Hyperspectral Capability for CoSMIR: Enhancing Capability for Future PBL Suborbital Campaigns and Enabling PBL Science from Space (CoSMIR)

The NASA Planetary Boundary Layer (PBL) Incubation Study Team found that hyperspectral microwave sounders are an "Essential Component" of a future global PBL observing system due to their perceived ability to capture the three-dimensional structure of temperature and water vapor in the free troposphere. As such, significant resources have been directed at building this capability as part of a comprehensive technology portfolio targeting PBL science. In this proposed effort, we will upgrade the Conical Scanning Millimeter-wave Imaging Radiometer (CoSMIR) with new hyperspectral receivers including wideband application specific integrated circuit (ASIC) spectrometers developed under SBIR (80NSSC18C0102). Subsequent test and engineering flights with the new CoSMIR–Hyperspectral (CoSMIR-H) will provide airborne validation of the hyperspectral architecture and demonstrate advancement in high-resolution measurement of the thermodynamic structure of the boundary layer by using hyperspectral microwave radiometry. Recent modeling studies performed internally at Goddard and elsewhere have supported the assertion that hyperspectral microwave radiometry can provide temperature and humidity profiles with vertical resolution superior to traditional microwave sounding architectures. The fine spectral resolution over wider bandwidth translates to this improved vertical resolution while also reducing uncertainty. Additionally, when compared with infrared sounding, microwave sounding is less sensitive to trace gasses with better penetration through clouds. These benefits of hyperspectral microwave sounding are what led the PBL Incubation Study Team to emphasize the value of these observations. To address the needs of the PBL science community, our team aims to deliver a highly capable airborne hyperspectral microwave sensor that will demonstrate high spectral resolution profiling and support future suborbital campaigns probing the PBL. Moreover, CoSMIR-H will validate the critical 4-GHz spectrometer ASIC technology. The effort will modify the V-band (temperature) and G-band (water vapor) receivers of the well-regarded CoSMIR with hyperspectral capability using the ASIC spectrometers as an enabling component. Importantly, our team will implement a new data system that can capture and process the finely resolved spectra. Laboratory and airborne demonstration will raise the Technical Readiness Level (TRL) of the hyperspectral profiling technique from 2 to 6.

Maturation of observing systems, instrument technology, and measurement concepts for Planetary Boundary Layer and Surface Topography and Vegetation

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