Orbiting Carbon Observatory

Orbiting Carbon Observatory
Name	Orbiting Carbon Observatory
Mission type	Earth science
Operator	National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)
Manufacturer	Orbital Sciences Corporation
Launch mass	530 kg
Power	600 watts
Launch date	2009-02-24 (failed)
Orbit	low Earth orbit

Orbiting Carbon Observatory is a NASA-funded satellite mission designed to quantify global distributions of atmospheric carbon dioxide with high precision and resolution. Conceived to address gaps in observing greenhouse gas sources and sinks, the project involved partnerships among Jet Propulsion Laboratory, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and commercial aerospace firms. The program produced an initial launch attempt that failed in 2009 and a follow-on mission that successfully operated as a landmark in Earth observation.

Overview

The mission concept originated from scientific recommendations by panels including the National Research Council and advisory boards at NASA and NOAA. Primary development engaged aerospace contractors such as Orbital Sciences Corporation and instrument teams led by institutions including the California Institute of Technology and Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Funding and programmatic oversight drew on resources from NASA's Earth Science Division and collaborations with the U.S. Geological Survey and international partners such as European Space Agency scientists. The satellite's design emphasized a compact bus, a high-resolution grating spectrometer, and robust thermal control to support precise retrievals over continents and oceans.

Mission History

Initial approval followed recommendations associated with reports from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and national assessments of atmospheric composition. The first flight failed during launch when a payload fairing did not separate on a Taurus XL rocket, resulting in loss of vehicle and mission in 2009. After program review and congressional oversight, NASA authorized a rebuilt flight for the mission, culminating in a successful launch on the follow-on satellite. The recovery program involved contract renegotiations with Orbital Sciences Corporation and revised verification protocols influenced by lessons from the Columbia disaster era safety reforms. Subsequent operations entered routine data acquisition phases and extended mission planning with stakeholder consultations at NASA Headquarters and science advisory bodies.

Spacecraft and Instruments

The observatory's spacecraft bus incorporated systems heritage from commercial small-satellite platforms supplied by Orbital Sciences Corporation and instrument payloads developed at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory and university labs. The primary payload was an imaging grating spectrometer covering shortwave infrared bands tuned to absorption features of carbon dioxide and methane. Ancillary payloads included precision attitude control systems from suppliers who worked on missions such as Landsat and Terra, and onboard calibration targets developed with input from teams affiliated with Caltech and MIT. The payload suite emphasized spectral stability, radiometric calibration, and a nadir-looking geometry optimized for sun-glint and land/ocean contrast studies.

Science Objectives and Measurements

Science goals targeted quantifying column-averaged atmospheric carbon dioxide and mapping regional fluxes linked to processes in ecosystems, urban centers, and oceanic upwelling zones. Objectives included constraining surface-atmosphere exchange in regions like the Amazon Rainforest, boreal forests across Russia, and industrialized corridors in North America and East Asia. Measurements focused on high-precision column retrievals over repeated ground tracks to resolve seasonal and interannual variability influenced by events such as the El Niño–Southern Oscillation and large-scale wildfires in Australia and California. Data contributed to inversion-model frameworks developed at institutions including NOAA laboratories and university research centers to improve estimates of terrestrial and oceanic carbon sinks.

Data Processing and Products

Raw spectral data underwent radiometric correction, instrumental artifact removal, and atmospheric state input from models such as those produced by ECMWF and NASA's Global Modeling and Assimilation Office. Processing pipelines produced column-averaged CO2 products with flags for aerosol loading, cloud contamination, and solar zenith geometry informed by ancillary datasets from missions like MODIS and CALIPSO. Level-2 and Level-3 products were distributed to research communities via data archives managed by NASA's Earthdata and partner repositories at NOAA and university centers. Validation campaigns used ground-based networks including Total Carbon Column Observing Network and airborne platforms operated by groups such as National Center for Atmospheric Research.

Mission Operations and Collaborations

Mission operations integrated flight dynamics teams at Jet Propulsion Laboratory with science operations hosted at mission science centers supported by NASA Ames Research Center and university consortia. International collaborations included instrument calibration exchanges with teams from European Space Agency member states and joint validation with research programs in Japan and Brazil. Outreach and data sharing were coordinated through workshops organized by American Geophysical Union and the European Geosciences Union, while capacity-building efforts engaged scientists from developing country institutions via cooperative agreements mediated by NASA and partner agencies.

Results and Impact

Spaceborne observations provided by the mission delivered unprecedented maps of column-averaged CO2, revealing strong regional gradients attributable to fossil-fuel combustion in urban agglomerations such as Los Angeles, seasonal biospheric fluxes across the North American Great Plains, and tropical variability linked to droughts in the Amazon Rainforest. Data significantly improved flux inversion products used by climate model centers including NOAA ESRL and contributed to assessments by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. The mission catalyzed subsequent satellite programs and informed international monitoring initiatives under frameworks involving United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change reporting and verification efforts. Ongoing research spawned by the observatory has influenced urban emissions monitoring, carbon accounting in national inventories, and operational forecasting of carbon cycle anomalies.

Category:Earth observation satellites Category:NASA satellites