams are offi cially Earth Observation Systems. selected. AMSR-E Teams Next, Ito provided a status update on Aumann reiterated the challenge set Following Aumann, Elena Lobl pre- the ADEOS-II program. The ADEOS-II forth by James Baker of NOAA and Dan sented on behalf of Roy Spencer, the system Proto-Flight Test was completed Goldin of NASA to demonstrate AIRS U.S. AMSR-E Science Team Leader. Lobl in December 2000, and the satellite will data assimilation impact by Launch + noted that the AMSR-E Science Inves- be stored by the end of March 2001. 12 months. To that effect, a workshop tigator-led Processing System (SIPS) Functional tests and additional tests on was held on December 6, 2000, and was should be ready for the Mission Opera- the satellite’s sensors will be conducted, attended by representatives of NCEP, tions Science Systems-2 test. Lobl then with a Post Qualifi cation Review to be the European Centre for Medium-Range described a passive-microwave rainfall held by the end of March 2001, aiming Weather Forecasts, the UK Met. Offi ce, mystery, wherein various estimates of towards a February 2002 launch target. the Canadian Meteorological Center, tropical ocean rainfall change during and the GSFC Data Assimilation Offi ce El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO) The AMSR-E fl ight instrument is under- (DAO). The operational data link via (+10% during the warm phase) are at going a systems test aboard the Aqua NOAA’s National Environmental Satel- least double those inferred from surface spacecraft at TRW, while the Level 1 lite Data and Information Service is in energy and atmospheric radiation bal- data processing system is undergoing place and is currently producing daily ance considerations. Possible explana- its fi rst mission simulation test. The AIRS/AMSU-A/HSB “data” using the tions for these differences include rain- second mission simulation test will be NCEP Aviation forecast model. The cur- fall effi ciency and changes in drop size conducted from April to July 2001. Also, rent data assimilation uses only Level distribution. The TRMM radar actually the Level 2 and 3 data processing system

6 March/April 2001 • Vol. 13 No. 2

is in the manufacturing and test phase. Level 3 images on water vapor, sea sur- to MODIS-Land (see http:// face temperature, and other variables, modarch.gsfc.nasa.gov/MODIS/), Regarding data distribution for and, if feasible, animations using Level there will be a strong emphasis ADEOS-II and AMSR-E, the Earth 1B and/or Level 2 data. on piggyback validation activities Observation Center (EOC) will be the with AERONET and FLUXNET. receiving, archiving, processing, and Discussion MODIS-Ocean will conduct an distributing center while the EORC will AVHRR pathfi nder/MODIS com- serve as the algorithm development and Following Ito’s presentation, Parkinson parison, conduct cruises with a calibration/validation center. Validated led a brief general discussion on Aqua marine interferometer, and utilize Level 1 and Level 2 data will be avail- fi rst light images, including possibilities the MODIS Ocean Buoy. MODIS- able at the EOC 12 months after launch, for highlighting, such as improved Atmosphere will utilize land valida- but PI’s will have access to the non-val- resolution, morning/afternoon tion sites and fi eld campaigns such idated data before their public release. contrasts, and the full hydrological as ARM, AERONET, FIRE-ACE, and NASDA and NASA will implement cat- cycle. Barkstrom noted that we need SAFARI. alog, browse, and order interoperability to move beyond highlighting high-res- for the ADEOS-II phase. olution images and show how these • Bruce Wielicki reported on the data can affect people’s lives. He also CERES Team’s calibration and vali- Ito noted that geophysical products mentioned that it would be helpful to dation efforts for the Terra CERES from the Global Imager (GLI) on stress the combination of instruments and the TRMM CERES. Most CERES ADEOS-II will include aerosol param- and their technical differences. Bruce validation makes use of long-term eters, cloud parameters, chlorophyll-a, Wielicki of the CERES Team added that validation sites such as ARM, BSRN, colored dissolved organic matter, sus- the images should focus on a common and AERONET sites for clouds, pended solid weight, sea surface tem- theme, such as the water cycle. Aumann aerosols, and surface radiative perature, vegetation index, and snow mentioned that television weather fore- fl uxes. Current CERES fi eld plans grain size and impurities. Additionally, casters are now claiming a 5-day accu- include the CERES ARM Validation the SeaWinds sensor will measure sea racy and that there is a large public Experiment (CAVE), the Chesapeake surface wind vectors, while the Polar- awareness of this, leading to the sugges- Lighthouse and Aircraft Measure- ization and Directionality of the Earth’s tion that maybe we should highlight the ments for Satellites (CLAMS), sched- Refl ectances (POLDER) will measure impact that Aqua will have on weather uled for July 12 - August 1, 2001, and clouds and aerosol parameters, and the forecasting. It was also noted that many the CERES Ocean Validation Experi- Improved Limb Atmospheric Spectrom- of the topics could be the same as those ment (COVE). The CERES fi eld val- eter II (ILAS-II) will measure ozone and in the upcoming Aqua Science Writers’ idation plans are detailed on the CERES Web site at http://www- HNO3. The geophysical products from Guide. AMSR on ADEOS-II and AMSR-E on cave.larc.nasa.gov/cave/. Aqua include cloud water, water vapor, Validation precipitation, sea surface wind speed, • Eric Fetzer explained that on-orbit sea surface temperature, sea ice, snow Following the general discussion, Peter validations for the AIRS Team will depth, and soil moisture. Hildebrand, the Aqua Deputy Project focus strongly on operational rawin- Scientist for Validation, presented a sondes and dedicated radiosondes There was an AMSR PI meeting in summary of the Aqua Validation Work- at times of overpass, plus observa- Kyoto, Japan from October 30 to ing Group meeting held at GSFC on Feb- tions of the marine surface state November 1, 2000 and a joint U.S./ ruary 7, 2001. In attendance at the Feb- from buoys. Soundings will come Japan AMSR/AMSR-E, team meeting ruary 7 meeting were approximately 20 from ARM-CART validation sites, held in conjunction with an Inter- participants from the MODIS, CERES, Brazil, and Australia. Fetzer noted national Geoscience and Remote Sens- AIRS, and AMSR science teams. At the that the full validation plan is on ing Symposium in Honolulu in July meeting, validation plans for each Aqua the AIRS Web site, http://www- 2000. Currently, an AMSR/AMSR-E PI instrument were reported on by instru- airs.jpl.nasa.gov/. meeting is tentatively planned for the ment team representatives. In summary: November 2001 to January 2002 time • Elena Lobl noted the AMSR-E Web frame. • Vince Salomonson reported the site at http://wwwghcc.msfc. MODIS Team’s scheduled com- nasa.gov/AMSR/. AMSR-E ocean Ito suggested, as possible fi rst light parisons with other satellites, product validation will utilize buoy, images from AMSR-E, a selection of ground measurements and science radiosonde, and satellite observa- high-resolution Level 1B images and campaigns, and models. Specifi c tions. Sea ice product validation will

7 THE EARTH OBSERVER

use ship and aircraft campaigns, as siderable interest in the formation-fl ying initial orbit phasing relative to the morn- well as MODIS and Landsat obser- concept at NASA Headquarters and that ing constellation must be considered vations. Rainfall products will be his term for the afternoon satellite for- to avoid ground station confl icts with validated through several fi eld cam- mation is the “A-Train”, with Aqua those spacecraft. Aqua will need to time paigns using a ground X-band radar at the lead and Aura at the tail. He the ascent maneuvers so that after it and data from the Eureka and the showed an impressive animation of the reaches its fi nal orbit position, it will not Kwajelein radars, plus comparisons A-Train in orbit and mentioned several fl y over the polar ground stations at the with the TRMM Precipitation Radar important complementarities amongst same time as other spacecraft. The pre- and the TRMM Microwave Imager. the instruments on the fi ve A-Train sat- liminary Aqua ascent plan to 705 km Snow products will be validated on ellites. consists of four maneuvers to be com- 25-km grid, regional, and river basin pleted by day 14. The synodic period scales using aircraft observations. Schoeberl then introduced Rich Macin- between spacecraft at 695 km and 705 Soil product validation will utilize tosh and asked him to review formation km is 32 days; this is the maximum time many land surface hydrology experi- fl ying requirements and the Aqua we would have to wait for proper initial ments around the globe, modeling requirements for initial orbit phasing. phasing before starting ascent maneu- and data assimilation, and compari- Formation fl ying of Aqua with Aura vers. sons with AIRS and MODIS. requires that both spacecraft must main- tain a ground track on the World Refer- If Aqua is required to phase with the Hildebrand noted that common themes ence System (WRS) using frequent burns morning constellation, the time needed surrounding Aqua validation plans (once every three months) to counteract to perform the ascent to mission altitude include the upcoming announcement atmospheric drag. A ground track con- could increase signifi cantly depending concerning the pending Aqua validation trol of ±20 km results in minor varia- on the initial phasing at launch. The proposals and the expected recompe- tions in spacecraft separation of ±43 sec- best-case scenario has an initial phasing tition of the science team efforts. The onds along-track. The largest effect on at launch that allows the fi nal desired next steps for the Aqua Validation the spacecraft separation over time is position to be achieved with no changes Working Group will be to evaluate from the difference in ascending node to the nominal maneuver plan. The the common validation needs and to mean local time (MLT) between the worst-case scenario has an initial phas- develop common calibration/validation two orbit planes. While both spacecraft ing at launch that requires a delay of venues. The next meeting will take maintain their ground tracks, separation one synodic period before starting the place on August 1, 2001, the day before will change gradually as the MLT ascent. In the latter case, 32 days would the next Aqua Science Working Group changes. be added to the 9-day maneuver period, meeting. for a total of 41 days. However, from Both spacecraft must perform occasional the Terra experience, this would not nec- During the validation discussion, inclination maneuvers to control MLT essarily preclude instrument operation Wielicki pointed out the need to sort drift so minimum desired separation (on during the ascent period. out the defi nitions of beta versus provi- the order of 15 minutes) is not violated. sional versus validated data products. The Aqua MLT is allowed to range from Wayne Esaias, the MODIS-Ocean Group Salomonson agreed, adding that it is 1:30 p.m. to 1:45 p.m., while the Aura leader, offered the suggestion that in probably an issue most appropriately MLT is allowed to range from 1:30 addition to formation fl ying of the addressed by the EOS Investigators’ p.m. to 2:00 p.m. Aqua and Aura A-Train we should look into the pos- Working Group. must agree on desired MLT ranges sibility of having the daytime path of to maintain separation; this implies an the Aqua MODIS match the previous or Formation Flying of the EOS agreement on the frequency of incli- next nighttime path of the Terra MODIS. Afternoon Satellites nation maneuvers. Smaller MLT range implies smaller, more frequent inclina- The next speaker, Bruce Wielicki from After the lunch break, the meeting tion burns—1 or 2 per year versus 1 or 2 the CERES Team, continued with the reconvened at 1:30 p.m. with Parkinson over the lifetime of the mission. formation-fl ying theme by elaborating introducing the next set of three talks, on the synergisms of the train. Wielicki all centered on the issue of formation Macintosh noted that, during the ascent reiterated that the A-Train consists of fl ying of the afternoon satellites Aqua, phase, Aqua will perform maneuvers to Aqua, PICASSO, CloudSat, PARASOL, PICASSO, CloudSat, PARASOL, and synchronize with the WRS, and could and Aura, with Aqua leading the train. Aura. The fi rst speaker in the group, normally synchronize with any WRS The nominal plan for the others is to Mark Schoeberl, the Aura Project Scien- path since it is the fi rst spacecraft in precess across the Aqua-MODIS scan- tist, began by noting that there is con- the afternoon constellation. However, ning path.

8 March/April 2001 • Vol. 13 No. 2

Wielicki explained that together, researchers will be able to obtain appro- enhances the science of both missions. PICASSO, CloudSat, and Aqua will priate subsets of Level 1 data from the allow studies of cloud feedbacks in the other missions. Stephens then presented some examples climate system in ways never before of CloudSat synergy with MODIS, possible. These studies would involve Stephens elaborated on how information CERES, and AMSR. He noted that processes in atmospheric state, cloud from one sensor can enhance the prod- MODIS optical depth provides indepen- physics, cloud optics, and top of atmo- ucts derived from others, with the pos- dent information that more tightly con- sphere, surface, and atmospheric radia- sibility of development of new products strains the relation between the power tive heating profi les. Additionally, for- and an opening of the possibilities for returned from radar and the water and mation fl ying will be useful for cloud addressing new science. ice content of the radar volume, thus validation with CloudSat and PICASSO. improving retrievals. Variables include cloud amount, cloud Stephens then spoke briefl y on the top height, cloud physical thickness, CloudSat mission, noting that it will Finally, Stephens stressed the impor- cloud base, cloud visible optical depth, include the fi rst 94 GHz spaceborne tance of coordinating CloudSat and cloud infrared spectral emissivity, cloud radar system. A unique feature is that Aqua validation efforts, noting also that liquid water path, cloud ice water path, the radar is extremely sensitive and has the need exists to establish a data fl ow cloud particle phase, and cloud particle a wide dynamic range. It sees the major- dialog and subsequent plan of action size. ity of clouds, from thin cirrus clouds among members of the constellation to deep convective clouds producing instrument teams. The A-Train will also facilitate aerosol heavy precipitation. The CloudSat sci- validation. The vertical locations of aero- ence objectives are to: Recompetition sol layers are critical for source region back-trajectories, and the locations of • measure the vertical structure of Following Stephens, Jack Kaye from cloud/aerosol in the same vertical layers clouds and quantify their ice and NASA Headquarters spoke on the plans are critical for indirect aerosol forcing. water content, in development for dealing with the MODIS can obtain good aerosol data upcoming expiration of science team over dark surfaces, but the A-Train will • predict clouds and precipitation, contracts. This will involve a separation allow us to obtain such data also over of the science efforts into two main cat- snow, ice, and all other surfaces. The • improve weather prediction and egories. First, the Core Instrument Team optimal scenario is to combine PICASSO clarify climatic processes, Activities, including algorithm mainte- with MODIS and PARASOL. Wielicki nance and key aspects of data product noted that precession across the MODIS • improve cloud information from validation, will be covered under an swath would help verify causes/physics other satellite systems (particularly appropriate, somewhat restricted solici- of angle dependent aerosol cloud prop- Aqua), tation. This will maintain the continuity erties from passive imagers providing and heritage to insure high quality data global climate data. • investigate the effects of aerosols on products for release to the broad science clouds and precipitation, and community. It is expected that support Next, Graeme Stephens of Colorado for these activities will decrease over State University presented on CloudSat • investigate the utility of the 94 GHz time as the processing algorithms sta- and the afternoon constellation. He reit- radar for observing precipitation in bilize and the initial validation studies erated that the combination of constella- the context of cloud properties from prove successful. Both Terra and Aqua tion observations well exceeds the sum space. instrument team activities will likely be of the individual parts and explained covered in one solicitation. that part of his purpose in speaking at Stephens then commented on two for- this meeting is to convince Aqua sci- mation-fl ying scenarios. The original Second, an NRA will be released to entists of the importance of CloudSat scenario involved CloudSat in formation solicit from the Earth sciences commu- contributions. The CloudSat team has with PICASSO-CENA (and more loosely nity long-term, multi-platform, multi- developed optimized retrieval methods with Aqua) to provide essentially instrument Science Data Analysis inves- that combine heterogeneous (multi-sen- instantaneous lidar/radar views of the tigations. Investigations will be sought sor) information derived from the con- atmosphere. The current scenario that address questions relating to dis- stellation. This, however, requires avail- involves CloudSat fl ying in a tight for- cipline areas and key science themes ability of the data. A critical issue thus mation with Aqua, aligning CloudSat rather than addressing single instru- becomes the exchange of data and how radar with nadir pixels of MODIS. The ment data sets. It is expected that quickly and at what cost the CloudSat combination of Aqua and CloudSat data support for these investigations will

