EO Scientists Find New Functions For Terra Bird

EO Scientists Find New
Functions For Terra Bird

NASA's Multi-angle Imaging SpectroRadiometer (MISR) imaged Hurricane Debby in the Atlantic Ocean on August 21, 2000. The first panel on the left is a view of the storm's eastern edge taken by MISR's downward-looking (nadir) camera. The next two panels are the results of using MISR's stereoscopic observations to retrieve cloud heights and winds. The middle panel shows heights of the cloud tops; gradations from low to high clouds are depicted in shades ranging from blue to red. Since it takes seven minutes for all nine MISR cameras to view any location on Earth, and the clouds moved during this time, the data also contain information about wind speed and direction. Derived wind vectors, shown in the third panel, reveal Hurricane Debby's cyclonic motion. The highest wind speed measured is nearly 100 kilometers per hour (about 60 miles per hour). MISR obtains this type of information globally, which will help scientists study the relationship between climate change and the three-dimensional characteristics of clouds.

Pasadena - Oct. 25, 2000
Scientists have developed new methods of retrieving information about cloud heights, winds, airborne particles, and Earth's surface using data from the Multi-angle Imaging SpectroRadiometer (MISR) instrument orbiting on NASA's Terra satellite.

MISR acquires images of the Earth at nine angles simultaneously, using nine separate cameras pointed forward, downward, and backward along its flight path. Examples of images and atmospheric information that MISR can provide are available at

The first example gives three views of Hurricane Debby. One shows the storm's eastern edge as seen by the instrument's downward-looking camera. The others display cloud heights and motions generated by taking advantage of the instrument's multi- angle stereoscopic imaging capability.

The second example illustrates how MISR can detect and measure the abundance of particles, including pollution, in the atmosphere. The downward-looking view of the Appalachian Mountains looks clear, while another image, from a camera viewing at a large slant angle, reveals a thin layer of haze. The third panel is a map of the amount of airborne particulates derived from the images. These demonstrations are based upon samples of MISR's advanced data products.

MISR, built and managed by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, is one of several Earth-observing experiments aboard Terra, which was launched in December 1999. The MISR science team includes members in the United States, England, and Italy.

TERRADAILY

Terra Observes Limited Snow Cover Past Winter

Greenbelt - July 27, 2000
If you think there was less snow on the ground this spring than usual in parts of the Midwest and western United States, Terra satellite data agree with you. Early results from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) aboard NASA's Terra satellite clearly observed a lot less snow cover than normal.

SPACE.WIRE