QuikSCAT
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
 QuikSCAT |
|
| Organization | JPL, NASA |
|---|---|
| Mission Type | Earth observation |
| Contractor | Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp. |
| Satellite of | Earth |
| Launch | June 19, 1999 on a Titan II |
| Launch site | Vandenberg Air Force Base |
| Mission duration | 2–3 years |
| Mass | 971 kg (launch) |
| Webpage | winds.jpl.nasa.gov/missions/quikscat/ |
| Orbital elements | |
| Semimajor Axis | 7180.8 km |
| Eccentricity | 0.00014 |
| Inclination | 98.6 degrees |
| Orbital Period | 100.93 minutes |
| Right ascension of the ascending node | 178.47 degrees |
| Argument of perigee | 47.4 degrees |
| Instruments | |
| SeaWinds | microwave radar that measures near-surface wind speed and direction |
The QuikSCAT (Quick Scatterometer) is an earth-observing satellite that provides wind speed and direction information over oceans to NOAA. It is a "quick recovery" mission to fill the gap created by the loss of data from the NASA Scatterometer (NSCAT) that was lost in June 1997. It is in a sun-synchronous low-earth orbit.
Built in record time in just 12 months, the ocean-observing satellite was launched June 19, 1999, on a Titan II rocket from California's Vandenberg Air Force Base. It circles Earth at an altitude of 800 kilometers (500 miles) once every 101 minutes, passing close to Earth’s north and south poles. The scatterometer instrument it carries is known as Seawinds.
In light of the 2003 failure of the ADEOS II satellite that was meant to succeed the NSCAT, QuickSCAT is currently the only US-owned instrument in orbit that measures surface winds over the oceans.[1] The European Space Agency has its own scatterometers in orbit, such as ERS-2.
However, because it is now running on a backup transmitter and having other problems, this satellite could fail at any moment, jeopardizing weather forecasts for potentially dangerous tropical storms.[2]
In early June 2007, Bill Proenza, Director of the National Hurricane Center in Florida, came under fire for criticizing his NOAA superiors for not pursuing a back-up plan for replacing the capabilities provided by this satellite.[3]
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ "Aging satellite worries hurricane forecasters", MSNBC.com, Associated Press, 2007-03-16. Retrieved on 2007-06-17.
- ^ Gresko, Jessica. "Hurricane Satellite Could Fail Anytime", San Francisco Chronicle, Associated Press, 2007-06-14, pp. A17. Retrieved on 2007-06-14.
- ^ Merzer, Martin. "Candid storm chief gets a lashing", The Miami Herald, The Miami Herald, 2007-06-16. Retrieved on 2007-06-17.
[edit] External links
Jet Propulsion Laboratory homepage for QuikSCAT
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