Nasa developing satellite constellation to monitor hurricanes

The other big advantage to using a constellation of satellites is that they can provide meteorologists with new images of a storm every few hours, instead of days apart like with a single satellite. The Hurricane brought death and destruction of unseen magnitudes. The network of satellites will then pick up data from the Global Positioning System (GPS) satellite signals that are transmitted through the storm and sent directly back into space.

The microsatellites were approved for integration, testing, and preparation after the system passed two NASA reviews earlier this summer.

NASA’s Cyclone worldwide Navigation Satellite tv for pc System (CYGNSS), a constellation of eight microsatellites, will enhance by making measurements of ocean floor winds in and close to the attention wall of tropical cyclones, typhoons and hurricanes all through their life cycle.

“These reviews were a major milestone for CYGNSS, marking the end of the detailed design and planning stages of the mission and the beginning of flight hardware assembly”, said Chris Ruf, CYGNSS principal investigator at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor.

The Southwest Study Institute in San Antonio is now developing and evaluating the CYGNSS microsatellites and will coordinate the mission operations center at its Boulder, Colorado location. “We at the moment are within the final part of the mission previous to launch and the start of a brand new period in hurricane observations”.

The flock of eight microsatellites would be able to track hurricanes more effectively than any one full-size craft could manage. The measurements will to estimates of the direction wind currents. This will hopefully prevent situation where scientists are caught off guard by a hurricane’s sudden change in direction or increase in momentum.

An Orbital ATK Pegasus XL expendable rocket will launch the satellite system later the same year, with plans to commence scientific operations in 2017. The authorities are hoping that the system will be fully operational by 2017, when the Atlantic hurricane season begins.

NASA says it’s only recently begun assembling the satellites, and that they are preparing for tests in early 2016. NASA said each satellite will weigh approximately 64 pounds and will have a wingspan of 5.5 feet when solar panels are used.