9 THE EARTH OBSERVER

increase over time as the data products ing of the EOS production environment. • TDRSS is assumed to be available as from the EOS platforms reach appropri- scheduled. The Project has requested ate stages of maturity. Researchers will Barkstrom noted that the instrument nearly continuous coverage for the be allowed to use alternative algorithms teams have made considerable improve- fi rst three hours after launch and from those used in the standard prod- ments and effi ciencies to codes and algo- two 20-minute TDRSS contacts per ucts, although the funding here will not rithms. However, increased hardware orbit thereafter. be for new algorithm development. capacity is needed above the 1996 base- line to generate the higher-order geo- • Timeline is based on the nominal With these two types of solicitations, physical data products already commit- plan and does not account for con- the goal is to fund activities that carry ted for Terra and planned Aqua science. tingencies. the EOS project through transitions from Provisional cost estimates suggest that a pre-launch initial algorithm develop- much-desired three-fold increase in pro- • Scheduling of the MODIS roll ment, to post-launch algorithm refi ne- duction capacity at the DAACs and SIPS maneuver does not yet account for ment and stability, to initial validation could be obtained with a cost of approx- moon phase. studies, and fi nally to broader validation imately 7% of the annual ESDIS budget. studies and uses of the data products to • Instrument scheduling is based on Aqua Integrated Mission Timeline address and answer important scientifi c results of the last IMT review questions. The intention is to shift fund- as well as continuing information After Barkstrom, Fran Wasiak of the ing dollars more and more from algo- exchange with Instrument Opera- Aqua Instrument Planning Group pre- rithm development and maintenance to tions Teams and TRW, the Aqua sented an update on the Aqua Inte- scientifi c analysis. spacecraft developer. grated Mission Timeline (IMT). The third IMT review was held on October Data Processing Issues surrounding instrument com- 17, 2000, and was attended by repre- manding during the fi rst two weeks sentatives from the Aqua project, TRW, Following Kaye, Bruce Barkstrom, rep- include the fact that spacecraft and Instrument Operations Teams, and the resenting Chris Justice and the Science AMSR-E RunUp activities occupy most Flight Operations Team (FOT). The cur- Working Group on Data (SWGD), pre- of the fi rst two weeks. Teams still rent version of the IMT is based on sented on Terra and Aqua data process- have the option to schedule benign all the IMT reviews (March, July, and ing issues, beginning with an overview activities with their instruments during October 2000). Some adjustments in the of a workshop held on June 1-2, 2000, this period if they choose to do so, and Aqua maneuver plan are to move the at GSFC. The June 2000 workshop was MODIS may choose to perform transi- MODIS yaw maneuver from days 26-27 called to evaluate how well the EOS tion to the ON state earlier than day and 30-31 to days 32-33 and 37-38 and Data and Information System (EOSDIS) 15 now that AMSR-E RunUp has been add a CERES yaw maneuver on day 41. supports current and upcoming EOS shortened. One important maneuver that has not missions, to determine how require- changed is the deep-space pitch maneu- ments have changed, and to recommend It is the AIRS Team’s preference not ver scheduled for day 55. Plans call to solutions to meet evolving needs. to perform deep-space constant pitch baseline the IMT in March or April 2001. maneuvers, and the current IMT The participants at the June 2000 work- assumes no pitch maneuvers for the Assumptions guiding the IMT team shop discussed the then current oper- scheduling of AIRS activities, despite include: ating status of EOSDIS, in particular the planned pitch maneuver on day 55. the lower than expected throughput and • Activities, in general, are scheduled Under some scenarios, AIRS would not how it should be addressed. They noted to occur during the FOT prime shift. complete its activation checkout until that the February 1996 baseline sizing after the Launch-plus-90-days threshold. used to implement EOSDIS is not ade- • Per FOT direction, only one EOS Hence, AIRS has provided a preliminary quate to support current science data Polar Ground Network pass is used alternate plan of activities that needs to needs. Because that baseline was estab- per orbit. be implemented into the Baseline. lished before the algorithms were developed and could be run in the pro- • Instruments use only Alaska and The slip in the MODIS yaw maneuvers duction environment, it did not have a Svalbard ground stations. Spacecraft is primarily because the MODIS Team clear empirical basis. Terra instrument bus uses Alaska, Svalbard, and Wal- has elected to wait until day 15 to begin team representatives presented revised lops. McMurdo is not available for the outgassing procedure and prefers 14 system sizing estimates based on current use. days of outgassing rather than the ear- experience and improved understand- lier scheduled 11 days. MODIS activities

10 March/April 2001 • Vol. 13 No. 2

remain in the same order, slipping the fi rst set of yaw maneuvers to days 32-33. The second set of MODIS yaw maneu- vers no longer needs to be delayed for MODIS Science Team Meeting CERES, and MODIS may opt to perform — Rebecca Lindsey ([email protected]), SSAI both sets of yaw maneuvers on four con- secutive days. MODIS SCIENCE TEAM MEETING, January 24 and 25, 2001 MODLAND Validation Workshop, January 22 and 23, 2001 The new review version of the IMT is MODIS Ocean Team Meeting, January 23 and 26, 2001 MODIS Characterization Support Team Meeting, January 23, 2001 to be released on March 30, while the MODIS Atmosphere Group Meeting, January 23, 2001 Baseline IMT is to be released two weeks MODIS Land Group Meeting, January 26, 2001 before Mission Rehearsal #1. Finally, the Product Development Tracking Tool has been proposed for IMT Change Request submittal. The MODIS Science Team Meeting and Outreach affi liated meetings convened in Colum- bia, MD, January 22-26, 2001. This arti- processing Steve Cole of the EOS Science News cle summarizes the activities of the systems are and Information Team at GSFC gave two-day plenary session on January 24 effi cient and that they are able to supply the last formal presentation of the day. and 25. Please see the “Meetings” sec- suffi cient power to process and repro- The EOS Science News and Information tion of the MODIS home page (http:/ cess data, determining how to support Team supports media outreach efforts /modis.gsfc.nasa.gov) for the complete MODIS Direct Readout users, and pre- of all EOS missions and researchers. meeting minutes for this meeting, as paring for Aqua. Cole noted that this is a critical time in well as other MODIS-related meetings the planning for media activities related for which minutes are available. Terra Status to the launch of Aqua. Input from the Vincent Salomonson, MODIS Science Aqua Science Working Group on the Team leader, began the meeting by Paul Ondrus gave a brief history of key stories that the media and public emphasizing the MODIS team’s com- Terra since launch. The high points should know about Aqua and its science mitment to aligning its efforts with are that all major systems are working needs to be given soon so it can be the Earth Science Enterprise’s research within specs, the craft is producing used to develop various media materi- strategy. He expressed his enthusiasm enough power, it is collecting all science als, including a “Science Writers’ Guide about the early results coming from the data, and it is satisfying pointing to Aqua.” team. MODIS’ major instrument systems requirements. The biggest challenge has work, the spectral bands are properly been managing the solid state recorder. Science Writers’ Guide topics should located, signal to noise ratios are good, Terra makes 4.8 TB of data each month; highlight key advantages of Aqua, and the gains appear to be stable. Data in one year, Terra has doubled the either from its new instruments or processing is stabilizing and products amount of Earth science data available from the usefulness of its data in are being produced and archived. The to the scientifi c community. Ondrus combination with other data, including calibration and characterization efforts reported that the deep space maneuver data from Terra. An initial list of pos- overcame several challenges this fi rst is still being negotiated with the Project sible Aqua research highlights was pre- year after launch. Many of the MODIS and the other instrument teams. sented. Topics included: improvements products have been released including in weather forecasting, sea-ice monitor- some Level 3 (L3) products from MODIS Status ing, snow-cover mapping and runoff every discipline group, and the team estimates, complete ocean color cover- is working toward improving product Bruce Guenther, MODIS Characteriza- age, diurnal cycles of clouds and solar quality through instrument character- tion Support Team Leader, gave a brief radiation, surface heat budget of the izations and validation. summary of instrument status, starting ocean, acceleration of the hydrological with the year’s highlights, among them cycle, insight into atmospheric water Salomonson concluded the talk with MODIS’ successful activation and com- processes, mapping wildfi re hazards, a summary of challenges that the mand operation. MODIS L1B data were and soil moisture content. Comments team would be addressing in the the fi rst Terra data to be publicly on this list and suggestions of specifi c future: reaching a stable instrument released; the solid-state recorder deliv- characterization state, ensuring data (Continued on page 17) ered 22.9 TB of data in 2000. The past

11 THE EARTH OBSERVER

three months have been in a stable low distribution is that the DAACs have ocean color product could be used to operation in the best confi guration with a hard time fi lling large orders (they track changes in the type and concen- respect to minimization of electronic have received individual orders for all tration of phytoplankton that correlate cross talk, and signal-to-noise ratios are MODIS data). At the same time, they with changes in the polar front. These exceeding the team’s best expectations. are not receiving enough small orders to episodic changes may have a great Guenther summarized areas that have distribute at their capacity. The results impact on oceanic carbon fl ux. Estimates been or are being studied for the of an informal survey indicate that users of carbon fl ux and Ocean Net Primary Level 1B, including calibration of the are aware of MODIS data, but are con- Productivity (NPP) vary widely, and refl ected solar bands, testing of the solar cerned about data maturity, had diffi - MODIS’ new fl uorescence-detection diffuser stability monitor (SDSM), chan- culties with the ordering system, were capability may dramatically improve nel-to-channel and band-to-band co-reg- unable to download the large fi les, or these estimates. Phytoplankton in nutri- istration, response versus scan angle were unfamiliar with HDF. Kempler ent-poor waters show increased fl uo- differences, and mirror-side uncertainty. reported that the DAACs are currently rescence because their photosynthesis A history of code and Look-Up Table working to resolve all of the issues is limited. MODIS’ ability to detect (LUT) changes is available on the MCST within their control. The GES DAAC this physiology from space provides Web site. is preparing for MODIS reprocessing. an unprecedented opportunity to refi ne Their current hardware capacity will estimates of NPP. Initial results indicate MODIS Data: Acquisition, allow 1X forward processing and 1X that the fl uorescence capability on Production, and Distribution reprocessing. By April they will have MODIS is outstanding. 2X reprocessing from the installation of Ed Masuoka, Science Data Support Aqua hardware, and they are pulling Peter Minnett and Bob Evans summa- Team Leader, presented a status report together all the necessary L0 and ancil- rized the status of the MODIS Sea Sur- on the data production system. Over lary data they need. face Temperature (SST) product. MODIS 160 TB of MODIS data have been pro- makes SST measurements in conven- duced and stored at the three “MODIS” Ocean Team Update tional thermal infrared bands as well as DAACs: National Snow & Ice Data mid-wave infrared bands for the fi rst Center (NSIDC), EROS Data Center Wayne Esaias, MODIS Ocean Team time, providing unprecedented accuracy (EDC), and Goddard Earth Science Leader, began his ocean discipline goals for measuring SST—to within 0.2 (GES). MODAPS delivers about 474 group summary by saying that the K. While characterization, calibration, GB/day to the DAACs, and over 400 team’s progress this year has been sub- and validation are still ongoing, prelimi- GB/day to the SCFs. Production of L2 stantial. All ocean parameters are in pro- nary results are encouraging. A MODIS through L4 science products is above duction through L4 and are approaching map of the eastern Mediterranean Sea the 2/96 baseline of 229GB/day but science quality, with near-daily, global, showed circulation patterns typical for less than the 460GB/day that the Sci- 1-km coverage. Provisional products the region and revealed eddy sub-struc- ence Team has requested for MODIS in will be released over the next few tures not discernable with AVHRR data. the SWAMP Working Group on Data months. The fi ne structure seen in In a practical application, the team used (SWGD) report. Upcoming hardware products such as the 443-nm water- MODIS SST data to show that a fi sh and software changes to the MODAPS leaving radiance and chlorophyll are kill in the Gulf of Oman was likely the system should increase throughput to quite impressive, and surpass the capa- result of a cold-water upwelling event about 2X. SDST hopes to have Version bilities of SeaWiFS. The single outstand- that brought oxygen-poor waters to the 2 software in full production by the end ing issue for the team is understanding surface, and not due to the release of of March. This should help MODAPS to mirror-side uncertainty, a process that ballast water from a U.S. ship. begin to work off its backlog, which is may take many months and almost about two months behind real time. certainly will require the deep space The Ocean Team has introduced cor- maneuver. It is possible that even with rections for response-versus-scan angle Steve Kempler, GES DAAC manager, the deep space maneuver, the problem differences, polarization, detector gains, reported that 167 TB of MODIS data would not be solved, but the team feels sun glint, and aerosol radiance. Further have been archived; the average is about that without the maneuver, there is no insight will be gained by producing 21.2 TB per month, based on the last chance. water-leaving radiance and chlorophyll three months of steady production. With fi elds separately for mirror sides 1 and a compression level of 1.5 to 1, the total Mark Abbott gave an overview of the 2. The group will use MOBY/MOCE & capacity for the three MODIS DAACs MODIS Ocean Color products and their SeaWiFS data for validation of MODIS is about 1060 TB. Current distribution use in studying biogeochemistry. Abbott optical data, and they will use drifting is below capacity. One reason for the showed examples of how the MODIS buoys and M-AERI for validation of

12 March/April 2001 • Vol. 13 No. 2

thermal data. For Aqua, the Team can that comparison of MODIS data to the opportunity to validate measurements use Terra data to help in validation. MODIS Airborne Simulator fl own on of aerosol retrievals over the ocean. ER-2 during September showed that IR Chris Moeller reported on radiometric Atmosphere Team Update calibration was quite good. MODIS sees comparisons made during various fi eld more layers and structure of clouds than campaigns, including WISC-T2000, Michael King, Atmosphere Team HIRS, and the 8.6, 11, and 12 mm chan- SAFARI 2000, and CLAP-T2000. MAS Leader, summarized the status of each nels are being used for an ice vs. water versus MODIS scatter plots show very of the team member’s products, high- classifi cation, which is a new capability good agreements for bands 20, 31, 32, lighting MODIS’ new capabilities for of MODIS. Menzel expressed his excite- and 35. The team is making small cor- remote sensing of the atmosphere, ment about the MODIS Direct Broadcast rections for atmospheric window bands including CO2 slicing at high spatial Receiving Station established at the Uni- with high confi dence and is validating resolution, cirrus cloud detection over versity of Wisconsin-Madison’s Coop- these data to within 0.5°C. snow and ice, and aerosol retrieval over erative Institute for Meteorological land. All MODIS atmosphere products Satellite Studies. They have collected Land Team Update have been released at this point, includ- data from 500 Terra overpasses, and by ing L3 daily, eight-day, and monthly the end of January they should be regu- Chris Justice, Land Team Leader, products, and they believe their product larly making the most recent week of reported that production of land prod- maturity will move from beta to provi- data available via ftp. ucts has been steady since August of sional in April or May. King concluded 2000 and includes everything up to the by pointing out that the atmosphere dis- Bo-Cai Gao presented many examples monthly products, except the climate cipline group Web site has many data of preliminary results from the MODIS monthly grid (CMG) products. Among tools available that were developed in near-IR water vapor and thin cirrus the most outstanding issues for the land house, including tools for subsetting and products. MODIS water vapor retrievals team are cloud mask refi nements, data visualization. over Tibet, India, South Africa, and processing and reprocessing resources, Spain all showed good detail and cor- validation of global products, and avail- A team of presenters led by Yoram relate well with reasonable expectations, ability of data subsetting and projection Kaufman summarized the aerosol opti- e.g., high over vegetation and coastal tools at the DAACs. Justice concluded cal properties product suite. Presenters margins. There is a 20% bias in water by highlighting some of the team’s addressed the physical basis of the vapor measurements seen by MODIS, achievements, among them developing retrieval algorithms, including how the which may be due to line parameters new products, getting data out to the team had added a standard deviation compiled on HITRAN96, and which will community in the year post launch, and threshold to refi ne the cloud mask to be corrected with further validation. developing new paradigms for quality separate cloud and dust from aerosol. Quick-look images over South America, assurance with the LDOPE facility and The team has developed an automatic Canada, and the Arctic show that the Land Product Validation. procedure that pulls AERONET data 1.38 mm cirrus detection channel is pro- for MODIS validation. The results show viding excellent results. Cross-talk pres- Eric Vermote gave a presentation that excellent agreement. MODIS aerosol ent in the 1.38 mm channel on Terra covered energy balance and radiation optical thickness (AOT) retrievals over MODIS should be absent on Aqua. The budget products. MODIS surface refl ec- ocean show only a 2% deviation. The water vapor and cirrus products should tance is much improved over heritage effective radius measurements are also prove to be quite useful for hydrological instruments, and areas for improvement quite good—within ± 0.1 mm. As with and meteorological research. have been prioritized. The algorithm ocean retrievals, there is good correla- includes a “minimum blue” atmospheric tion between MODIS and AERONET Steve Platnick reported that the valida- correction plus a shadow fi lter, as well AOT measurements over land. As an tion efforts include their cloud mask, as a minimum view angle and maxi- example of how the aerosol products cloudy skies, and clear skies data mum NDVI. Vermote then spoke about could be integrated into climate studies, products. They compare MODIS data the BRDF/albedo product, which is a Kaufman showed how MODIS top- with existing satellites and algorithms 16-day, 1-km gridded product that pro- of-the-atmosphere data combined with or other MODIS products. They are vides the albedo, surface refl ectance, AERONET surface measurements also using data from fi xed sites, e.g., and surface anisotropy. This product is allowed them to calculate the effect on AERONET, as well as fi eld campaigns, useful to climate modelers because it atmospheric heating of smoke in Brazil. e.g., PRIDE and SAFARI 2000. In PRIDE, allows them to compute albedo and sur- the team deployed an array of ground- face refl ectance at any view angle or Paul Menzel began his presentation on based, ship-based, and airborne sun geometry. the cloud product suite by reporting photometers in order to increase its

