Polar-Orbiting Environmental Satellites: With Costs Increasing and Data Continuity at Risk, Improvements Needed in Tri-agency Decision Making Page: 17 of 52
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Figure 5: Nunn-McCurdy Certified Satellite Constellation
Sources: GAO analysis of NPOESS program office data; MapArt (globe).
While the Nunn-McCurdy certification decision decreased the number of
NPOESS sensors and reduced the functionality of others, it allowed for the
reintegration of the canceled sensors if other parties choose to fund them.
Table 3 describes the changes to NPOESS instruments.Table 3: Changes to NPOESS Instruments, as of June 2006
Instrument Status of instrument after Nunn-McCurdy decision
Advanced technology microwave sounder Sensor unchanged; to be included on NPP and on afternoon satellites
Aerosol polarimetry sensor Sensor was canceleda
Conical-scanned microwave imager/sounder Sensor was canceled; program office to procure a less complex microwave
imager/sounder for inclusion beginning on the second NPOESS satellite
Cross-track infrared sounder Sensor unchanged; to be included on NPP and on afternoon satellites
Data collection system No change; subsystem is to be included on all four NPOESS satellites
Earth radiation budget sensor Sensor was canceled; is to be replaced by a legacy sensor on C1 onlya
Ozone mapper/profiler suite One part of the sensor (limb) was canceled; remaining part is to be included on
NPP and on all four NPOESS satellites
Radar altimeter Sensor was canceled
Search and rescue satellite aided tracking system Sensor unchanged; subsystem is to be included on all four NPOESS satellites
Space environmental sensor suite Sensor was canceled; is to be replaced by a less capable, less expensive legacy
sensorGAO-09-564 Polar-orbiting Environmental Satellites
Notional local equatorial crossing times
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United States. Government Accountability Office. Polar-Orbiting Environmental Satellites: With Costs Increasing and Data Continuity at Risk, Improvements Needed in Tri-agency Decision Making, report, June 17, 2009; Washington D.C.. (https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc302059/m1/17/: accessed April 19, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, UNT Digital Library, https://digital.library.unt.edu; crediting UNT Libraries Government Documents Department.