Space data

POLDER/PARASOL

POLDER (POLarization and Directionality of the Earth’s Reflectances) instrument analyses the intensity and direction of light reflected by the Earth and its atmosphere, as well as its polarization, a physical characteristic describing how waves propagate. Such measurements reveal some interesting properties of clouds and aerosols, thereby telling us more about how they affect climate. Designed and developed by CNES, in close collaboration with the LOA atmospheric optics laboratory in Lille, the POLDER instrument is mainly dedicated to the study the of the clouds and aerosols properties, but it also provides valuable information on the directionality of terrestrial reflectances and on the ocean colour. It has been the first space instrument to provide global and systematic spectral, directional and polarization measurements of radiation reflected from the Earth and atmosphere.

Stratospheric sounders

Several satellites and space-based instruments were launched in the 1990s-2000 to observe the ozone layer in the stratosphere. More generally, the objective was to better understand the chemistry of the middle stratosphere (stratosphere, mesosphere) and to validate chemistry-transport models to reproduce and predict the ozone hole. These instruments are generally spectrometers covering various spectral ranges, […]

Microcarb

CALIPSO/ CloudSat

The aim of the mission is to provide the global measurements of aerosols and clouds needed to achieve a better understanding of their role in climate, and to improve our ability to predict long-term climate change and seasonal or inter-annual variations. CALIPSO and CloudSat are highly complementary and together provide 3-D perspectives of how clouds and aerosols form, evolve, and affect weather and climate. They fly in formation with other satellites in the A-train constellation to enable an even greater understanding of our climate system from the broad array of sensors on these other spacecraft. CALIPSO and CloudSat are in orbit around the Earth at an altitude of 705 km, with a nominal inclination of approximately 98.2 degrees. They were launched together on April 2006 for an initial duration of 3 years. However, due to their good performance, their missions have been gradually extended until 2022.

IASI

The project Developed by CNES (Centre National d’Etudes Spatiales) in partnership with Eumetsat (EUropean organisation for the exploitation of METeorological SATellites), the IASI (Infrared Atmospheric Sounding Interferometer) instrument was designed for operational meteorology and for monitoring atmospheric chemistry and climate. IASI is a thermal infrared Fourier transform spectrometer flying onboard the Metop-A (2006), Metop-B (2012) […]

Megha-Tropiques

The project Megha-Tropiques is a space mission jointly managed by the space agencies CNES and ISRO. This mission is designed to study the convective systems of the atmosphere and more particularly the analysis of the water cycle through the transport and distribution of water vapor, the life cycle of convective systems and energy exchanges in […]

Parasol

Scientific goals The scientific objectives of Parasol are to characterise the radiative and microphysical properties of clouds and aerosols eby making the best use of the complementary nature of the data provided by the various sensors on the AQUA platform, and those of the Calipso and CLOUDSAT missions. For a long time only greenhouse gases […]