13 THE EARTH OBSERVER

The next products in the surface energy important consideration for the LAI many of which are anthropogenic. The product suite were the snow products. product is the presence of cloud contam- product characterizes fi ve types of land The cryosphere team released snow ination, and the team encourages users cover: forest, non-forest, bare, water, products beginning in September, and to investigate QC bits two and four. In and burn scar. Townshend showed an they are providing special versions of validation comparisons with Ikonos and example of the product’s ability to these on a climate-modeling grid as the ETM+, MODIS appears to be doing detect fl oods in Cambodia and burn well. The team is validating their prod- well at most sites. scars in the western U.S. this past ucts through fi eldwork and ER-2 aircraft summer. A case study of fi res along measurements, as well as through com- Running wrapped up the presentation the Montana/Idaho border addressed parison with other snow maps, such by discussing the status of the Level the question of whether roadless areas as NOAA operational maps. The fi nal 4, eight-day Photosynthesis/Annual Pri- burned faster than areas with roads. product in the suite that Vermote dis- mary Productivity product. He prefaced Using the VCC product, they were able cussed was the Land Surface Tempera- his discussion by saying that he was to show that the presence or absence of ture and Emissivity product, the daily sorry to have to report that he wouldn’t roads had no impact on whether an area version of which has been released have any results to show because burned. in beta version since late July 2000. numerous setbacks had hampered prod- The product has had quite a bit of uct development. Errors in the DAO The last products were the fi re and validation, including comparison with meteorology inputs were the most seri- burned area products. Townshend indi- ground-based measurements at grass- ous problem. The DAO was aware of the cated that the switch to B-side in land and rice fi eld sites in California. problem, but the fi x didn’t go in until November has improved the perfor- Steve Running introduced the next November. The team is now waiting for mance of the fi re bands, and calibration group of land presentations, which MODAPS to reach that date, and then is still ongoing. Three of the six fi re focused on Land Biophysical Parame- they will make their next maps. products are released: the active fi re ters. The fi rst presenter in the group detection product (L2 swath); the Level was Alfredo Huete who talked about The fi nal land discipline presentation 3, 1-km gridded product; and the the Vegetation Index products. MODIS was given by John Townshend, who Level 3, 5-km, daily global browse. produces two indices at 16-day and summarized the Land Cover/Land Use The MODIS fi re products successfully monthly intervals: Normalized Differ- Change Products. The Land Cover prod- detected Australian fi res in October, and ence Vegetation Index (NDVI) and the uct provides a simple land-cover cate- the data can be correlated with the Enhanced Vegetation Index (EVI). The gorization for climate and carbon cycle aerosol products to give an interdis- indices come in four resolutions: 250 m, models; it uses the IGBP-DIS scheme, ciplinary view of the event. Product 500 m, 1 km, and 25 km. Evaluation and relies on more inputs than previous QA has included numerous fi eld cam- of MODIS data from several fi eld cam- versions, including nadir-corrected sur- paigns, including SAFARI 2000 and sites paigns both in the U.S. and abroad face refl ectance, VI, snow cover, and in the western U.S., and comparisons shows that agreement is quite good LST. The classifi cation uses both super- with other sensors, including AVHRR, in many environments, especially those vised and non-parametric approaches. ASTER, MAS, Landsat-7, and Ikonos. without aerosols. Huete showed exam- The non-parametric approach is based Dorothy Hall and Jeff Morisette dis- ples of the products’ application to on neural networks, and draws from cussed the MODLAND validation activ- regions in the Amazon. One signifi cant databases from all over the globe. ities. Hall reported that the Data issue for the team is determining the Townshend then discussed the Vegeta- Assimilation Offi ce and the modeling relationship between MODIS and the tion Continuous Fields (VCF) and Veg- community are ready to use MODIS test AVHRR time-series. MODIS is far more etative Cover Conversion (VCC). The data for the month of November, and sensitive, and is not as subject to water VCF product seeks to overcome fi xed she believes that the metrics will show vapor contamination in humid sites. So boundaries between classifi cation types, signifi cant improvement in the models’ MODIS signals are much higher than and thus to provide data on areas output. Morisette said that fi eld data AVHRR in those regions. of vegetation transition. Compared to are being collected at a number of Landsat and AVHRR, MODIS maps are sites. The validation strategy includes Ranga Myneni discussed the Leaf Area much richer. Validation will be con- collecting several layers of remote sens- Index (LAI) and the Fraction of Photo- ducted with high and very high-resolu- ing data ranging from MODIS down synthetically Active Radiation (FPAR). tion data (from Ikonos) at locations in to Ikonos resolution, and then comple- The products were fi rst released in the U.S. and Zambia. menting these with fi eld data. Among August 2000, and they look quite good. the concerns raised at the Land Group’s Increasingly more complete coverage is The VCC product identifi es areas of Validation workshop was the avail- available from the EDC DAAC. An particular concern for land use change, ability of stable MODIS products, and

14 March/April 2001 • Vol. 13 No. 2

the availability of coincident Terra data Wickland summarized the Enterprise’s will be kept for six months and deleted (MODIS, MISR, and ASTER) is a con- approach for determining priority of thereafter. This assumption is for sizing cern. There are reprocessing issues projects. Wickland also discussed priori- purposes only and the instrument teams for validating data products to be ties for research and fi eld campaigns. can negotiate with the DAACs on what used operationally. Reprocessing targets data are stored versus deleted. In addi- include four Bigfoot sites, LAI cam- Interagency Use of MODIS Data tion, for budgeting purposes, the fol- paigns in Finland and Canada, and lowing “rolling archive” strategy is SAFARI 2000 wet and dry seasons. Bruce Ramsay explained that NOAA’s assumed in sizing the archive: decision to use MODIS data for oper- MODIS Geolocation Status ational and evaluation was based on • Level 0 data are retained indefi nitely; the desire to reduce the risk in the • Level 1A data are deleted 6 months Robert Wolfe reported that they have transition from POES AVHRR to the after processing to Level 1B (except met the geolocation accuracy specifi ca- NPOESS VIIRS era at NOAA. Ramsay that ASTER Level 1A data is retained tion of 150 m (1 sigma) and are making said there is a NOAA-NESDIS server indefi nitely and AMSR-E and GLAS progress toward the accuracy goal of 50 at NASA GSFC Building 32. With this Level 1A data is treated as if it were m (1 sigma). The Land Group’s 250-m system, NOAA is processing a subset of Level 1B); resolution products drive the goal. In MODIS data within a 3-hour window. March, SDST reduced geolocation error In the summer of 2001, they expect to • Level 1B data are deleted 6 months from 1.7 km to 500 m RMS, and then be able to distribute MODIS subsets after being superseded by reprocessed further reduced the error to within 100 of products to the NOAA community. Level 1B data; m RMS in June 2000. Further correction NOAA has now laid the groundwork that will bring MODIS to its goal is for processing and distributing data • Level 2 data are deleted 6 months expected in February 2001. SDST’s next in this experimental mode for use in after Level 3 processing (except that steps include examining a possible con- NOAA operational purposes. MISR, GLAS, and MLS Level 2 data is fusion between time and pitch biases treated as if it were Level 3); and and looking at time-dependent trends in Teruyuki Nakajima and Takashi Naka- the data. jima spoke about MODIS data use in • Level 3 data is deleted 6 months the Global Land Imager (GLI) project. after being superseded by reprocessed MODIS Direct Broadcast NASDA has developed a command and Level 3 data. control script for converting MODIS The need for deletion arises in practice Jim Dodge reported that there is now Level 1B data to GLI format. They only if the capacity is exceeded by the complete coverage of the United States used rapid MODIS data analysis for data to be archived. This depends on in real time with fi ve operational direct campaign support, using aerosol and various factors including the actual cost broadcast receiving stations. The cost to cloud properties products. Takashi Nak- of hardware and the actual data com- build a MODIS DB station is currently ajima noted that data visualizations pression ratios that are achieved. Cur- around $300,000. The U.S. receiving sta- were made within 18 hours after acqui- rent observations indicate that the above tions keep full swaths of MODIS data sition. rolling archive strategy need not be fol- available online for up to one month lowed for MODIS data at Goddard and after acquisition, and the sites have the Aqua Processing Readiness & NSIDC DAACs. For the MODIS data at capability to decode raw data for a full Terra Reprocessing the EDC DAAC, no deletions need to swath as well, calibrate and navigate the occur until late 2003. It may be unneces- data, and generate selected data prod- Mike Moore reported that ESDIS com- sary to delete the data at the EDC DAAC ucts. The network of receiving stations pleted its fi rst Aqua end-to-end test, if larger compression ratios are observed is providing reasonable amounts of raw which was successful. Moore said that or the hardware costs go down faster data to requesting scientists and other almost all ECS Aqua elements are in than currently assumed.” users. place at the DAACs. Given the delay in the Aqua launch, Moore agreed with Aqua Launch Readiness Report Earth Science Enterprise the team that there is some room for exploiting Aqua processing resources Claire Parkinson reported on Aqua Diane Wickland spoke about the Earth to help expedite reprocessing of Terra launch readiness, indicating that the Science Enterprise’s overarching objec- data. With respect to Terra reprocessing, offi cial Aqua launch date is currently tive, which is to answer the question the archive sizing assumptions are that July 12, 2001, but there is a high prob- how is Earth changing and what are when a reprocessed version of a given ability that the mission will launch the consequences for life on Earth? product is created, the older version (Continued on page 19)

15 THE EARTH OBSERVER

system. The algorithm used for produc- tion of a MODLAND product can be tracked by the Product Generation Exec- MODIS Land Team Annual utive (PGE) version, which is embedded in the product metadata. However, Validation Review Meeting the version of input data used is not included in the product metadata. To — Jeff Morisette ([email protected]), SSAI, Biospheric Sciences Branch, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center help track the history of both the — Jeff Privette ([email protected]), Biospheric Sciences Branch, NASA input data and the software version, Goddard Space Flight Center the MODLAND production homepage — Chris Justice ([email protected]), Geography Department, University contains tables summarizing the change of Maryland — Dave Toll ([email protected]), Hydrospheric Sciences Branch, NASA’s history of land and upstream PGEs. Goddard Space Flight Center, The tables can either display the overall change history since the nadir door was opened or gives more details for a time period of interest (URL 3). David Roy noted that the MODLAND QA team Overview Since there is common interest in vali- publishes updates to the “science qual- dation activities from the various data ity fl ag” for all released products (URL The objective of this meeting was to providers and space agencies, MOD- 4). This is a general statement on the bring together validation investigators LAND is working with international product’s overall quality. Both the PGE and EOS sensor team members to partners to establish a forum for devel- version and the science quality fl ag exchange information and fi ndings to oping global validation procedures. This can help with interpretation of possible optimize existing and planned valida- is being done primarily through the nuances of the products and thus help tion activities (URL 1, listed at the end CEOS: Working Group on Cal/Val temper validation results. of the article). The meeting was well – Land Product Validation subgroup attended by members of the MODIS (WGCV-LPV) – with an initial focus on One of the issues brought up by valida- Land Discipline Team (MODLAND) products from the “Global Observation tion investigators during the fi rst year of and EOS Investigators involved with of Forest Cover” program: LAI/FPAR/ MODIS data collection was diffi culty in MODLAND. David Starr of the EOS val- NPP, Land Cover (LC) and LC Change dealing with projection of MODLAND idation offi ce provided the context for and Fire (URL 2). products. The Level 3 and 4 MODLAND the meeting with a brief update of cur- products are projected into the Interger- rent EOS validation activities and future Bruce Guenther provided an overview ized Sinusoidal Grid (ISIN). ISIN was plans. on the performance of the MODIS selected in the mid-1990s for the overall instrument. The main issue for val- MODIS grid as a compromise between Chris Justice, MODLAND Team leader, idation science was the switch to land, ocean and atmosphere require- started the meeting with an overview “B-Side” electronics and changes in ments. A primary advantage to ISIN of the importance of validation activities the calibration look-up table in early is that it is a global, non-interrupted for global land products. For the land November 2000. This action signifi cantly projection that may be aligned at any community, global product validation is reduced noise in several bands; how- meridian by sliding rows. In addition, it an emerging and challenging research ever, because of this switch, data col- is continuous across the ends of rows. area. Existing products are largely lected before November 1 will not be The disadvantage is that it is not unvalidated. As the generation of global consistent with data collected after. Val- currently supported by most image products becomes increasingly easier idation activities using data collected processing software packages or HDF- and the number of products multiplies, prior to November 1 are still useful with EOS tools. EDC DAAC has contracted their use is becoming more widespread. respect to assessing the general agree- the South Dakota School of Mines to Therefore, it is important to provide ment between validation data sets and develop a map projection conversion statements as to the accuracy of the the MODIS products, but any quanti- tool. Version 1.0 is currently available products. Standard procedures for data tative accuracy statements from these (URL 5). This tool can help validation collection, analysis and reporting will studies cannot be applied directly to the investigators reproject MODLAND make these statements easier to provide. post-November products. products into a projection recognized by MODLAND validation activities are the image processing software they are contributing to the development of these Nazmi El Saleous presented information using. standards. on the MODLAND product production

16 March/April 2001 • Vol. 13 No. 2

Validation investigations 1. additional sites with the same inves- 5. EDC DAAC’s MODIS Reprojection tigators; Tool: Both EOS Validation investigators and http://edc.usgs.gov/programs/sddm/ MODLAND PIs made presentations. 2. additional sites with additional modisdist/index.shtml There were also presentations from investigators (using protocols and MISR (Brugge), the Scientifi c Data pur- methods already developed); chase (Pagnuti), and NASDA’s GLI team (Honda). Presentations are available on- 3. network of sites with global repre- line (URL 1). Based on the presentations sentation; and and discussions from break-out sessions, (Continued from page 11) the meeting arrived at several conclu- 4. integration with end user feedback. Minutes of the Aqua Science sions. In general, there is no set defi ni- Working Group Meeting Summary tion for what it means for a product to be “validated.” That is, validation activ- ities are incremental, with incremental Validation campaigns have been under- researchers active in these areas were stages including: taken for each of the MODLAND requested of all meeting attendees. products. They represent a signifi cant • exploring products at a few well- amount of work and dedicated Lastly, Parkinson led a brief discussion instrumented sites; resources. Results are starting to come on whether to attempt to produce a spe- in. Validation activities in 2001 will ben- cial Aqua issue of a professional journal. • incorporating multiple sites with efi t from stable MODIS data. As activi- Salomonson commented that the Terra similar measurements; ties continue, emphasis will be placed special issue of the IEEE Transactions on standardizing measurement tech- on Geoscience and Remote Sensing was • developing a globally representative niques through protocols. MODLAND useful and a corresponding issue could network and incremental goals; will continue to focus on the EOS Land be equally useful for Aqua. One sug- Validation Core Sites and to interact gestion was to emphasize AIRS/AMSU- • checking and refi ning products to be with international partners through the A/HSB and AMSR-E, with briefer dis- on target – “unbiased”; CEOS, WGCV-LPV. cussions regarding MODIS and CERES, both of which are included in the IEEE • estimating product uncertainty at Acknowledgments pilot sites; special issue on Terra. It was decided that a special Aqua issue should be pur- • comparing initial results with theo- Thanks to Nazmi El Saleous, Robert sued. retical error bars; Wolfe and David Roy for their MODIS production and QA input at the meeting The date for the next meeting of the • estimating product uncertainty with and Rebecca Lindsey for help in prepar- Aqua Science Working Group was set global representation, and ing this report. for Thursday, August 2, 2001 at GSFC.

