Title: GeoSTAR final test results
Presenting Author: Bjorn Lambrigtsen
Organization: Jet Propulsion Laboratory
Co-Author(s):
Todd Gaier, Alan Tanner, Pekka Kangaslahti, Boon Lim, Chris Ruf, Darren McKague, Mike Flynn

Abstract:
The Geostationary Synthetic Thinned Aperture Radiometer (GeoSTAR) is a microwave sounder intended for the Precipitation and All-weather Temperature and Humidity (PATH) mission, one of 15 missions that the National Research Council (NRC) recommended in 2007 that NASA undertake and consists of placing a microwave sounder on a geostationary satellite to observe rapidly evolving atmospheric processes such as hurricanes and other severe weather. The NRC recommended that PATH be implemented with a 'microwave array spectrometer'. The GeoSTAR concept, initially developed, prototyped and demonstrated under IIP-03, was and still is the only 'array spectrometer' solution, and NASA therefore continued to fund advancement of the technology required to implement GeoSTAR for PATH, first in IIP-07 and then in IIP-10, which was completed December 16, 2015. All key technologies needed to implement a geostationary PATH mission are now at TRL 6. In this presentation we summarize these developments and show test results. The GeoSTAR-III prototype is a self-contained transportable instrument that can be operated outdoors to produce real-time radiometric imaging of natural scenes, and we will show recent results obtained with it. Copyright 2016 California Institute of Technology. Government sponsorship acknowledged.