Exploring the Unknown - NASA's History Office

Department of Commerce
Accompanying Report of the National Performance Review
Office of the Vice President
Washington, DC
September 1993
DOC12: Establish a Single Civilian Operational Environmental Polar Satellite Program
Background
EXPLORING THE UNKNOWN 217
The United States is committed to an operational environmental polar satellite program
because of the critical value of the data the satellites collect.(1) Polar satellites collect
temperature and moisture measurements (key inputs to computer weather prediction
models generating all national three- to five-day weather forecasts); measurements of the
Antarctic ozone levels; long-term environmental measurements used to support global climate
change studies; sea surface temperature measurements; and global cloud-cover
images. Polar satellites also provide other valuable support missions, such as monitoring
emergency distress beacons to aid search and rescue missions and worldwide data collection
to support a variety of activities, such as endangered species monitoring.
However, at present, the nation maintains two polar-orbiting meteorological satellite
systems: (1) the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Polarorbiting
Operational Environmental Satellite (POES) for civil forecasting and research
purposes; and (2) the Department of Defense (DOD) Defense Meteorological Satellite
Program (DMSP) for national security purposes.
In addition to these programs, the National Aeronautic and Space Administration
(NASA) has initiated a climate research program called Mission to Planet Earth (MTPE).
A key portion of this effort is the Earth Observing System (EOS), a series of six different
satellites measuring various parameters critical to understanding global climate change.
One of these satellites is called the EOS-PM (PM indicating that the satellite passes over
the equator in the afternoon). The climate monitoring instruments on EOS-PM are basically
more modern versions of the meteorological instruments currently flying on the
NOAA weather satellites. In essence, the nation will have three different satellite systems
with very similar capabilities.
Over the past 20 years, the POES and DMSP programs have made numerous attempts
to converge to the greatest extent possible.(2) The programs have similar spacecraft, use
a common launch vehicle, share products derived from the data, provide complementary
environmental data to the nation, and work closely together on research and development
efforts. In all, the programs achieved substantial commonality, but national security
concerns have precluded full convergence.(3)
DOD has stated it would manage a converged system, but a single program run by
DOD was and still is unacceptable given international concern over the militarization of
space.(4) Today, however, with the end of the Cold War, the issues which have precluded
complete convergence seem to have diminished in importance.(5) With both programs
planning a new satellite design, the time is appropriate to consolidate their efforts.
The EOS-PM climate research satellite is being designed with the idea that many of
the instruments can be used by NOAA within the POES program. This continues a historical
NOAA-NASA relationship wherein NASA develops new technology and demonstrates
prototype hardware, and NOAA buys identical units for continued operational
support.(6) However, current plans involve flying EOS-PM for 15 years, during which time