• inferring the impact of uncertainty Related URLs: on products’ use. 1. MODIS Land Team Validation Annual Review Meeting, 2000: The ultimate driver should be the utility http://modis-land.gsfc.nasa.gov/ of products for addressing science and val/modland_val_mtg_2001.html application questions. Current activities are addressing the early stages in this 2. CEOS Working Group on Cal/Val – incremental structure. Land Product Validation subgroup: http://modis-land.gsfc.nasa.gov/ From the experience gained during the val/modland_val_mtg_2001.html fi rst year of MODIS data collection, there is a clear need for a close 3. MODLAND Production coupling between external validation http://modland.nascom.nasa.gov/ investigators and the science team. This prod/ interaction between several investiga- 4. MODLAND Science Quality Flag tors and the science team could provide http://modland.nascom.nasa.gov/ expanded opportunities for validation QA_WWW/release.html activities including:

17 THE EARTH OBSERVER

meeting. Outreach activities are planned in collaboration with three partners: the American Chemical Society through Aura Science Team Meeting their publication Chem Matters that is — Anne Douglass ([email protected]), Chair, Aura Science Working aimed at high school teachers and Group, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center their students; the GLOBE project that involves students in measurement pro- grams; and the Smithsonian, which is developing an exhibit for the Smithson- ian and for other museums. The other four groups met on Tuesday April 3. The Algorithm Working Group (chair, N. Livesey) reported on progress in an intercomparison exercise involving all An EOS Aura Science Team Meeting responded to questions about the impact of the instruments using a single orbit was hosted by the MLS and TES teams of frequent use of thrusters to maintain through a constituent fi eld simulated April 4-5, 2001 at the Pasadena Conven- the orbit formation. by the MOZART model. The Data Sys- tion Center, Pasadena, CA. Mark Schoe- tems Group (S. Lewicki, acting chair) berl (project scientist) opened the meet- The Aura instrument principal investi- reported on approval of the Aura Level ing. Phil deCola (program scientist at gators presented information about the 2 guidelines, and the need to develop NASA HQ), spoke briefl y about uncer- present status of their instruments, the guidelines for the mapped data to be tainties at NASA Headquarters due to algorithm, and data processing prep- produced in Level 3. The Aerosol Group the new administration. Mark Schoeberl, arations. John Gille and John Barnett (S. Massie, chair) reported on the need representing Aura Project Manager Peg (Co-PIs, HIRDLS) report that most sub- for a computer code that can be adapted Luce, presented the overall status of the systems have been delivered. Joe Waters to general use for the Aura instruments project. Most of the six-month launch (PI, MLS) showed a pamphlet describ- to evaluate the impact of aerosols and delay to June 2003 has been consumed ing technical aspects and science goals clouds on the constituent retrievals. by delays in the instrument delivery which has been developed by MLS. The The Validation Working Group (L. dates, and there is very little slack in the MLS instrument schedule has little slack Froidevaux and A. Douglass, co-chairs) schedule. Tom Nosak, Spacecraft Man- but the team is committed to on-time reported on the status of the Aura ager for TRW, reported on challenges delivery. Reinhard Beer reported that Science and Validation document. The to integration of the Aura platform integration of TES is nearly complete, working document will be upgraded to presented by the delay in the Aqua although there have been some delays Version 1.0 and made available outside launch. He assured us that integration due to a problem with detectors. Exer- the validation team pending consensus of the Aura spacecraft will be completed cises of the TES nadir algorithm with on the validation priorities and the exec- before the Aura instruments are deliv- input data from sonde measurements utive summary. All additional inputs to ered. and from a model simulation are prom- the document are due May 1. ising. Bert van den Oord (Deputy PI Mark Schoeberl described formation OMI) reported on the progress of the Science presentations completed the fl ying of the Aqua, CloudSat, Picasso, instrument, and preparation for the meeting agenda. Several presentations PARASOL and Aura satellites. He used ATDB review that will take place at the concerned topics related to instrument an animation to illustrate how the satel- end of the summer. and algorithm development. The TES lites follow each other in similar orbits. retrieval team gave presentations on Aqua is followed within a few minutes There are seven working groups asso- preliminary results with the single orbit by CloudSat, Picasso and PARASOL; ciated with Aura. The Science Group test (H. Worden), the capability of TES the separation between Aura and Aqua (chair, A. Douglass) organizes the retrievals to capture ozone temporal is only 15 minutes. Formation fl ying annual Science Team Meeting. The Mis- variability (K. Bowman), and ways to will make it possible to combine aerosol sion Operations group (chair, A. Kelly) account for aerosols and clouds in TES information from all satellites with the did not make a report at this meeting measurements (A. Eldering). B. van water vapor measurements made by since an Aura Ground System review den Oord presented results with the MLS, thus enhancing the scientifi c value will be held at GSFC in late April. OMI development model. A statistical of individual data sets. Rich McIntosh The Education and Public Outreach method of calculating radiative transfer presented some of the technical chal- Group met in January and E. Hilsenrath for HIRDLS was shown to be superior lenges of formation fl ying. Bob Jones (chair) presented its progress at this to other methods in accuracy and speed

18 March/April 2001 • Vol. 13 No. 2

of computation (T. Heinemann). A pre- vard CTM and GOME observations of (Continued from page 15) sentation on OH column measurements formaldehyde to evaluate the emissions MODIS Science Team Meeting over JPL’s Table Mountain Facility (F. of isoprene used in the model. Mills) was followed by a discussion much later in the year. The full system of non-LTE effects on OH mesospheric Several presentations concerned current comprehensive performance test still measurements (H. Pickett). issues in atmospheric chemistry. M. remains, as does the thermal vacuum Schoeberl showed estimates of ozone test. They will also need to reinstall the Various approaches to validation of loss during the SOLVE period using solar array prior to shipment to Van- satellite observations were presented. data from ozonesondes, the lidars denberg Air Force Base. The Aqua Proj- P. Novelli showed observations made aboard the DC-8, in situ ozone measure- ect is now exploring formation fl ying of at NOAA/CMDL for validation of ments from the ER-2, and satellite ozone NASA’s afternoon satellites, i.e., Aqua, MOPITT observations of CO and CH4. measurements from Polar Ozone and PICASSO-CENA, CloudSat, PARASOL, R. Rood demonstrated the potential of Aerosol Measurement III (POAM). A. and Aura. Wayne Esaias asked how ozone assimilation to monitor instru- Tabazadeh discussed issues of detection Aqua’s fl ight track lines up with Terra’s ment performance and stability. R. Sala- of denitrifi cation in UARS MLS obser- each day, saying that there might be witch gave an overview of the SOLVE vations of HNO3 that will be useful some benefi ts for looking at track rela- mission and the dual purposes of val- in analysis of Aura MLS HNO3; such tionships for MODIS science. Parkinson idation and addressing science goals issues are also relevant to present and announced that the EOS Data Products through a combination of aircraft and future northern hemisphere ozone loss. Handbook, Vol. 2, is out now in hard- satellite observations. H. Pumphrey showed the importance of copy. mesospheric measurements that are pos- Much discussion was prompted by sible with EOS MLS. UARS MLS obser- VIIRS presentations concerning the role of vations of CH3CN show an enhance- cirrus clouds in the tropics. J. Holton ment in August 1992 that may be related The fi nal presenter, Robert Murphy, showed sub-visible cirrus above convec- to mid-latitude injection of tropospheric MODIS Project Scientist, presented an tive anvils with tops above about 14 air from a forest fi re into the strato- overview of the planned specifi cations km, producing cooling that can offset sphere (N. Livesey). for the Visible Infrared Imaging Radi- the heating due to subsidence, and dis- ometer Suite (VIIRS), which will be built cussed the implications of such pro- A number of presentations concerned by Raytheon SBRS. It will be a single cesses on stratospheric water. However, atmospheric dynamics. Topics included sensor covering the spectral region from UARS HALOE observations show that the following: the Whole Air Commu- 0.4 to 12 µm. It will have 22 spectral sub-visible cirrus clouds often occur nity Climate Model, an atmospheric bands, including one broadband “day- in the tropics away from regions of general circulation model with interac- night” band. VIIRS will have a rotating deep convection (S. Massie). These two tive chemistry for the lower and middle telescope design, an onboard solar dif- papers are relevant to the objectives atmosphere (B. Boville); improvements fuser, and a Solar Diffuser Stability of The Tropical Composition and Cli- in the data assimilation product of the Monitor. Its fi rst fl ight will be on NPP in mate Coupling Experiment, a mission NASA GSFC Data Assimilation Offi ce 2005, and all subsequent NPOESS mis- proposed to provide validation for the DAO) by utilization of a general cir- sions will carry a copy of VIIRS. In Aura platform while addressing science culation model being developed jointly the design of VIIRS, NASA incorporated questions as those posed by Holton and by NCAR and DAO, and validation many lessons that were learned from Massie. of the stratospheric dynamics and con- MODIS. stituent transport using that system A three-dimensional chemistry and (S. Pawson); analysis of stratospheric Before the meeting adjourned, Salomon- transport model (CTM), driven by warmings during the 2000-2001 north- son indicated that the MODIS Team will winds from the Goddard Earth Observ- ern winter (G. Manney); theoretical anal- have most products out in steady pro- ing System Data Assimilation System, ysis of the gravity waves likely to con- duction fashion soon for folks to look is being used to interpret tropospheric tribute to the quasi-biennial oscillation, at, including complete data months, like measurements from the GOME instru- and how such waves are likely to be December 2000. He indicated that he ment. R. Martin showed comparisons of seen in HIRDLS data (J. Alexander). now would like the Team to work a simulation from the Harvard chem- toward producing a consistent data istry and transport model (CTM) with The next Aura science team meeting will year. He concluded by saying that plans calculations of tropospheric column NO2 be held in Spring, 2002, probably in the will be developed to have a results sym- from GOME measurements of the total Netherlands. posium at the end of 2001 or the begin- column. P. Palmer also used the Har- ning of 2002.

19 THE EARTH OBSERVER

Aura Ground System Overview

Angelita (Angie) Kelly, Aura Mission Operations Manager, stated that Aura EOS Aura Ground System Review will be supported by the same ground system confi guration that will support — Angelita C. Kelly ([email protected]), NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD. Aqua and ICESat. She reviewed the basic requirements and functions of the Note: Many of the presentations made at this meeting have been posted on the World EOS Ground System which are: the Wide Web at: http://www.qssmeds.com/aura/docs/GSR_042401/index.htm safe operation of the spacecraft and instruments; data capture and data production; active data archive and distribution; distributed informa- tion framework for supporting EOS investigators and other users in science, government, The EOS Aura Ground industry, education, and System Review was held at policy; and interoper- the Goddard Space Flight ability with other Center (GSFC) on April 24-26, ees were strongly encour- data centers world- 2001. The review board for this “peer” aged to ask questions, express wide. Kelly identi- review was chaired by Dennis Dillman, concern, and document them via fi ed the lead personnel for Code 300/Offi ce of Quality Assurance Request for Action forms (RFAs), to help each of the ground system elements with the following team members: Can- in clearly defi ning requirements for the and described the various organiza- dace Carlisle, ESDIS Systems Manager; ground system. tional and matrixed personnel interfaces Carolyn Dent, Aqua Mission Manager; Splinter meetings with the TES, OMI, within GSFC in support of the Aura mis- Robert Jones, Aura Systems Manager; and HIRDLS teams were held on the sion. Most of the Aura ground system Ludie Kidd, System Integration and afternoon of April 26, all day April 27 team members also support, and are Engineering Branch; Ed Masuoka, Chief, and half a day April 30 with the OMI gaining experience on Aqua. Terrestrial Information Systems Branch; team. Paul Ondrus, Chief, Earth Science Mis- Kelly discussed the Aura Ground sion Operations Offi ce; and Bert van Day 1, April 24 System architecture, functions, and data den Oord, Deputy Principal Investigator fl ow, highlighting the ground system for the Ozone Monitoring Instrument Aura Science Mission elements needing Aura-specifi c modi- (OMI). Attendees included personnel fi cations. She addressed the functions from all segments of the Aura mission, After Dolly Perkins, ESDIS Project Man- associated with each of the system ele- i.e., scientists, spacecraft, all instrument ager, welcomed the attendees, Mark ments, starting with the science down- teams, the Aura Project, and ground Schoeberl, Aura Project Scientist, pre- link fl ow from the spacecraft to the system personnel. The review was sented the science objectives and the sci- ground stations, the fl ow of the data at deemed a success. ence strategy for the Aura mission. He a reduced rate to GSFC for Level 0 pro- stated that Aura will enable us to get cessing, the higher level processing at The purpose of the review was to pres- important measurements of the chemis- the individual instrument Science-Inves- ent the end-to-end ground system for try and dynamics of the stratosphere. tigator-led Processing Systems (SIPSs), the Aura mission to Aura personnel. The Aura’s four instruments, High Resolu- and the archive and distribution of the emphasis was on having the Aura per- tion Dynamics Limb Sounder (HIRDLS), standard data products at the Distrib- sonnel review the Aura-unique require- Microwave Limb Sounder (MLS), Ozone uted Active Archive Centers (DAACs) at ments that will be implemented within Monitoring Instrument (OMI), and GSFC (for HIRDLS, OMI, and MLS) and the existing EOS Ground System, most Tropospheric Emissions Spectrometer at the LaRC (for TES). The command of which is currently in use for Terra, (TES), will provide new chemical mea- uplink was described, starting with the and is in testing for supporting the surements of the troposphere, and input from the instrument operations Aqua mission later this year. The goal important climate measurements. He team via the GSFC-provided Instrument was to identify any additional require- also discussed his concept for formation Support Toolkits (ISTs), the integrated ments, and any issues/concerns that fl ying with the Aqua spacecraft to command upload from the EOS Opera- impact the ground system. The attend- achieve near-coincident measurements. tions Center (EOC), and the monitoring

20 March/April 2001 • Vol. 13 No. 2

of command execution, and health and tions and can target within 45 degrees of Some of the Flight Dynamics issues that safety status using the real time house- local vertical. The standard product will are being worked are: the 24-hour time keeping telemetry data. An Aura-spe- be a global survey (two orbits of pre-cal- span for defi nitive ephemeris currently cifi c entity, the Direct Broadcast Finland ibration and 16 orbits of survey). Nadir spans from 00:00 to 00:00 GMT; Aura Ground Station, was also noted. targets will include volcanoes, industrial teams have requested a change to have catastrophes, etc. TES has a command the time span go from 12:00 to 12:00 Highlights of the Aura ground system timing constraint of at least 500 ms GMT, to keep the data as current as pos- development schedule, the require- between commands. Cooler telemetry sible for science processing. This change ments defi nition process, the require- may replace normal housekeeping data will be made. Another concern is the ments documentation process and hier- for a few packets on S-band. need for realistic X-Band GBAD data for archy, and the risk management pro- pre-mission testing. cesses for the Aura and ESDIS Projects HIRDLS, a multi-channel infrared radi- were addressed. Kelly emphasized the ometer designed to scan the strato- EOS Data and Operations System need for feedback on the material sphere and mesosphere in the anti-fl ight (EDOS) presented at the review, especially (-X) direction, will obtain profi les over the requirements documents, the Mis- the entire globe both day and night. Stephanie Nickens, Deputy EDOS Proj- sion-Specifi c Requirements document A two-axis tilting mirror provides scan- ect Manager, presented an overview of (MSRD) by May 14, and the EOS Mis- ning in altitude and azimuth. Instru- EDOS functions and capabilities. EDOS sion Operations System (EMOS) Level 4 ment control routines (SAIL) minimize performs data capture at its Ground Sta- requirements, (presented on Day 2) by the need for large numbers of spacecraft tion Interface Facility, which is physi- May 4 . stored commands; however, there will cally located at the ground sites in White be a need to update SAIL parameters Sands (used for EOS Terra), Alaska, and Instrument Operations through microprocessor loads. HIRDLS Norway. EDOS products are generated has a moveable sunshield door. Some at the Level 0 Processing Facility at Debbie Ramey, Aura Instrument Plan- quick processing of science data will be GSFC and include time-ordered Level ning Group (IPG) lead, gave the follow- required. 0 production data sets (PDS), expedited ing summary of instrument design fea- data sets (EDS), and rate buffered (raw) tures or operations which drive ground Flight Dynamics data (RBD) fi les. The EDOS C4.1 system requirements. Aqua version is currently undergoing Felipe Flores-Amaya described the basic testing. This is designed to be for MLS, a passive microwave radiometer/ orbital requirements (frozen, sun-syn- multi-mission support, including Aura. spectrometer, measures thermal emis- chronous, 98.2 degree inclination, 16-36 It includes a system upgrade for data sions from the atmospheric limb, makes degree Solar beta angle constraint, fl ushing that will enable the TES SIPS continuous global measurements day repeat cycle of 233 revolutions per 16 to receive PDSs in a timely manner and night, scanning vertically in +x days). The basic fl ight dynamics func- in spite of TES’s on-off mode of opera- direction of fl ight. MLS will require tions for Aura were presented, i.e., tion. There are no known Aura-unique numerous microprocessor loads during tracking, attitude determination, maneu- requirements. The database will need to activation, and Inertial Reference Unit ver planning, planning and scheduling, be updated for Aura. (IRU) gyro angle data from the space- including the generation of planning craft will be used in science processing. products for the instrument teams. There was an extended discussion regarding data latency, especially for the OMI, a nadir-viewing imaging spectro- The Aqua Flight Dynamics System soft- rate buffered data. Both the OMI and graph with a large fi eld-of-view and two ware will be modifi ed to accommodate HIRDLS team desire to have rate buff- optical channels, will make global mea- Aura-unique requirements. Examples of ered data available in less than three surements of a number of trace gases new Aura requirements that Flight hours from observation time to give in the troposphere and stratosphere, dynamics will have to provide are: pre- them suffi cient time to process to Level and will obtain almost full coverage of dicted Sun entrance/exit times into the 2 within three hours. This is a capability the globe within a day. OMI will per- OMI calibration fi eld-of-view, predicted which is not currently provided and a form solar calibration every orbit. The sun azimuth and elevation angle in Request for Action (RFA) was written to Aura fl ight software stored command HIRDLS defi ned frame at one-minute investigate what can be done to improve sequences have been resized to handle intervals, predicted lunar ephemeris in data latency. the daily OMI system stored commands. the spacecraft frame at one-minute inter- vals for MLS, and predicted TES global TES views in both limb and nadir direc- survey start events.

