MEDIA RELATIONS OFFICE
JET PROPULSION LABORATORY
CALIFORNIA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY
NATIONAL AERONAUTICS AND SPACE ADMINISTRATION
PASADENA, CALIF. 91109 TELEPHONE (818) 354-5011
http://www.jpl.nasa.gov
Contact: Nancy Lovato, JPL (818) 354-5011
Alan Brown, NASA Dryden Flight Research Center
(661) 276-2665
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 31, 2000
FLYING LABORATORY BEGINS PACIFIC RIM EARTH SCIENCE STUDIES
The most volcanically active region in the world -- the
Pacific Rim -- is center stage for a comprehensive Earth-
observing mission being conducted over the next 2 1/2 months by
NASA and a team of scientists from several research institutions.
The ambitious program to collect data in more than 15
countries around the Pacific Ocean got underway today with the
deployment of NASA's DC-8 Flying Laboratory from NASA's Dryden
Flight Research Center at Edwards, Calif. Operated by the
Airborne Science Directorate at NASA Dryden, the highly modified
aircraft is carrying a suite of precision instruments to document
geographic and atmospheric factors throughout the Pacific Rim
area on its scientific odyssey.
Among the areas where data will be collected during the
Pacific Rim 2000 mission conducted by NASA's Earth Science
Enterprise are Cambodia's Angkor Wat Temple, French Polynesia,
Papua New Guinea, the Philippines and the Australian coastal
wetlands.
"The mission of PacRim 2000 includes gathering geographic
and atmospheric data for coastal analysis and oceanography,
forestry, geology, hydrology and archaeology," said Ellen
O'Leary, PacRim 2000 mission coordinator at NASA's Jet Propulsion
Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif. "This mission will provide a great
deal of valuable information to each of the countries in which we
are gathering data."
The primary PacRim 2000 instrument is the Airborne Synthetic
Aperture Radar (AIRSAR), designed and built by JPL. AIRSAR is
NASA's radar technology testbed and is used to demonstrate
technology for spaceborne radar missions, such as the Shuttle
Radar Topography Mission that flew on Space Shuttle mission STS-
99 in February 2000, according to Dr. David Imel, JPL's AIRSAR
project manager.
AIRSAR also collects data for Earth science research and is
an all-weather imaging tool, able to see through clouds and
collect data at night. Radar's ability to collect data of the
Earth's surface, even in cloud-covered regions, makes it a
particularly valuable tool for the tropical areas around the
Pacific Rim that are often covered with clouds. The instrument's
longer wavelengths can also penetrate into the forest canopy,
providing scientists with data at different levels in the forest.
The AIRSAR radar antenna panels are mounted on the outside
of the aircraft and the instrument looks to the side of the
flight path. The radar transmits microwaves and the return signal
is collected after the Earth reflects it. Rough areas, such as
cities, mountains and forests, have more surfaces for the signal
to reflect off; they therefore return more of the radar signal to
the antenna and appear brighter on the resulting radar image.
In contrast, smooth areas, such as deserts, roads and water
surfaces, return less of the radar signal and appear darker on
the radar images. Trees with differing branch and leaf structures
will also return different amounts of the radar signal to the
antenna. The resulting data can be used for forest and land-cover
classification purposes.
In addition to collecting data about the roughness
characteristics of the surface, AIRSAR can also collect data that
is processed to high-resolution digital elevation models, which
are three-dimensional topographic maps of the surface.
A third type of AIRSAR data is used to measure motion of
currents and waves. Digital elevation model data are particularly
important to disaster managers around the Pacific Rim who are
responsible for developing plans to mitigate and respond to
natural hazards such as typhoons, earthquakes and volcanic
eruptions, which affect nearly everyone around the Pacific Rim
"Ring of Fire."
Also onboard the DC-8 is the MASTER instrument, which is the
MODIS/ASTER airborne simulator. The Moderate Resolution Imaging
Spectroradiometer (MODIS) and the Advanced Spaceborne Thermal
Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) are two instruments on
NASA's Earth Observing System (EOS) Terra satellite launched in
December 1999. The MASTER instrument is used to obtain detailed
maps of land surface temperature, emissions and reflectance.
PacRim 2000 is the first mission to operate both the AIRSAR
and MASTER instruments simultaneously on the DC-8. Michael
Fitzgerald, manager of EOS simulation data production for the
Airborne Sensor Facility at NASA's Ames Research Center, Moffett
Field, Calif., anticipates exciting results from combining AIRSAR
and MASTER data collected over the same site. For example, MASTER
data can be draped over digital elevation model data generated by
AIRSAR, providing scientists with additional insight on how
topography affects the vegetation and land surface temperature as
seen in the MASTER data.
NASA's DC-8 Flying Laboratory is a former long-range
jetliner that has been converted into a world-class airborne
scientific laboratory. It can carry 30,000 pounds (13,600
kilograms) of scientific instruments and equipment along with
scientists and experimenters, cruising at altitudes up to 42,000
feet (12,800 meters). Its range is 5,400 nautical miles (10,000
kilometers) and it has a flight duration of up to 12 hours. The
aircraft is scheduled to return to NASA's Dryden Flight Research
Center on October 23.
A map of the flight plan is available at: http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/pictures/pacrim
#####
NOTE TO EDITORS:
Photos of the DC-8 are available at
http://www.dfrc.nasa.gov/gallery/photo . Information about the
Airborne Science Program of the DC-8 is available at
http://www.dfrc.nasa.gov/airsci/index.html .
Additional information about AIRSAR is available at
http://airsar.jpl.nasa.gov and additional information about
MASTER is available at http://masterweb.jpl.nasa.gov .
#2000-071
7/31/00NL