14 March 2000
MISR continues to send back fascinating images of Earth!
NASA has decided to release an initial set of "engineering" images from each of the Terra
instruments. MISR's contribution is our set of "first light" images over James Bay, Ontario,
Canada, acquired just after cover opening on February 24. The set shows this ice-covered area,
located at the south end of Hudson Bay, as viewed by three of MISR's nine cameras. You can
view these pictures on the home page of the MISR web site
http://www-misr.jpl.nasa.gov. Click on the image to get a larger, clearer version. They
are also available at NASA's Planetary Photojournal,
http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov. The engineering images from the other Terra instruments
are viewable at http://terra.nasa.gov. The complete Terra
status report that accompanies the pictures can be found at
http://terra.nasa.gov/Events/terra_status_report_8.html.
Last Friday a set of instructions to improve the data content of the MISR calibration sequences
was successfully uploaded to the instrument's computer. Based on analysis of the engineering
data from the motors that activate the deployable calibration panels, we decided to proceed
with use of the "north" panel (the one that is cycled when the spacecraft is near the north pole),
and a successful sequence was run yesterday. Further use of the "south" panel is awaiting the
results of tests on the MISR engineering model, as we attempt to better understand some
features in the motor current profile.
An 18-second propulsion maneuver to maintain the Terra orbit altitude occurred today. We believe
the risk of contamination to the camera optics is extremely low for such a short burn, and we
opted to leave MISR's cover open. To minimize risk to the overall mission, our philosophy is
to close the cover only when absolutely necessary.
AirMISR has returned to California from its deployment aboard a NASA high-altitude aircraft
in Wisconsin and Oklahoma. Unfortunately the weather did not cooperate in Wisconsin but the
data acquired in Oklahoma over both clear and cloudy skies in conjunction with MISR overflights
promise to be very exciting. The AirMISR team has worked long and hard to nurture this
instrument through a mischievous adolescence to a reliable adulthood, and it has performed
flawlessly. Distribution of AirMISR data through the Atmospheric Sciences Data Center in
Virginia is scheduled to begin in a few weeks, with the first data sets available to the
public consisting of images acquired last summer over the Kansas prairie and California coast.
You can see earlier status reports by checking the "News" link of the MISR
web site at http://www-misr.jpl.nasa.gov.
David Diner
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