21 THE EARTH OBSERVER

Aura Test Coordination Activities the GSFC DAAC for HIRDLS, OMI, Goddard Earth Sciences (GES) and MLS, and to the Langley Research DAAC Vic Buczkowski, Aura Test Coordinator, Center (LaRC) DAAC for archive and presented the overall Aura testing road distribution. The chart also showed Steve Kempler, the Goddard Earth Sci- map. This includes the different phases interfaces for the various Team Leader ence (GES) DAAC Manager, discussed and categories of testing leading to (TL)/Principal Investigator (PI) Science the operations concept and the Aura launch, starting with element level test- Computing Facilities (SCF) at JPL, data fl ows at the DAAC and for ing, then interface testing, system test- Oxford University, National Center for HIRDLS, MLS, and OMI. He also ing, and operations testing. Project-spe- Atmospheric Research (NCAR) in Boul- presented current status and perfor- cifi c tests are conducted by the Mission der, and the Netherlands. mance to date. The DAAC produces 331 Operations Manager and Flight Opera- GB/day of MODIS Terra Level 1 data, tions Team (FOT); they include space- Scott summarized the new/potentially executing 2.2 times faster than real time, craft to ground interface tests, mission new Aura requirements for science pro- at the same time sustaining a 24-to-48 tests, and mission rehearsals. Mission cessing. Following are some of them: hour lag behind the leading edge of data readiness tests will be conducted by ESDIS to provide data in HDF 5/HDF- capture. The archives are fi lling up fast, the Mission Readiness Manager and will EOS 5 format, provide Linux support, handling 20.8 TB/month. More archive exercise Aura ground system elements etc. A potential new requirement which resources are being procured to handle from a mission operations perspective still needs further evaluation is the need Aqua and Aura data. To date, there are prior to interface tests with the space- to provide 8 Hz attitude data. ~190 TB in the archive. There are cur- craft. Science data fl ow testing through rently no problems distributing the data. Open items include: OMI standard data the DAACs and the SIPS will be con- There are plans to augment the current product generation from the integrated ducted by the Science Systems Test hardware and staff to handle new mis- Dutch/U.S. Science Team. Group. sion data requirements. Science Systems Development Buczkowski described the science data and Testing LaRC DAAC collection process. A Science Test Data Collection and Validation Plan will be Glenn Iona, Science Systems Integration Richard McGinnis, the LaRC DAAC developed and worked with the Project, and Test Manager, discussed the sched- Manager, presented the plan for han- TRW, instrument teams, and the science ule for future releases of the EOSDIS dling the TES requirements. TES data is testing team. Core System (ECS) Science Data Pro- currently estimated to be equivalent to cessing System (SDPS) and the EOS MISR data for which the LaRC DAAC A draft integrated testing schedule was Data Gateway (EDG). ECS Release 6B does production, archive, and distri- provided for review by Aura personnel. plus any patches (to be determined) is bution. TES will require additional Buczkowski took an action to identify projected as the version that will sup- staff and additional hardware for ingest, which of the test activities involve the port Aura; it is scheduled for 2002. Iona archive, and distribution. Open items instrument teams and/or TRW. stated that baseline Interface Control include: defi nition of standard data Documents (ICDs) for ECS interfaces products need to be fi nalized to provide Science Systems with EDOS, EMOS, FDS, and the SIPSs a better estimate of data volume, and will be updated. He also expressed his whether the Data Preparation (DPREP) Stan Scott, ESDIS Aura Science Interface concern regarding a source for GBAD process will be at the GES DAAC (as Manager, provided an overview of data with suffi cient fi delity to support currently directed by the ESDIS Project) the science systems that will support science processing. or at the LaRC DAAC (as preferred by Aura. He showed a draft data fl ow the JPL TES team). chart, taking the Level 0 data sets Iona described the three phases of sci- produced by EDOS to the Distributed ence system testing for each SDPS HIRDLS Ground System Status Active Archive Systems (DAACs) from release, namely engineering tests, formal and Plans which the individual Science Investiga- interface confi dence tests (ICTs), and tor-led Processing Systems (SIPSs) will end-to-end tests to demonstrate the Ken Stone, HIRDLS U.S. Data Manager, access the data. The input data to readiness of the system to process data presented an overview and status of the SIPS also include ancillary/auxiliary to Level 2/3. The presentation included the PI SCF and the SIPS in Boulder, data, some of which are still to be a draft detailed schedule and informa- CO. SCF hardware is in place to sup- defi ned. The SIPS will process the data tion regarding test activities, duration, port engineering version software devel- to Level 1 and Level 2, generating stan- and level of effort for science team opment and testing, and the local area dard products which will be sent to participation. network has been upgraded to 100

22 March/April 2001 • Vol. 13 No. 2

Mbits/sec. The SCF enhancement sched- OMI Ground System Status and cant issues; there is a concern regarding ule through FY 2004 was also presented. Plans funding for remaining algorithm and Ken presented the L1 and L2 Science science software development activities. Software processing fl ow and methodol- Albert Fleig, Deputy U.S. OMI Team ogy. This included a listing of the soft- Leader, presented a brief history of the Day 2 ware units and status. joint OMI activities, Team Leader Sci- ence Computing Facility (TLSCF) and EOS Mission Operations Segment The SIPS is still in a requirements SIPS status and interfaces, SIPS develop- (EMOS) gathering and defi nition phase. Derived ment status, and the proposed OMI SIPS requirements are being developed for (OSIPS) architecture. The software algo- Kevin Klem, Ann Habeger, and John each of the four subsystems. Currently, rithm was also presented. OMI investi- Diubaldo (all from Raytheon) presented 30% of proposed staffi ng is in place. gators did not propose individual SCFs. the requirements for the EOS Mission Additional software developers will The TL SCF was established similar to Operations Segment. This included a start this year. Issues and concerns the SIPS. The OSIPS is based on existing broad discussion of all requirements include: funding for continued process- MODIS SIPS (MODAPS). MODAPS is for the Mission Management, Online, ing during I&T, funding for hardware in currently running and producing 8x the and Analysis Subsystems. New require- post-launch period, attracting and keep- OMI data rate. OMI hardware is based ments identifi ed to support the four ing qualifi ed people, and the impact of on just-in-time procurement of com- Aura instruments were discussed. launch delays. modity Linux/Intel chip boxes, disks, tape storage, and networks. The total Topics included a review of many data- MLS Ground System Status and ozone algorithm is scheduled for imple- base capabilities, stored command pro- Plans mentation and test in FY2001. All algo- cessing, and handling of instrument rithms for at launch processing will be microprocessor loads. Earlier this year, David Cuddy, JPL, presented the SIPS complete in FY2003. the commanding fl exibility afforded and SCF overview. The SIPS, which is by the OMI instrument precipitated a being implemented by Raytheon ITSS Open items include: science team ability review of the allocations for stored com- in Pasadena, will process the data to support the algorithm delivery sched- mand sequences within the spacecraft and generate Level 1B, 2, and 3 prod- ule, diffi culty in getting additional staff, bus instrument support computer. So, ucts. Level 1 and Level 2 production timely delivery of defi nitive attitude and at the GSR, the EMOS developers recog- will be daily. Level 3 production will be ephemeris data. nized new requirements to rework the daily/monthly maps and zonal means. allocations for quantities and sizes of The science software development is on stored command sequences. schedule, with the engineering model TES Ground System Status and completed in the fi rst quarter of CY Plans EMOS developers acknowledged a few 2001. The launch ready model is sched- other new ground system requirements uled for the end of CY 2002 and will Robert Toaz, the TES Ground System which were driven by the design and support end-to-end testing. All the code Manager at JPL, presented the TES SIPS operations of the four Aura instruments. is new (no direct heritage from UARS and SCF overview and status. SIPS In particular, new fl ight dynamics prod- MLS). development and operations will be per- ucts will be needed by Aura. The ability formed by Raytheon ITSS (RITSS) in to handle some unique command sub- The SIPS development has inherited Pasadena. Level 1, 2, and 3 data prod- fi elds was recognized as needed. The design and code from Vegetation ucts will be generated. The TES SIPS is ability to handle TES cooler telemetry Canopy LIDAR, which in turn was based on software developed by RITSS is also new to EMOS. A few minor inherited from GSFC DAAC V0. for the Goddard V0 DAAC. Most of open items were itemized at the conclu- Approximately 65% is reusable for MLS the support software was ported with- sion of the day due to the fact that the SIPS. out change. The core software schedul- instruments have not yet been fully inte- ing will be restructured for distributed grated. The day was highly successful in Open items include: 8 Hz attitude data resources management. New software presenting the requirements for Aura. are needed for science processing (TBR); includes planning functions for starting and a security concern regarding FTP TES jobs and the tracking database. Space Network interface between SIPS and DAAC. The SIPS schedule is on track with the fi rst delivery in April currently under- Ed Dembowczyk provided the current going I&T. The SIPS software status Space Network confi guration, including was also presented. There are no signifi - the fl eet of eight Tracking and Data

23 THE EARTH OBSERVER

Relay satellites (TDRS) that provide 85 SIPS, and SCFs were addressed. An will capture the 150 Mbps science data % coverage per orbit for low Earth orbit- RFA was written to correct some of the downlink via X-band. The WGS will ing spacecraft, including EOS Terra high information for OMI. It was stressed provide S-Band support only. The GN rate and low rate support. The addition that the international partner bears the will schedule Aura passes in accordance of the Guam remote ground terminal in responsibility and cost for connectivity, with the schedule constraints provided 1998 further increased coverage to 100% as stated in the international by the Flight Operations Team. The for all customers by providing closure to agreement/joint implementation docu- schedule will include at least one Direct the TDRSS zone of exclusion. ments. An RFA was written to inves- Broadcast pass per day for the Finland tigate the cost and feasibility of voice Ground Station (FGS). The Aura con- During Aura launch and early orbit links between the EOC and the instru- tacts will be scheduled to minimize con- (LEO), the SN provides the initial ment operations facilities in the UK and tention with Aqua for the network com- support for low rate command, telem- the Netherlands. munication resources, that is, contacts etry and tracking. It will provide for Aura and Aqua for the same orbit near-continuous coverage from sepa- As the ESDIS Security offi cial, Sigman might be scheduled at two different sta- ration to approximately launch-plus-3 also mentioned the need to comply with tions (AGS and SGS), except in cases hours. During the spacecraft activation the NASA Policy and Guidelines doc- where only the Norway stations can phase, 10 to 15 20-minute contacts per ument, NPG 2810.1, Security of Infor- view the spacecraft. day are anticipated and will be sched- mation Technology. The ESDIS Project uled as needed for real time command will work with the Aura teams to ensure In response to current concerns regard- and telemetry support. The SN will be 2810.1 compliance. ing poor GN performance during the used in conjunction with GN support. past few months, Condon shared the Day 3 data from an ongoing investigation

During the operational phase, the SN being conducted by CSOC to determine Ground Network will support an average of two 10-min- the causes of the downward trend in GN ute contacts per day for tracking and Michael Condon presented an overview performance. He cited recent operations clock correlation support. Additional of the Ground Network confi guration staff turnover, lack of experience, and support will be scheduled to support that will support Aura and a summary system automation defi ciencies resulting maneuvers, as needed. During all mis- of the GN requirements. The GN com- in operator errors. Engineering activities sion phases (except pre-launch), contin- ponents that will provide both high rate are underway to improve 11-meter gency support will be provided. (X-Band) and low rate (S-band) support antenna profi ciency, including software are the Alaska Ground Station (AGS) enhancements. A Systems test engineer The SN can meet Aura requirements and the Norway Svalbard Ground has also been assigned to WGS (where without additional changes. Station. The Space Operations Man- testing is conducted prior to deploy- agement Offi ce (SOMO)/Consolidated ment at Alaska and Norway) to perform Networks/Communications Space Operations Contract (CSOC) have independent validation of software and made arrangements to supplement AGS system changes. There is also ongoing Clayton Sigman and Jerry Zgonc pro- and SGS with commercial services from discussion with CSOC to improve the vided the current communications net- Honeywell DataLynx antenna in Alaska current antenna turnaround time of 18 work topology, including the links (PF1) and the Svalbard Data Services minutes. between GSFC and the ground stations Antenna in Norway. The GN currently in Alaska and Norway. The Aura supports Landsat-7, QuikScat, and EO-1. Mission Readiness Testing pre-launch requirements at the space- It provides tape back-up for Terra in craft integration and test facility (TRW) case of Space Network (SN) unavail- Ken Lehtonen, ESDIS Mission Systems and at the Vandenberg Air Force Base ability. Terra weekly profi ciency passes Readiness Manager, described the activ- (VAFB) are the same as those for are performed. Future mission support ities to ensure that the ground system Aqua. The links with Alaska and includes Aqua, ICESat, and Aura. mission element are ready prior to Aura Norway are planned to be upgraded launch. He explained the roles and from 52 Mbps to 75 Mbps 8 months Aura support requirements are similar responsibilities, readiness testing philos- prior to Aura launch to handle both to those for Aqua. The Aqua GN ophy, and how the readiness tests fi t Aqua and Aura. Mission voice require- enhancements are currently in testing within the overall testing road map pre- ments with U.S. facilities are planned. and are planned to provide Aura sup- sented on Day 1. Descriptions of the dif- port. The GN will provide primary ferent test, test tools, and the schedule Specifi c links for each of the instruments S-Band realtime telemetry, tracking, and were also provided. Involvement of the showing the ISTs, EOC, DAAC, EDOS, command support. The AGS and SGS instrument teams was discussed.

