Launching a Pair of Earth-Observing Small Satellites | This Week @NASA
Launching a pair of Earth-observing small satellites, an intriguing planet discovered outside of our solar system, and its “full cruise ahead” for our mission to a metal-rich asteroid . . . a few of the stories to tell you about—This Week at NASA!
NASA’s PREFIRE Mission consists of two shoebox-size cube satellites that will measure the amount of heat Earth radiates into space from Earth’s poles. Data from the PREFIRE Mission will help researchers better predict how Earth’s ice, seas, and weather will change in a warming world.
At the heart of the PREFIRE mission is Earth’s energy budget—the balance between incoming heat energy from the Sun and the outgoing heat given off by the planet. The difference between the two is what determines the planet’s temperature and climate. Much of the heat radiated from the Arctic and Antarctica is emitted as far-infrared radiation, but there is currently no detailed measurement of this type of energy. The water vapor content of the atmosphere, along with the presence, structure, and composition of clouds, influences the amount of far-infrared radiation that escapes into space from Earth’s poles. Data collected from PREFIRE will give researchers information on where and when far-infrared energy radiates from the Arctic and Antarctic environments into space.
For more information:
https://science.nasa.gov/mission/prefire
https://prefire.ssec.wisc.edu/
Video Credit: National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)
Duration: 3 minutes
Release Date: June 6, 2024
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