Subscribe free to our newsletters via your
. 24/7 Space News .




EARTH OBSERVATION
First-of-its-kind Geostationary Lightning Mapper Completed for GOES-R Satellite
by Staff Writers
Washington DC (SPX) Oct 11, 2014


The GOES-R GLM Sensor Unit with thermal blankets and (non-flight) baffle installed. This is what the GLM Sensor Unit will look like when it is on the spacecraft. Image courtesy Lockheed Martin. For a larger version of this image please go here.

The Geostationary Lightning Mapper (GLM) instrument for NOAA's Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite - R (GOES-R) completed development and testing and is now ready for integration with the spacecraft. The GOES-R satellite will be the first flight of this sophisticated lightning mapping instrument in geostationary orbit and will enable early predictions of intensifying storms and severe weather events.

GLM has the potential to improve severe storm warning while reducing false alarms, provide early warning of lightning ground strike hazards, and better detection and short range forecasts of heavy rainfall and flash flooding, including weather events that could affect aviation safety.

"Continuous monitoring of total lightning from space provided by the new GOES-R lightning mapper will be invaluable to our efforts at the NOAA Storm Prediction Center to warn the public and society in advance of dangerous thunderstorms and tornadoes," said Russ Schneider, director of NOAA's Storm Prediction Center in Norman, Okla.

GLM is also expected to also improve the ability to monitor the intensification of storms during radar outages, or where radar coverage is poor or scarce, such as in mountainous areas and oceanic regions. The instrument provides total lightning activity detection with both cloud-to-ground and cloud-to-cloud coverage.

Unlike other ground-based sensors that primarily detect cloud-to-ground lightning, GLM will provide near-uniform coverage over oceans to better identify growing, potentially destructive thunderstorms. Data from the instrument will be used to produce a long-term database to track decadal changes in lightning activity, which is important to monitor given lightning's role in the global electric current.

"Completing the GLM instrument is an important milestone for us," said Greg Mandt, GOES-R System Program Director at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland.

"Not only will it be the first instrument of its kind to fly in geostationary orbit over the North America, but it is the final GOES-R instrument to be completed, moving all six instruments into the integration phase. This maintains the excellent progress our program is making as we move forward to launch in early 2016."

The advanced spacecraft and instrument technology on the GOES-R series satellites will result in more timely and accurate weather forecasts. It will improve support for the detection and observations of meteorological phenomena and directly affect public safety, protection of property, and ultimately, economic health and development.

The GOES-R series will be more advanced than the current GOES fleet. The satellites are expected to more than double the clarity of today's GOES imagery and provide more atmospheric observations than current capabilities with more frequent images.

NOAA manages the GOES-R Series Program through an integrated NOAA-NASA program office, located at NASA Goddard.

NOAA's mission is to understand and predict changes in Earth's environment, from the depths of the ocean to the surface of the sun, and to conserve and manage our coastal and marine resources.

.


Related Links
More information about GOES-R
Earth Observation News - Suppiliers, Technology and Application






Comment on this article via your Facebook, Yahoo, AOL, Hotmail login.

Share this article via these popular social media networks
del.icio.usdel.icio.us DiggDigg RedditReddit GoogleGoogle




Memory Foam Mattress Review
Newsletters :: SpaceDaily :: SpaceWar :: TerraDaily :: Energy Daily
XML Feeds :: Space News :: Earth News :: War News :: Solar Energy News





EARTH OBSERVATION
My Planet from Space
Paris (ESA) Oct 08, 2014
The fragility and beauty of our planet came into focus yesterday with a special viewing of satellite images at Rome's Palazzo delle Esposizioni. The event was attended by the heads of ESA, NASA, Italy's space agency and representatives from the Italian Presidency of the Council of the EU. The exhibition "My Planet from Space: Fragility and Beauty" takes viewers on a journey to some of the ... read more


EARTH OBSERVATION
Solving the mystery of the 'man in the moon'

Origin of moon's 'ocean of storms' revealed

'Man in the Moon' was born from lava - scientists

Turning the Moon into a cosmic ray detector

EARTH OBSERVATION
NASA Parachute Engineers Have Appetite for Destruction

Russian Scientists Develop Mechanism for Rover's Descent to Mars

Russia May Send Repeat Mission to Martian Moon Phobos in 2023

WSU undergrad helps develop method for detecting water on Mars

EARTH OBSERVATION
Richard Branson says commercial space flight almost here

NASA Selects Advanced Oxygen Recovery Proposals for Spacecraft Missions

Club Med board recommends Chinese firm Fosun's new bid

"Dream Chaser" Chases Its Dream

EARTH OBSERVATION
China to launch new marine surveillance satellites in 2019

China Successfully Orbits Experimental Satellite

China's first space lab in operation for over 1000 days

China Exclusive: Mars: China's next goal?

EARTH OBSERVATION
Wiseman and Gerst Complete First Spacewalk of Expedition 41

US, German astronauts finish spacewalk to maintain ISS

As spacewalks resume, change is coming to the International Space Station

Alexander Gerst set for spacewalk

EARTH OBSERVATION
Europe sat-nav launch glitch linked to frozen pipe

Proton Failure Review Board Concludes Investigation

Arianespace's lightweight Vega launcher is readied for its mission with the European IXV spaceplane

Soyuz Rocket Awaiting Launch at Baikonur Cosmodrome

EARTH OBSERVATION
Hubble project maps temperature, water vapor on wild exoplanet

New milestone in the search for water on distant planets

Clear skies on exo-Neptune

Distant planet's atmosphere shows evidence of water vapor

EARTH OBSERVATION
Raytheon reports USAF contract for 3D radar

Metal Made Like Plastic May Have Big Impact

Paper-thin and touch-sensitive displays on various materials

A new liquid phase 3D printing method using low melting metal alloy ink




The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2014 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. Privacy Statement All images and articles appearing on Space Media Network have been edited or digitally altered in some way. Any requests to remove copyright material will be acted upon in a timely and appropriate manner. Any attempt to extort money from Space Media Network will be ignored and reported to Australian Law Enforcement Agencies as a potential case of financial fraud involving the use of a telephonic carriage device or postal service.