24 March/April 2001 • Vol. 13 No. 2

Aura EOC to Spacecraft Interface (LEO). The primary objective of mission vided by TRW between the Aqua and Testing (SCIF), Mission Tests rehearsals is to get everyone familiar Aura missions. (MT), and Mission Rehearsals with their console position and sur- roundings, the tools/products that they Aura Flight Software (FSW) Vic Gehr described the fi ve specifi c tests will be using, handling nominal and Maintenance to verify the interface and functionality contingency operations, and most of the ground system with the space- importantly, working together as a Don Glenn presented for Tom Clement craft. These tests are conducted after the team. The goal of MRs is to create on the activities pertaining to mainte- spacecraft has gone through comprehen- a simulated environment as close as nance of the Aura fl ight software. Flight sive performance testing. SCIF #1 will possible to the actual LEO operations, software refers to all the software resid- check out basic interface functionality exercise portions of the LEO timeline, ing on the four spacecraft 1750A pro- and will focus on bus operations, includ- and demonstrate Flight Team readiness. cessors and the FSW development and ing commanding of the four controllers The Aura Mission Rehearsal Plan will validation environment. The GSFC FSW on the spacecraft, and if integrated, com- include the type of simulations to be maintenance team performs pre-launch mand to each instrument. The subse- performed, the number, duration, and project-level verifi cation and validation quent SCIFs will verify additional func- schedule for each type, the overall pro- (PVV) of the Aura fl ight software and tionality, such as Solid State Recorder cess by which simulations will be con- post-launch maintenance of the soft- (SSR) operations, interfaces with the ducted, from initial simulation script/ ware. GN and SN, command loads, receipt product development through execution and processing of housekeeping data, and debrief (simulation critique/ TRW has responsibility for the fl ight etc. Instrument and spacecraft contrac- problem tracking). Simulations will use software until launch plus 90 days. The tor (TRW) participation at the EOC and the spacecraft simulator and the EOSDIS GSFC FSW team will assume respon- TRW will be required, starting with Multimode Portable Simulator (MPS). sibility after launch plus 90 days. The SCIF #2 through SCIF #5. A RFA was assigned to document the team also provides maintenance for the guidelines for the various users, e.g., Terra and Aqua FSW. Strict confi gura- Mission tests (MTs) will exercise the the Flight Operations Team, for sharing tion management procedures will be fol- ground system using day-in-the-life the simulator resources to support both lowed for any changes to the FSW. The activities including normal operations Aura and Aqua. FSW maintenance team will be respon- procedures/loads, stored commanding sible for creating, testing, and delivering for instruments, pre-defi ned command EOSDIS Test System (ETS) FSW loads to the Flight Operations scripts, stored command sequences, etc. Multimode Portable Simulator Team. A problem resolution procedure They will demonstrate the capabilities (MPS) for investing, analyzing, and resolving for receipt and processing of all data col- spacecraft problems will be documented lected as well as the execution of normal Willie Fuller, ETS Manager, and Ernest in the Aqua/Aura FSW Maintenance operations activities. Two mission tests Quentin presented the capabilities of and Confi guration Management Plan. are planned. MPS and the planned capabilities to support Aura. The ESDIS MPS provides Flight Operations Presentations The schedule for both the SCIFs and a low to medium fi delity simulator for mission tests will be coordinated very testing the forward and return links. It John Teter, Aura Flight Systems Engi- closely with TRW integration and test simulates the spacecraft data across the neering Manager, provided a high level activities and the instrument teams. interfaces. The Aura MPS is based on description of fl ight operations at the SCIFs and MTs are performed with the the Aqua MPS. It will be enhanced to EOC. real spacecraft. All commands and pro- provide instrument simulation capabil- cedures will be verifi ed/approved by ity to supplement functionality that is Dan Muleady, TRW Aura Flight Opera- TRW and the instrument teams prior to not provided in the spacecraft simula- tions Manager, showed the preliminary each test. tor. The MPS is used primarily for early Launch and Early Orbit timeline. He dis- testing of EMOS deliveries prior to SCIF cussed the plan for generating the inte- Mission rehearsals (MRs), also referred tests. It will also be used in Aura pre- grated mission timeline (IMT) and pro- to as simulations or readiness exercises, launch simulations/mission rehearsals. vided a CD of the draft IMT to each will be conducted starting after thermal The Aura MPS is planned for September of the instrument teams. The plan is vacuum testing to establish/demonstrate 2001. to have a Mission Operations Working the overall readiness of the entire Group in the fall to focus on updated Flight Team, i.e., the personnel that will A concern was raised regarding the time be supporting launch and early orbit sharing of the spacecraft simulator pro- (Continued on page 38)

25 THE EARTH OBSERVER

at a broad scale. Land cover classes included forest, grassland, water, the built environment, and barren land. Using Landsat Thematic Mapper However, change in the study areas was anticipated to be largely fl uctuation Images to Detect Land Cover between agriculture, grazing, and fal- lowed or abandoned land. As such, Change in South Africa spectral separation was diffi cult to achieve and proved to be inadequate. In — Brent McCusker ([email protected]), Department of Geography, Michigan State dryland Africa, small scale subsistence University farming can be identifi ed more readily by the pattern it leaves on the Earth’s surface rather than its refl ectance value.

To overcome the inadequacy of the spec- tral classifi ers, a subset of the most relevant areas of each scene was digi- Introduction1 Each scene was geo-rectifi ed to latitude/ tized manually using on-screen digitiz- longitude coordinates and the geo-recti- ing. This procedure entails displaying Land is a contested issue in South fi cation was verifi ed across the two time the image on the computer screen and Africa. After three-hundred years of periods to ensure accurate representa- then creating polygons with the mouse land alienation and exploitation, South tion of change. All scenes were clas- rather than using a paper map and a Africa’s black majority has fi nally sifi ed using the unsupervised isodata digitizing tablet. Each area was divided achieved some redress for the grossly clustering method. Supervised classifi - into land use classes, namely: agri- imbalanced land distribution. The cation was also undertaken. These clas- culture, grassland, forested, residential, national land reform program has sifi cations provided a map of land cover and other. Figure 1 shows the spatial- undertaken to transfer land from indi- vidual whites to black communities via a willing-buyer, willing-seller pro- gram. After the transfer of land, one could expect to see an intensifi cation, or increased usage, of the land. The usefulness of Landsat Thematic Mapper Images in identifying land cover change is documented here.

Methods and Scene Properties

To assess the scope of land cover change on the redistributed farms, six Thematic Mapper satellite images were obtained for the Northern Province, spe- cifi cally scene numbers 169077, 169076, and 170076 for the years 1989 and 20002. These image footprints encompassed all but one of the study areas. Images were collected that would represent the study areas before and after the transfer of Figure 1. 2000 TM Image of Monyamane Communal Property Association (CPA) Area. land from white to black owners.

1 This paper represents research undertaken as part of NASA’s Earth System Science Fellowship and the NSF’s Doctoral Dissertation Improvement Award. An earlier discussion of results can be found in the September / October edition of “The Earth Observer” (Vol. 12, No.5).

2 One of the scenes in the earlier period was from 1989 due to limited availability.

26 March/April 2001 • Vol. 13 No. 2

spectral properties of the Monyamane changed from “2” to “20” and so on. Table 1. Rationale for Recode: Without study site. Note that some agricultural This would allow for unique codes to be Recoding lands in the study areas are not rectilin- generated in the fi nal “land use change” ear. African agriculture is quite different variable for the “union-ed” data set. Land Use Land Use Land Use spatially from commercial or white agri- Had one of the ‘land use’ codes from Code 1988 Code 2000 Change culture, as evidenced in Figure 1, letter the two original variables not been re- “A”. While white/commercial agricul- coded, the ‘land use change’ variable 1 2 3 ture is largely a collection of rectangular would not have had distinguishable 2 1 3 and square fi elds with an occasional change classes. 3 2 5 center-pivot irrigation circle (letter “B”), 2 3 5 African agriculture is spatially manifest Notice that in Table 1 a change from 1 3 4 as a patchwork of small fi elds, often agriculture (1) to grasslands (2) yields 4 4 8 following contours, without defi nitive a land use change code of “3”. How- 4 1 3 boundaries. Grazing land (letter “C”) ever, so does a change from grassland lies between and beyond farmed areas, (2) to agriculture (1). To prevent dupli- Table 2: Rationale for Recode: With a however, because of the need for a cation and create unique change codes, Recode priori knowledge of the area to deter- the simplest procedure is simply to mine which areas are actual grazing add “10” to the 1988/89 land-use codes Land Use Land Use Land Use lands and which are simply open grass- (Table 1). All land use change codes are Code 1988/89 Code 2000 Change lands, the category was called “grass- then unique to each particular class of land.” Forests (letter “D”) are not wide- change. The variable “land use change” 10 2 12 spread in the study areas. For the other could then be mapped in Arc/View 20 1 21 study sites, forested areas are those in (Table 2). For this paper the various 30 2 32 inaccessible areas such as gullies or high change categories have been combined 20 3 23 peaks, where farming or grazing is min- into three categories representing inten- 10 3 13 imal. sifi cation, extensifi cation, and conver- 40 4 44 sion to residential. 40 1 41 The land use change maps were created using Arc/Info, Arc/View, and Erdas Imagine. Once digitized, each polygon was coded in the database to corre- spond with the visually interpreted land use on the underlying image. Next, the two coverages were merged using the “union” command in Arc/Info with the “nojoin” option at the minimum fuzzy tolerance. The “union-ed” coverage con- tained the unique identifi ers for each polygon from the two original cover- ages, but also assigned new unique identifi ers in a separate variable column in the dataset as many of the land use polygons overlapped creating “slivers.” Because the unique identifi ers for each original coverage remained in the new “union-ed” coverage, the new polygons for land use were manually coded. In order to generate a ‘land use change’ variable, the land-use codes for the two original coverages had to be added together. To do this, “land use” vari- ables for the 1988/89 scenes were recoded from single digits to tens. For instance, the code for grassland was Figure 2. Land Use Change 1988-2000 Monyamane CPA and Environs.

27 THE EARTH OBSERVER

Land Use Change on the Study All maps created in this study were While other computer-aided methods Site “ground-truthed” in early 2001. The of classifi cation may have proved more border areas between the different land useful (such as NDVI indices), for The scope of land use change on the cover classes was found to be partic- these purposes the on-screen digitizing farms under study was minimal and ularly problematic. Satellite images of method was most useful. The spatial the change that did occur tended to dryland areas are not acquired any dif- properties of the land cover classes be extensifi cation, from agriculture to ferently than over tropical areas, how- make them more readily identifi ed. grassland or wooded areas. Figure 2 ever, the scope of human use and With knowledge of the spatial mani- shows the expansion of rural townships change and the representation of this festation of the cover types, the land (letter “E”) and some fl uctuation of agri- on the images is very different. In tropi- cover and subsequent land use classes cultural lands. Polygon “F” is the land cal areas, clearing of the land is easily were delineated. The spectral informa- on which the town’s residents farm detected. Forested areas contrast well tion was not discarded, however. The crops such as corn and vegetables. Large against cleared land and therefore are spectral data combined with the spatial areas of farmland and grassland have readily identifi ed. In dryland Africa, the data helped discern areas that were been converted to other uses. scope of change is often between grass- visually confusing. Thus, in this study, it land, farmland, and abandoned or fal- was the combination of the spectral and Figure 3 details land uses in 2000. Note lowed land. These classes are much spatial data that made the Landsat data the large areas of conversion to grass- more diffi cult to distinguish as their useful in understanding change in the land in the center of the map at letter spectral properties are very similar. South African landscape. “G”. Respondents reported out-migra- Simple classifi cation and change anal- tion from the area leading to a lack ysis becomes diffi cult. The isodata Conclusion of labor to farm as intensively as they method employed in the initial clas- had in 1988. The apparent conversion sifi cation did not prove successful for This paper has shown the usefulness of to grassland on the transferred farmland the scope of change investigated. The Landsat Thematic Mapper data in creat- (letter “H”) was a result of fuel wood method distinguished the forested from ing land use change maps for dryland collection rather than to raise cattle or non-forested areas well, but the dis- areas of South Africa. By utilizing crops. tinction between other classes (such both the spectral and spatial data, the as farmland and grassland) was weak. land use change analysis was enhanced from one that would have simply pre- sented forest/non-forest to one where agricultural, grassland, residential, and wooded/forested areas are distinquish- able. Experience on the “ground” is important for studies in areas such as this due to spectral confusion of land cover in dryland scenes. Understanding the spatial manifestation of land cover and land use will help analysts gain a deeper understanding of change. H

G

Figure 3: Land Use in 2000 Monyamane CPA and Enviirons

28 March/April 2001 • Vol. 13 No. 2

at the DAAC-based distribution systems are highly individual. While distribu- tion capabilities at the JPL DAAC Science Working Group on are adequate, the larger DAACs at GSFC, NASA Langley, and the EROS Data: A Data Distribution Data Center (EDC) have not yet fully achieved their potential due to a range Workshop of issues, most of which arise from the newness of the Terra mission. The more — Graham Bothwell, Chairman of the EOS Science Working Group on Data, Jet Propulsion Laboratory critical issues are in the process of being addressed, such as problems with high- volume orders. There are also long-term capacity issues.

Selected issues and recommen- dations

The second part of the workshop involved discussing the process towards The EOS Science Working Group on seeable obstacles to meeting user data resolving the various issues in data dis- Data (SWGD) arose from an initiative at needs, and to identify critical needs and tribution, and making specifi c recom- the March 2000 meeting of the Science areas for improvement and approaches mendations. To facilitate this, the meet- Working Group for the AM Platform for new development. ing divided into three discussion groups (SWAMP) for an on-going evaluation of to address selected priority issues. how well the current EOS data system Stakeholder status and feedback can support the Terra, Aqua, and Aura A. Software tools to facilitate missions for which it was designed. The fi rst part of the workshop was a distribution and early use of Information about the SWGD, including gathering of status and feedback from data reports of workshops, can be found on all the parties participating in EOS data the recently created SWGD Web site, at distribution, including NASA Head- The EOS data products are not always http://swgd.gsfc.nasa.gov. quarters; the EOS Program Offi ce and ESDIS Project at GSFC; the DAAC User regarded as easy to read and handle, and current tools to assist with this As reported in the November/Decem- Working Groups (UWGs); and DAAC are limited in capability. The range of ber 2000 issue of The Earth Observer, the management. tool requirements includes data product inaugural SWGD workshop was held on search-and-order tools; format conver- June 1-2, 2000, at the Goddard Space All of the EOS DAACs have User Work- sion tools; and data manipulation tools, Flight Center (GSFC). Although that ing Groups (UWGs). Besides facilitating e.g., reprojection. A three-step process event concentrated primarily on data the requirements and issues of the user was recommended for providing tools processing requirements for NASA’s community, the UWGs have a vital role that offer essential basic capabilities, Terra mission, it also concluded that assisting the DAACs to determine user namely: (1) a survey of available tools, innovative approaches would be needed needs, interface requirements, and pri- including those available from commer- to meet data distribution needs. It was orities. Reports from the UWGs to the cial software packages; (2) a commit- recommended “that there be a meeting workshop indicated that the ordering ment by the DAACs to support selected about six months from now to address system works well (within its inherent tools; and (3) development of new tools data distribution status and archive limitations), that data are easy to select, where capabilities do not already exist. access needs.” This meeting took the and that user services support is gen- form of a Data Distribution Workshop, erally good. There are also numerous The group concluded that, because the which was held on February 1, 2001, issues still being worked or remaining to provision and support of software tools at Fort Lauderdale, Florida, in conjunc- be worked such as, to list but a few, dif- will fall ultimately to the DAACs, tion with the EOS Investigators Working fi culties in ordering collocated data from responsibility for tool defi nition and Group (IWG) meeting. multiple sensors; concern about limits to the volume of distributed products; and advocacy should reside with them, in conjunction with their UWGs, with The workshop was designed to assess the lack of similar fi le naming conven- funding for tool development by the the current status of Terra data distribu- tions between instruments. community sought through budget tion and identify immediate and fore- The immediate data distribution needs augmentation.

29 THE EARTH OBSERVER

B. User modeling • Not-for-profi t organizations may be is a concept for a distributed, fl exible, able to assist with creative fi nancing. responsive system that allows for a The primary application of user spectrum of heterogeneous approaches, modeling is in prioritizing and making • Braking mechanisms may be useful, utilizing key standard interfaces to resource allocations at the DAACs more such as sliding scales of data facilitate a workable across-the-board effective, such as to aid in identifying availability depending on the size of infrastructure. NewDISS is still in the current and future stress points; to data sets ordered. formulation stage, but evolution develop mitigation strategies; and to towards it is already emerging. help users and DAACs become more • Certain products might be effi cient. Without a successful modeling developed in a more innovative Conclusion and next steps technique, systems can be wrongly manner. sized and funding mistakes can readily The success of the SWGD depends occur. There is currently no model • Improved data user tools were upon a genuine interaction between the used to forecast system evolution. discussed above. instrument and science teams repre- Steps to overcome this include: (1) sented by the SWGD and the program better use of existing available metrics; • Anticipation of needs through better and project management, so that issues (2) development of a suitable range user models was discussed above. relating to success of the respective EOS of alternative modeling techniques, missions are resolved effectively. The including the extensive model Along with these ideas were the follow- prospects for this are promising, based developed by and described to the ing suggestions for encouraging creative on the senior level of participation in workshop by Bruce Barkstrom; (3) solutions: the workshop by representatives from discussion based on presentations to the NASA Headquarters and the GSFC Pro- • It was felt that the DAACs should various UWGs; and (4) development of gram and Project Offi ces. take the lead in better defi ning profi les for different kinds of users. existing and future needs of the The core of future SWGD activities C. Creative solutions to current users, using the UWGs and other is embodied especially in the above- and projected distribution mechanisms. reported discussion on creative solu- obstacles tions. The discussions at the current • A full spectrum of organizations workshop represent only a fi rst step, This topic was designed to suggest tech- and groups needs to be involved in and are primarily at the level of poten- niques for resolving issues in data distri- carrying foward the momentum of tial possibilities that will require ongo- bution not addressed by current plans ideas initiated by the workshop. ing elaboration and review to ensure or developments. The different classes a successful evolution of progress. A • There needs to be a mechanism to of solutions that could be investigated future meeting on creative solutions ensure a continued supply of data include: is therefore recommended, possibly in sets from non-traditional suppliers. conjunction with the next IWG meeting. • Contributions from groups other • A programmatic mechanism should than the DAACs might include There is also scope to continue the decide what resources are needed value added products; helping to exploration of topics at future to maintain the data holdings and distribute standard products, e.g., workshops. Typical topics include: EOS ensure long-term archiving. partial or full mirror sites. user models, software tools, and Terra data archiving. • It is important to allow for • Direct broadcasting might be innovative solutions, including In conclusion, the SWGD seeks to work facilitated more, along with software unconventional ideas. with the existing organizational, devel- tools to use the data received, and opmental, and operational structures to the data recipients encouraged to • The capabilities of the non-NASA assist the EOS missions. In doing this, redistribute their data. community can be engaged when it is necessary to work for a community relevant. consensus and to assist in communicat- • Greater distribution effi ciency may ing that consensus and its related pro- be achieved through new In many instances, the realization of posals. It is important that no oppor- technological mechanisms such as creative solutions will be part of the tunities be left unutilized or under- data pools, data mining, coincident evolution of NewDISS, the system that utilized. This workshop made a good data searches, and various other is planned to handle NASA’s Earth start toward addressing the many issues ways. Science data processing in the future. It associated with data distribution.

