The CALIPSO mission that analysed climate, weather, and air quality ended on August 1, National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) announced
Key Points about the CALIPSO Mission
- CALIPSO had exhausted its fuel reserves. Due to its decaying orbit, the satellite was no longer capable of generating sufficient power to operate its science instruments.
- As such, the two space agencies agreed to end the mission on August 1
- The CALIPSO mission recorded more than 10 billion LIDAR measurements and helped create thousands of scientific reports over its 17 years of operation.
- CALIPSO (Cloud-Aerosol LIDAR and Infrared Pathfinder Satellite Observations) is a mission dedicated to studying how clouds and aerosols impact the Earth’s climate.
- It is a joint project between NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration) and CNES (Centre National d’Études Spatiales), the French space agency.
- Launched in 2006, CALIPSO is a satellite-based observatory.
- CALIPSO has been part of a constellation of spacecraft called the “A-Train,” including Aqua, Aura, and PARASOL spacecraft, dedicated to studying the Earth’s weather and environment.
Background of the CALIPSO Mission
- Aerosols affect the Earth’s radiation budget through the scattering and absorption of incoming sunlight, which acts as a significant radiative forcing.
- Aerosols are also intimately linked to the formation of clouds and to precipitation processes and thus to the hydrologic cycle.
- It now appears likely that aerosols resulting from human activities such as the use of fossil fuels and agricultural burning are affecting global climate.
- Aerosols also affect public health in heavily polluted regions. Unlike greenhouse gases, tropospheric aerosols are highly variable in space and time due to variable sources and short atmospheric residence times.
- Because of this variability and the difficulty of monitoring aerosols using satellite instruments, the CALIPSO mission will provide unique profile measurements to improve our understanding of the role of aerosols and clouds in the Earth’s climate system.
Objectives of the CALIPSO Mission
- CALIPSO’s primary objective is to enhance our understanding of clouds and aerosols (tiny solid and liquid particles suspended in the atmosphere) and their roles in Earth’s climate system.
- CALIPSO aims to provide valuable data for climate change research by monitoring key atmospheric parameters.
- The mission contributes to improved air quality assessments and weather forecasting by providing real-time atmospheric data
CALIPSO’s Instrumentation and Technology
- It carries CALIOP, a two-wavelength, polarization-sensitive lidar, along with two passive sensors operating in the visible and thermal infrared spectral regions.
- The lidar emitted pulses of laser light and measured the amount of light that was scattered back by clouds and aerosols. This information was used to create vertical profiles of cloud and aerosol properties, such as their height, thickness, and optical depth.
- CALIOP is the first lidar to provide long-term atmospheric measurements from Earth’s orbit.
- This information helps scientists create three-dimensional profiles of cloud and aerosol distributions.
Achievements of the CALIPSO Mission
- CALIPSO has produced global aerosol maps, helping scientists understand aerosol distribution, sources, and their impact on climate and air quality.
- The mission provides detailed cloud-height profiles, which are essential for improving climate models and weather forecasts.
- CALIPSO’s ability to detect volcanic ash clouds has enhanced aviation safety and provided critical data during volcanic eruptions
- CALIPSO has contributed to the creation of long-term climate records that are vital for monitoring trends in atmospheric composition.
- CALIPSO’s data is freely available to the international scientific community, promoting global collaboration in climate and atmospheric research.
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