National Space Institute
Technical University of Denmark
Atmosphere-Space Interactions Monitor
(ASIM) on the International Space Station
Torsten Neubert
Ib Lundgaard Rasmussen
National Space Institute
Technical University of Denmark
National Space Institute
Technical University of Denmark
Overall Objective
• Thunderstorms and their relation to atmospheric
processes and a changing climate
Thunderstorm over Mali, February 5, 2008, seen from the ISS
National Space Institute
Technical University of Denmark
ASIM Themes
• ASIM will observe the atmosphere
above thunderstorms:
• Electric discharges
– sprites, jets, elves, X-rays
• Gravity waves
• Clouds and water vapour
• Chemistry
Giant (Su et al., 2005)
Clouds in the mesosphere
Gravity waves in the mesosphere
National Space Institute
Technical University of Denmark
ASIM on the
International Space Station
• ASIM is primarily a spectroscopic imaging mission
– The instruments observe spectral bands
– Observations are taken from space – above the clouds
– From the lowest orbit available (400 km)
National Space Institute
Technical University of Denmark
ASIM instruments
• MMIA (Modular Multispectral Imaging Array)
– 4 cameras and 4 fotometers look forward towards the limb
– 2 cameras and 2 fotometers look dornwards towards the nadir
• MXGS (Modular X- and Gamma Ray Sensor)
– 1 detector looking downwards towards the nadir
National Space Institute
Technical University of Denmark
Optical Instruments
MMIA
Cameras
Photometers
FOV
Nadir: 80o x 80o
Limb: 20o x 20o
Nadir: 80o x 80o
Limb: 20o x 20o
Pixels
1024 x 1024
Pixel resolution
Nadir: 0.3- 0.4 km
Limb: 0.4 - 0.6 km
Time resolution
40 ms
100 kHz
Spectral bands
LC1: 337.0 nm
LC2: 391.4 nm
LC3, 660-740 nm
LC4: 762.4 nm
LP1:
LP2:
LP3:
LP4:
NC1: 337.0 nm
NC2: 777.4 nm
NP: 337.0 nm
NP2: 145-300 nm
337.0nm
391.4 nm
660-740 nm
236.6 nm
National Space Institute
Technical University of Denmark
Gamma-ray detectors
ASIM
γ – RAY DETEC
1 (nadir)
Energy range
7 – 500 keV
Effective area
1032 cm2
Energy resolution
< 10%
Detector Backgr.
1000 counts/s
National Space Institute
Technical University of Denmark
International Team
• Payload Team
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University of Valencia, Spain (MXGS)
University of Bergen, Norway (MXGS)
Technical University of Denmark (Platform, MMIA, MXGS)
Terma, Denmark (Main Contractor)
• Internationale Science Team:
– 29 countries
– 70 research groups
National Space Institute
Technical University of Denmark
ASIM Status
• Phase B midterm review May, 2008
• Phase B end January, 2009
• Phase C/D negotiations following ESA ministerial
Conference in December, 2008
• ESA negotiating with JAXA on launch on HTV
• Launch 2012
National Space Institute
Technical University of Denmark
Preparations
• Needed ground instrumentation
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Radar and lightning detection
Optical stations
3D-lightning networks
EM waves
Infra sound
Ionospheric perturbations
• Balloon campaigns
– Being prepared with CNES/FP7
• Laboratory experiments
• Model development
National Space Institute
Technical University of Denmark
The European Segment
of World Sprite-Watch Partnership
Mapping of tropical
thunderstorm turrets.
National Space Institute
Technical University of Denmark
Niels Larsen, Tina Christensen and Johanne K. Nielsen
Danish Meteorological Institute
National Space Institute
Technical University of Denmark
National Space Institute
Technical University of Denmark
Role of deep convection in the
Tropical Tropopause Layer (TTL)
•Does dehydration happen on large scale?
e.g. Fueglistaler et al. JGR (2004)
Water vapor saturation
mixing ratio (smr) of air
entering the stratosphere,
averaged at minimum smr
point along ECMWF
trajectories. Contours
show density of
trajectories.
•-or does it happen in connection to local thunderstorms?
e.g. Sherwood and Dessler JAS (2001)
•-or do tropical thunderstorms actually hydrate the lower stratosphere?
National Space Institute
Technical University of Denmark
Satellite borne radar*
•Tropical Rainfall Monitoring Mission
* Does not see
small particles
Liu
and
Zipser
JGR, (2005)
National Space Institute
Technical University of Denmark
Use of ASIM platform
• Limp directed optical imaging camera
•Daytime: Observations triggered by cloud altitude.
•Nightime: Clouds illuminated by lightning?
.
•Cloud altitude and and cross section area, location and time.
•Automatic detection algorithms, needs to be developed.
National Space Institute
Technical University of Denmark
Outcome
•Statistical description of tropical cloud altitudes
•Overshooting thunderstorms' contribution to water budget
•Annual variablility of deep convection
•Geographical variability
.
•ASIM cloud altitudes
•In situ observations
•Overshoot statistics
•Microphysical Modeling
•Assessment of global convective transport
National Space Institute
Technical University of Denmark
Summary
•Tropical deep convective events may be a source to stratospheric
water vapor which is known to have a strong greenhouse forcing and
influence the ozone balance.
•The ASIM platform can improve the present knowledge about
tropical deep convective events.
•We propose that the limp directed optical imaging camera is set up
to perform onboard statistics (and keep samples) where clouds are
observed above a certain altitude
National Space Institute
Technical University of Denmark
• Thank you for your attention
END