30 March/April 2001 • Vol. 13 No. 2

are organized within seven themes that cut across the realm of Earth System Science: physical climate, atmospheric The Large Scale Biosphere- chemistry, carbon storage and exchange, biogeochemistry, hydrology and surface Atmosphere Experiment in water chemistry, land use and land cover change, and the human dimension Amazonia (LBA): new research of Amazonian development. results start to form building LBA’s research strategy is multi-dimen- sional as the project works to under- blocks for integration stand the spatial and temporal charac- teristics and interactions. Study plots — Janice Wiles ([email protected]), SSAI, Outreach and Education Offi cer and fl ight paths lie along two ecological for NASA’s LBA Projects in Amazonia, GSFC Ecology and Hydrometeorology Project transects that cross the basin, each Offi ce — Michael Keller ([email protected]), Project Scientist LBA-Ecology, Complex with different climatic and land use Systems Research Center, University of New Hampshire intensity gradients (Figure 1). These pro- cess-based studies are scaled up using aircraft measurements, remote sensing data and models (Figure 2). Using this strategy, LBA will produce an inte- grated analysis of the complex biologi- Introduction and Background cal, chemical, and atmospheric processes that drive the extensive ecosystem of The Amazon Basin contains the largest extent of tropical forest on Earth, over 5 x 106 the Amazon Region. Research will range km2, and accounts for a large proportion of the planet’s animal and plant species. from scales of one-meter plots to the However, over the past 25 years, rapid development has led to the deforestation of over 500,000 km2 in Brazil alone. A small number of fi eld studies carried out over the last 15 years show local changes in the water, energy, carbon and nutrient cycling, and atmo- spheric composition caused by deforestation and bio- mass burning. This research has raised concerns about the region and how these changes might affect the global atmosphere and climate.

Almost a decade has passed since the Brazilian sci- entifi c community, joined by an international team of scientists which included investigations funded by NASA’s Earth Science Enterprise, began to plan a con- tinental scale experiment to understand the impact of this rapid development. This group developed a research strategy that would provide new understand- ing of how Amazonia currently functions as a regional entity in the Earth system and how changes in land use and climate affect the biological, physical and chemical functioning of the region’s ecosystems. The Large Scale Biosphere-Atmosphere Experiment in Amazonia (LBA) is one of the largest coordinated scientifi c endeavors in the humid tropics. The project’s implementation began in 1998 and has advanced rapidly since. Today LBA studies comprise over 100 well-coordinated research groups involving about 600 scientists from South and North America, Europe and Japan. LBA studies Figure 1. LBA research sites are found along two major transects which span gradients of land use intensity and annual rainfall variability.

31 THE EARTH OBSERVER

Results LBA SCALING / INTEGRATION Following are some of the research results to date that con- SeaWIFS AVHRR GOES SSM/I ENVISAT TRMM tribute to understanding how the Amazon functions and SPOT LANDSAT CBERS Radarsat JERS-1 VCL how deforestation, fi re, conversion to pasture and agricultural MODIS ASTER MISR SRTM ALI HYPERION fi elds, highway and urban construction change the region’s natural function, affect sustainable land use, and affect the global climate. Optical Studies Radar Studies Models Radiation Fluxes • One of the biggest questions that LBA faces is whether the Amazon region is a net source or sink of carbon, and Regional Scale how the carbon fl ux changes interannually. Observations 100 -10,000 km2 by Greg Asner and models by Hangin Tian and their col- leagues indicate that vegetation responds to rainfall varia- tion during wet years with both greater productivity and IKONOS carbon storage. Jeff Richey and others are using AVHRR CO and Trace Gas AVIRIS 2 data from 1980-2000 to understand the variability in pre- Flux Measurements AirMISR Lidar Profiler MAS cipitation and how it might affect carbon cycling. Models • Accurate biomass estimates are key to understanding the impact of loss through burning, cutting or logging Study Area Scale on nutrient and carbon cycling through the atmospheric 10 -100 km2 and biospheric systems. LBA is attempting to estimate bio- mass through fi eld study and remotely sensed imagery. Fluxes Optical Studies Researchers have found that soil type infl uences secondary Towers Field Spectrometers succession rate and, therefore, biomass estimates for sec- Chambers Ceptometers Models ondary forests. Studies on terra fi rma forests near Manaus (along the northern transect, see Figure 1) show that soil Local / Plot Scale fertility is important for tree and liana biomass. Rainforest 1 m -1 km2 fragmentation results in a substantial loss of forest biomass, Figure 2. Research teams collect data on the ground, and from instru- mainly due to elevated tree mortality. ments that are mounted upon towers, in air ballons, on aircraft and on orbiting satellites. Scientists use sophisticated computer models • Loss of biomass through burning and cutting tropical land- to describe current climate conditions, and to predict changes. Such scapes is a signifi cant source of greenhouse emissions. models must account for the Amazon Basin’s characteristics and natu- Chris Potter and colleagues used a combination of satellite ral cyclic phenomena that change rainfall frequency, intensity and distribution (La Niña and El Niño) and modifi cations to landscape and observations of fi re occurrence from the IGBP DIS global atmospheric gas concentrations. fi re product combined with biomass and productivity esti- mates from the CASA ecosystem model to evaluate the carbon budget for the Amazon region. They found the entire Amazon region and will demonstrate how changes in region acted as a net source for carbon in a range of .2-1.2 land use modify the quantity and quality of the Earth system’s Pg/year between 1992 and 1993. essential components. • The greatest uncertainty in determining carbon fl ux for From its early planning, LBA has been concerned about capac- 1989-1998 is quantifying biomass lost to deforestation. Bio- ity building in the region. LBA leaders and collaborators place mass, rates of deforestion and rates of decay uncertainties a strong emphasis on building a cadre of trained scientists accounted for about 60, 25, and 15%, respectively, of the in Amazonia able to carry on after LBA has completed its range of estimates of fl ux (R. Houghton et al., 2000). research mission. To date, through the efforts of the LBA • Root metabolism, decay and soil microbial processes gener- Training and Education Committee, the project has supported ate gases which are released at the soil surface. The type fi eld and laboratory training for over 200 individuals who are of gas released and the rates of emission are important in actively making contributions to answer LBA’s research ques- understanding global trace gas budgets. Whendee Silver tions. In the future, these well-trained scientists and future and colleagues use sequential coring techniques to show leaders in the project’s several disciplines will certainly prove that live roots appear to turn over carbon in approximately to be LBA’s greatest legacy. one year. Susan Trumbore, Plinio Camargo and colleagues

32 March/April 2001 • Vol. 13 No. 2

b

c a e

In situ fi eld measurements in the Santarem region: a) measuring wind direction and speed, air temperature and precipitation, mary and secondary forests. Litter- fall in the secondary forest was 88% b) fi eld laboratory, c) CO2 fl ux and profi les, d) solar panels provide energy for continuous that of the rate in the primary forest. fi eld measurements, e) tower fl ux measure- But, by contrast, the secondary forest ments above the canopy of the Tapajos had only 17% of the above-ground National Forest. biomass when compared to the pri- d mary forest. The researchers found found that fi ne root structural mate- belowground carbon in the second- rial was 6-19 years old. Can these ary forest nearly identical with that two results be reconciled? of the unaltered forest, due to the sion proceeds. Plinio Camargo and rapid cycling rates of soil carbon • Eric Davidson and others are look- colleagues study recovery of carbon and rapid recoverty rates of carbon ing at land-use change and biogeo- stocks and carbon fl uxes within fl uxes to and from the soil. chemical controls on methane fl uxes a secondary forest and compare in soils in the Eastern Amazon. these measurements to those for • Along the southern transect in Methane fl ux into tropical soils a primary forest, degraded pasture the Brazilian state of Rondonia accounts for approximately 10-20% and productive pasture. Moving where streamside riparian buffers of atmospheric methane consumed along a transect from a 23-year-old are either cut or thinned, Reinaldo annually by all soils. Tropical defor- degraded pasture to a 7-year-old Victoria, Linda Deegan and col- estation could be changing this secondary forest to a 17-year-old sec- leagues found differences in the important methane sink. In all land ondary forest indicate that the soil chemistry of surface waters and an uses, uptake rates of atmospheric organic matter from C3 forest plants increase in dissolved inorganic and

CH4 were greater in the dry season was quickly re-established after cut- organic nitrogen in rivers. than in the wet season, indicating ting. The degraded pasture also had that soil water content and gas trans- signifi cant carbon from carbon and • Fire is becoming an increasingly port are important factors for meth- C3 plants. Radiocarbon data showed important tool for managing pasture ane fl ux. that most of the carbon in the top and agricultural fi elds in the 10 cm of soil had been fi xed by Amazon Basin. Studies on the effects • The future fl ora of Amazonia will plants during the past 30 years. Dif- of fi re show changes in soil chem- include signifi cant areas of second- ferences in soil carbon among land- istry. In Rondonia, acidic soils are ary forest as degraded pastures are use types were relatively small. Root formed from basic rocks. Fire used abandoned and secondary succes- inputs were almost identical to pri- to clear land elevates the pH of sur-

33 THE EARTH OBSERVER

face soils rendering it more basic. LBA atmospheric chemists Liane map, agricultural census data from At depth, these same soils continue Guild and Lucianna Gatti are model- all Amazon region countries and to be acidic indicating that fi re ing and measuring (respectively) the regression tree analysis to produce a alters surface soil pH. Farmers prefer effects of fi re, which include large map of agricultural land use for the soils that are formed on basic releases of carbon monoxide, nitro- basin. rocks because they tend to be more gen oxides, and particulates during fertile. Therefore, greater changes the dry season. According to one • Paulo Artaxo and colleagues have of soil chemistry are observed on model the dominant emissions come explored the relationship between basic rock compared to acid rock. from those intentional fi res set to atmospheric aerosols, radiation and LBA researchers Getulio Batista and clear the land where forests have clouds during wet and dry season Karen Holmes continue to collect been felled. Sun-photometers spread sampling campaigns over the last and utilize soil survey data to look across the Amazon Basin for LBA three years, combining extensive at the interaction between soil chem- and the AERONET projects show in situ measurements with remote istry and land use. that there can be up to 25% reduc- sensing techniques. During the wet season Amazonia demonstrates • Mark Cochrane, cloud and precipitation features Carlos Souza, Daniel which resemble those over open Nepstad and Hel- ocean, and not those over a con- oisa Miranda have tinental land mass as one would researched the pres- expect; hence, Amazonia has been ent and future referred to as the “Green Ocean.” effects of ground The cloud droplets are large, clouds fi res on forest are shallow (2-3 kilometers high) carbon stocks, and warm precipitation is frequently metabolism, hydrol- observed. Cloud condensation ogy, and economics. nuclei concentration is very low Many of these fi res on the order of 300-500 occur at ground particles/cc. Burning level and are not vegetation during the easily visible from dry season in the the air or satellite Amazon Basin raises platforms. After each ground fi re, it biogenic aerosol concen- becomes much easier for the forest trations by as much as to be reignited so that after two fi res, seventy-fold. Air with the probability of the forest burning a greater density of altogether is very high. The investi- aerosol particles gener- gators have found signifi cant impov- ally forms clouds much erishment of Amazonian forests by higher (10-15 km), cloud logging and fi re. Selective logging droplets are small and opens new forest areas and leads scatter light and refl ect to an increased probability of fi re it back to space, reduc- spreading unintentionally into the ing the light useful for forest. The project, through the work tion in photosynthetically active plant photosynthesis by 40%. Light- of Urbano Lopez at IPAM, has radiation during times of heavy ning is very active. The NASA developed an Amazon-wide model smoke. TRMM satellite shows that skies to predict forest susceptibility to fi re. which are dense with aerosol par- The need for this model became • Differences in soil type prove to be a ticles form large clouds that produce clear during the 1997-98 ENSO event key factor for choosing land use and only half the expected rainfall. and the model was successful, even crop type. Land use and land change Human-produced emissions have in its preliminary form, at predicting studies show that credit rates, infl a- already changed cloud and precipi- areas most at risk of accidental fi res. tion and access to markets determine tation properties in Amazonia. Sim- the magnitude of agricultural expan- ilar changes could be occuring in • Fire changes atmospheric composi- sion. Jeff Cardille and colleagues Africa and Southeast Asia. tion and concentration of trace gases. have used a mid-1990s land cover

34 March/April 2001 • Vol. 13 No. 2

• By some estimates, 20% of the basin ports the Hydrometeorology Project. 283 posters that covered the full range can be considered alluvial or hydric of LBA’s scientifi c themes. While there in nature. Using SMMR and vid- NASA’s LBA Ecology Project has 46 is still much to understand about how eography John Melack and Evlyn individual studies, each with its own the Amazon region functions, the con- Novo found that during the “wet” research question that will contribute to ference showed progress in many areas season the Central Basin’s surface answering the question: How do trop- including a greater understanding of the water expands from 20,000 km2 to ical forest conversion, regrowth, and relationships among the seven research cover 60,000-90,000 km2. Enormous selective logging infl uence carbon stor- themes. quantities of matter and energy are age, nutrient dynamics, trace gas fl uxes, transported along fl ow paths that and the prospect for sustainable land Many challenges lie ahead for LBA sci- are part of the drainage network of use in Amazonia? These three-year long ence. Greater scientifi c involvement of this basin. studies will continue through 2001. the research communities of all of the Some will seek renewal through an Amazonian countries is needed. Also, • Selective logging is a growing land upcoming NRA for LBA Ecology to be to answer the overarching questions, use in the Amazon Basin. In forests released in 2001. NASA’s Airborne Sci- LBA needs to effectively integrate, coor- subject to selective logging, approx- ence will contribute to LBA through an dinate and synthesize a wealth of the- imately 1-6 marketable trees are airborne remote sensing campaign in matic research results and this perhaps removed per hectare. Over several 2002, and six individual research proj- presents, in itself, the greatest challenge years, loggers intensity harvests so ects have been selected to “scale up” for Earth System Science. that the area affected can be as large information and scientifi c understand- as the area clear-cut. This leads to ing relevant to the terrestrial ecology LBA will focus its future efforts on damage in the forest and may lead and land-cover change objectives of synthesizing site-based process studies to long term losses of timber pro- LBA-Ecology. These observations will to understand the interaction of the ductivity. Identifying logged areas help to fi ll key data gaps and reduce Amazon Region with the global system. with remote sensors has failed. Greg major scientifi c uncertainties in the The research includes building on pro- Asner, Natalino Silva (EMBRAPA- understanding of regional carbon bal- cess studies of trace gases, nutrients and Belem), and colleagues indicated ance and trace gas fl uxes. land use changes and incorporating the that identifi cation of selective log- human dimension into those processes ging extent or intensity is limited NASA’s LBA Hydrometeorology Project for the entire Amazon Basin. Airborne when using Landsat ETM+ or SPOT has 11 individual studies each with its and space-based measurements over the imagery. They showed that selective own focus in the areas of physical cli- entire Amazon region will be used to logging can, at best, be detected mate and land surface hydrology. In check regional models of carbon and 1.5 years after disturbance. In 2002, summary these projects study convec- trace gas budgets. NASA will support research using tion and precipitation at various spatial the airborne visible infrared imaging scales and seasonal-to-interannual dif- Ultimately, in addition to augmenting spectrometer (AVIRIS) instrument to ferences in land and atmospheric pro- our understanding of the importance characterize and differentiate spec- cesses and cycles, both within sub- of Amazonia for the planet, LBA must tral signatures of selectively logged basins and across the region. Models enhance the scientifi c understanding forest, as well as primary and sec- are used to assess and project climatic needed to guide the sustainable use of ondary forest. trends and relationships to land and the Amazonian forests. ocean processes. This research will Summary of NASA’s contribution quantify the regional water budget, con- References to LBA tributing to a more accurate understand- ing of the affect of land cover and other References can be found at the following NASA supports LBA through its LBA surface changes upon the land-atmo- website: lba-ecology.gsfc.nasa.gov/ -Ecology and LBA-Hydrometeorology sphere hydrological cycle, regional and lbaeco/News_Events/publications.htm. Projects. These efforts concentrate global climate. research on the ecological and hydrome- teorological processes in Amazonia and Conclusion how land cover change affects these pro- cesses. NASA’s Terrestrial Ecology and In June 2000, LBA held a Scientifi c Con- Land Use/Land Change Programs sup- ference in Belém, Pará, Brazil, where port the Ecology Project, and Land Sur- over 350 participants met to present face Hydrology Program (LSHP) sup- their fi ndings in open meetings and on

35 THE EARTH OBSERVER

“Two Studies Affi rm Greenhouse Gases’ Effects,” (April 13) Washington Post William Patzert (NASA/JPL) com- mented on natural variability in oceans, in regard to two climate models’ agree- ment on the connection of rising ocean temperatures and increasing atmo- spheric carbon dioxide.

