HR: 11:05h
AN: H12B-04 INVITED    [Abstracts]
TI: U.S. Remote Sensing of the Hydrosphere: from Nimbus 1 to the Earth Observing System.
AU: * Wood, E F
EM: efwood@princeton.edu
AF: Princeton University, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Princeton, NJ 08540, United States
AB: Starting in 1964 with the launch of NIMBUS 1, the United States has carried out a series of experimental and operational satellite missions to test, develop and deploy sensors that can monitor the global hydrosphere. NIMBUS 5, launched in 1972 carried the first microwave radiometer. Along with the development of these experimental sensors was the development of retrieval algorithms, their validation through field programs, and the contribution of the data products to international research programs and users. This presentation will review these remote sensing sensor development and contributions to international programs, which started with NIMBUS 3 having as one of its mission objectives providing data for the U.S. portion of the Global Atmospheric Research Program (GARP), an international program to improve long-range global weather forecasting. U.S. scientists and funding agencies supported the development of sensors and retrieval algorithms for the terrestrial hydrosphere through participation and organization of field experiments under the international Hydrologic Atmospheric Pilot Experiments (HEPEX-MOBILY and HAPEX-SAHEL) and the International Satellite Land Surface Climatology Project (ISLSCP) experiments (FIFE and BOREAS). U.S. contributions of satellite data have continued to the present by contributions to the WCRP Global Energy and Water Experiment (GEWEX) program and open and free access of NASA Earth Observing System data and products to the world community. The above programs lead to significant advances in understanding terrestrial hydrosphere and ecosystems, yet significant gaps remain that can only be filled through improved satellite observations and additional field validation experiments. In today's funding environment how can the U.S. continue to contribute internationally to remote sensing science advancements, in which areas can the U.S. make significant new contributions and how should these choices be made given limited resources?
DE: 1655 Water cycles (1836)
DE: 1855 Remote sensing (1640)
DE: 1876 Water budgets
SC: Hydrology [H]
MN: 2007 Fall Meeting