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Landsat 8 Aqua OCO-2 Suomi NPP

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The Earth Observer: Jul - Aug, 2011

Volume 23, Issue 4

In This Issue

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  • Editor’s Corner Front Cover
  • Feature Articles
  • The NASA CloudSat/GPM Light Precipitation Validation Experiment (LPVEx) 4
  • Paving the Way for Space-Based Air Pollution Sensors 9
  • NASA Comes Full Circle at the Odyssey of the Mind World Finals 13
  • DEVELOP Summer Students Learn First-hand the Practical Applications of NASA Earth Science Research 16
  • Meeting/Workshop Summaries
  • CERES Science Team Meeting Summary22
  • 2011 HyspIRI Science Symposium25
  • Summary of International Glacier Monitoring Summit 28
  • MODIS Science Team Meeting 32
  • NASA Land-Cover/Land-Use Change Program 15th Anniversary Science Team Meeting 36
  • In The News
  • NASA Sets Sail on Second Leg of Arctic Ocean Research Voyage 40
  • For Aquarius, Sampling Seas No 'Grain of Salt Task 42
  • Regular Features
  • NASA Earth Science in the News 44
  • NASA Science Mission Directorate – Science Education and Public Outreach Update 46
  • Science Calendars 47

Editor's Corner
Steve Platnick, EOS Senior Project Scientist

On June 10 the Argentinian Satelite de Aplicaciones Cientificas (SAC)-D spacecraft launched into space from Vandenberg Air Force Bas in California aboard a Delta II rocket. SAC-D carries NASA's Aquarius instrument, which was developed under the Earth System Science Pathfinder (ESSP) Program (similar to Cloudsat, CALIPSO, and GRACE).

The launch was nominal and the SAC-D observatory is in the process of on-orbit checkout prior to turning on the instruments. The spacecraft is healthy and the telemetry looks good. Some delays have occurred with testing in the attitude control system parameters. Turning on all of the Aquarius/SAC-D instruments is now...

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