— Rob Gutro ([email protected]), EOS project Science Offi ce, Code 900, “Watching the Sea Grass Grow…From NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, tel. (301) 286-4044, Fax: (301) 286-2322 Space,” (April 5) Christian Science Monitor, Scientifi cAmerican.com Gene Carl Feldman (NASA/GSFC) and Jorge Sarmiento (Princeton Univ.) dis- “McCain Critical of Global Warming” “Deforestation Caused Global cussed SeaWiFS data showing that (May 1) Associated Press Cooling,” (April 25) Weather.com ocean phytoplankton have increased Senator John McCain’s Commerce Com- Ken Caldeira (Lawrence Livermore their carbon uptake over the last three mittee held a hearing on the new Inter- National Lab) and other researchers years from 111 billion tons to 117 billion governmental Panel of Climate Change suggest that forests replaced by fi elds tons. report, and heard testimony from James of grass and crops may have cooled Hansen (NASA/GISS) among others. the globe between 1000 and 1900 A.D. “Ozone-Eating Clouds Form in Cold because lighter color vegetation refl ects Polar Rings,” (March 30) Space.com “Bush Calls In Experts to Help Set more sunlight back into space. Azadeh Tabazadeh (NASA/Ames) Course on Climate,” (April 28) New explained new research that indicates York Times “Less Pollution May Boost Global bands of frigid air in the stratosphere are The Bush Administration called on sev- Warming,” (April 20) SeattleTimes.com creating [more?] ozone-depleting polar eral climate experts, including James Research by Michael Prather (Univ. of clouds. Hansen (NASA/GISS), for advice in the California-Irvine) indicates that reduc- wake of the decision to abandon the ing nitrogen oxide without reducing “NASA Satellite Finds Massive New Kyoto Protocol. carbon monoxide would lead to a long- Antarctic Iceberg,” (March 22) CNN term increase in atmospheric methane cable, MSNBC cable, ABC National “Shrinking African Lake Offers Les- and boost global warming. News, Weather Channel sons on Resources,” (February 28, Robert Bindschadler (NASA/GSFC) March 27, April 26) USA Today, New “Wet Stratosphere May Delay Ozone reported that NASA’s Landsat 7 satellite York Times, NationalGeographic.com Recovery,” (April 18) USAToday.com, detected a 15-mile crack in the Antarc- Mike Coe and Jon Foley (Univ. of Wis- Space.com tic’s Pine Island Glacier that will lead to consin-Madison) used satellite data to Drew Shindell (NASA/GISS) says the formation of a new iceberg. confi rm that Lake Chad, once one of greenhouse gases have increased the Africa’s largest freshwater lakes, has amount of water vapor in the strato- “Ice Probe Explores Glacier’s Secrets,” shrunk dramatically over the last 40 sphere, which may delay ozone recov- (March 19) BBC News online years. ery and accelerate climate change. Frank Carsey (NASA/JPL) noted that the ice probe into the West Antarctic Ice “Mongolian Dust Cloud Moves Across “Climate Change Inspires Extreme Sheet could be the forerunner of probes America,” (April 25) ENN.com, Acts of Science at North Pole,” (April designed to look for life anywhere in the CBSnews.com 17) New York Times solar system. Gene Carl Feldman (NASA Goddard) John Michael Wallace (Univ. of Wash- was interviewed about how the Sea- ington) commented on a project where “Satellite Tracks Plumes of Pollution,” WiFS satellite tracked a cloud of pollu- scientists at the North Pole Environ- (March 19) Scientifi cAmerican.com tion and dust from Mongolia that spread mental Observatory are gathering cli- Anne Thompson (NASA/GSFC) used across 25 percent of the United States in mate data to fi ne-tune computer models the Total Ozone Mapping Spectrometer late April. that simulate global climate in hopes of to fi nd a key difference in the way better understanding climate change in smoke and smog move in the atmo- the Arctic. sphere. (Continued on page 38)

36 March/April 2001 • Vol. 13 No. 2

a Thacher Scholarship is awarded, in cooperation with NSIP, to the Center high school winner of the Watching Earth Science Education Earth Change competition who displays the best use of satellite remote sensing Program Update in understanding the changing planet. $4,000 is provided to the student for — Blanche Meeson ([email protected]), NASA Goddard Space Flight Center — Theresa Schwerin ([email protected]), IGES educational expenses.

Other NSIP prizes include a trip to Space Camp for the national middle school winners; a trip to Space Flight Opportunity Week at GSFC Wallops Flight Facility for students whose exper- iments are selected for fl ight; school NASA Earth and Space Science chapters across the country. Through programs by NASA representatives for Education Seminar: The Space a quarterly “Club Space Place” distri- Center fi rst place winners; medals for Place bution, organizations not traditionally all second and third place winners; and reached by this type of product obtain a certifi cate of participation for all on- On April 11, Nancy Leon of NASA’s Jet displays, activity ideas, and supplemen- time, qualifi ed entries. Propulsion Laboratory presented “The tal materials. Space Place” at an Earth and Space Sci- Science@NASA Receives Interna- ence Education Seminar at NASA GSFC. Because of its design, The Space Place tional Award The Space Place is an education out- has the potential to include all NASA reach effort that uses various media to missions. For more information contact: On April 3, the Science@NASA family reach students in the classroom, home, Nancy Leon, Education and Public Out- of web sites received a prestigious inter- and community. Traditionally under- reach Lead, NASA New Millennium national honor, the 2000 Pirelli INTER- represented audiences, such as African- Program, NASA JPL 4800 Oak Grove NETional Award, which recognizes Americans, Hispanics, girls, and rural Drive, Mailstop 301-235, Pasadena, CA excellence in science communications populations are the target groups. 91109. Tel: (818) 354-1067, and “the spread of science culture” [email protected]. using the Internet. The foundation of The Space Place is its Internet site: spaceplace.jpl.nasa.gov/. NSIP Regional Winners To Be Science@NASA is operated by NASA’s Here students, teachers, parents, and Honored At National Symposium Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) in other educators are provided with scien- Huntsville, Alabama, and received more tifi c information, applications, and activ- Over 3,000 students developed and sub- than 330 million “hits” from Internet ities. Written for the student, these activ- mitted entries to the 2000-2001 NASA users in 2000. The sites feature a ities do not require special equipment Student Involvement Program (NSIP) -- broad range of science and space news. and, therefore, can be conducted at NASA’s national competition for stu- Science@NASA also received the Webby home or in an informal education set- dents – in fi ve competition areas: My Award in 1999 for the “Best Science Site ting. Planet Earth, Watching Earth Change, on the Internet” from the International Design a Mission to Mars, Aeronautics Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences. By providing monthly columns to news- and Space Science Journalism, and It is the only U.S. government Web site papers and specialty magazines, infor- Space Flight Opportunities. A list of to win both these awards. The full story mation and activities are passed on to all winning entries can be found is at http://science.nasa.gov/headlines additional students, parents, and class- on the NSIP WWW site at http:// /y2001 ast04apr_1.htm?list474867 rooms some of which may not have www.education.nasa.gov/nsip. Internet access. These columns provide exciting information and activities and The Center winners (regional winners direct the reader to where additional selected at seven NASA Centers) of the information can be found. Lastly, The high school Watching Earth Change Space Place reaches museums, libraries, competition were honored at the NSIP planetariums, zoos, aquariums, Boys & National Symposium, May 5-9, at Ken- Girls Clubs of America, and YMCA nedy Space Center, Florida. Each year,

37 THE EARTH OBSERVER

(Continued from page 25) What is ECHO? EOS Aura Ground System Review

In response to feedback indicating the need for more fl exibility in user and more detailed instrument input to access to data, ESDIS Project is developing the EOS ClearingHOuse the IMT. (ECHO). ECHO is based on a new strategy that refl ects the realities of diverse sub-community needs. The original and current user interface (EOS Wrap-up Data Gateway - EDG), based on the old strategy, has evolved to adequately support many users. However, the diverse nature of scientists, instrument Peg Luce, Aura Project Manager, specialists and the public drives the need for different methods of fi nding thanked the ground system team, espe- data. We have adopted a new approach of putting EOSDIS metadata into cially the presenters, for a very good and a clearinghouse and providing interfaces for plugging in alternative user comprehensive review. interfaces and data services developed outside of ESDIS. The review generated many good ECHO provides a common, well-defi ned message level interface to the questions and detailed technical dis- metadata. With ECHO’s focus on supporting various searches of the meta- cussions that clarifi ed or brought up data and brokering the subsequent orders for data, individual communities several requirements-related items. The can tailor a user interface design to their own needs and access methods. Requests for Actions (RFAs) were This approach enables the community to participate in defi ning their inter- reviewed and assigned at the end of face without having to focus on the potentially nasty details of the underly- each day. The Aura MOM and the ing infrastructure. New systems that are customized to the needs of a ESDIS Systems Manager will track RFA community can be developed to use either the native or any of several other progress and disposition. protocols to communicate with ECHO’s repository of current information. All of this is accomplished by building a fl exible clearinghouse and service broker infrastructure based on XML and Java Beans. (Continued from page 36) Earth Scientist On News

The Workshop, August 22-24, “Satellite Data Proves Greenhouse Effect,” (March 14) CNN.com 2001 at Goddard Drew Shindell (NASA/GISS) com- mented that a new study based on 27 The purpose of this workshop is to provide preliminary training on ECHO years of satellite observations should and Client APIs so that developers can start prototyping alternative user end the debate over greenhouse gas interfaces. This early activity serves three purposes: effects.

1. We can fl esh out system requirements before the system goes fully “Clouds Above the Pacifi c Could operational. Release Trapped Heat,” (March 7) BBC 2. You and your community (defi ned by you) can have early access via News Online alternative data access paths to EOSDIS data. New research by Arthur Hou and 3. This workshop will provide you the opportunity to voice your ideas Ming-Dah Chou (NASA/GSFC) sug- and input on the capabilities to be exposed through ECHO APIs. gests the tropical Pacifi c Ocean may open a “cirrus cloud heat vent” that may If you are serious about writing your own user interface for EOS data diminish warming caused by green- access and would like to attend this workshop, please contact Robin Pfi ster house gases. (robin.pfi [email protected]) and provide the following information: Name “Scientists Report Gains in Protecting Citizenship Ozone Layer,” (March 4) Newsday Institution Affi liation Charles Kolb (Aerodyne) reported that Science Team Affi liation (if applicable) the level of chlorine has peaked in e-mail address the upper atmosphere, and that interna- phone number tional agreements limiting the amount of ozone-eating gases are effective. Space is extremely limited so send your information in early.

38 March/April 2001 • Vol. 13 No. 2

[email protected], tel. 361-209-6001; Science Calendar Global Change Calendar Fax: 361-386-9378; URL: www.sztaki.hu/ conferences/iag2001.

June 4-6 April 23-27 October 7-10 MISR Science Team Meeting, Pasa- ASPRS: The Imaging and Geospatial 2001 International Conference on Image dena, CA. Contact: David Diner, tel. Information Society, St. Louis. tel. (410) Processing, Thessaloniki, Greece. Call (818) 354-6319, e-mail: 208-4855; Fax: (410) 641-8341; e-mail: for Papers. Contact Diastasi, tel. +30 31 [email protected]. [email protected]; URL: www.asprs.org. 938 203, Fax: +30 31 909 269, e-mail [email protected]. June 18-20 May 7-10 OMI International Science Team Meet- 14th Annual Geographic Information December 10-14 ing, Royal Netherlands Meteorological Sciences Conferences, Baltimore, MD. 2001 AGU Fall Meeting, San Francisco, Institute (KNMI), DeBilt, The Neth- Contact Towson University, tel. (410) CA. For more infomation, tel. 1 (800) erlands. Contact: Ernest Hilsenrath, 830-3887; e-mail: 966-2481 or 1(202) 462-6900; Fax: 1 [email protected] [email protected]; URL: (202) 328-0566; e-mail: www.towson.edu/cgis/tugis2001. [email protected]; URL: June 19-21 www.agu.org. AIRS Science Team Meeting, Pasa- May 14-18 dena, CA. Contact: George Aumann, Environmental Risks & the Global Com- January 21-23, 2002 e-mail: [email protected]. munity, Argonne, IL. Contact Joan Non-CO2 Greenhouse Gases (NCGG-3) Brunsvold, tel. (630) 252-5585; e-mail: scientifi c understanding, control options July 24-26 [email protected]. and policy aspects, Maastricht, The Federation of Earth Science Information Netherlands. Contact Dr. Joop van Partners, University of North Dakota in May 29-June 2 Ham. e-mail: [email protected]; tel. Grand Forks. Contact: George Seiels- 2001 Spring AGU (American Geophysi- 31-15-285-2558; Fax: 31-15-261-3186; tad, e-mail: [email protected]. cal Union) Meeting, Boston, Massachu- URL: www.et.ic.ac.uk/Dept/LocalNews/ setts. tel. 1 (800) 966-2481 or 1(202) greenhouse.htm. July 31 462-6900; Fax: 1 (202) 328-0566; ORNL DAAC User Working Group Meet- e-mail: [email protected]; URL: July 9-12, 2002 ing, Baltimore, Maryland www.agu.org 2002 Joint International Symposium Contact: Bob Cook, [email protected], on GeoSpatial Theory, Processing and 865 574 7319 July 9-13 Applications, Ottawa, Canada. Call for International Geoscience and Remote Papers. For details, tel. +1 613 August 2 Sensing Symposium, Sydney, Australia. 224-9851; Fax: +1 613 224-9577; e-mail: [email protected]; URL: Aqua Science Working Group Meeting, tel. 61.2.6257.3299; Fax: www.geomatics2002.org. NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, 61.2.6257.3256; e-mail: Greenbelt, MD, Bldg. 33, Rm. H114. [email protected]; URL: Contact: Claire Parkinson, tel. (301) www.IGARSS2001.org/. 614-5715; e-mail: [email protected]. July 10-13 Global Change Open Science Con- September 10-21 ference “Challenges of a Changing HDF/HDF-EOS Workshop, Champaign, Earth,” Amsterdam. Contact Will Stef- IL. Contact George Schwenke, e-mail: fen, e-mail: [email protected]; URL: [email protected], URL: www.sciconf.igbp. kva.se. http://hdfeos.gsfc.nasa.gov/hdfeos/call5.html. July 10-18 September 18-20 International Association of Meteorology CERES Science Team Meeting, Brus- and Atmospheric Sciences 2001 Con- sels, Belgium. Contact: Jennifer Hubble, ference, Innsbruck, Austria. For more NASA Langley, 757-864-8333, e-mail: informaiton see URL: meteo.uibk.ac.at/ [email protected] IAMAS2001.

October 29-November 1 Septemper 2-7 U.S. TRMM Science Team meeting, International Association of Geodesy Fort Collins, CO. Contact: Robert Adler, Scientifi c Assembly, Budapest, Hun- e-mail: [email protected] gary. Contact Viktor Richter, e-mail:

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