NASA science and American industry have worked hand-in-hand for more than 60 years, transforming novel technologies created with NASA research into commercial products like cochlear implants, memory-foam mattresses, and more. Now, a NASA-funded device for probing the interior of storm systems has been made a key component of commercial weather satellites.<\/p>\n
The novel atmospheric sounder was originally developed for NASA\u2019s TROPICS<\/a> (short for Time-Resolved Observations of Precipitation structure and storm Intensity with a Constellation of SmallSats), which launched in 2023. Boston-based weather technology company Tomorrow.io integrated the same instrument design into some of its satellites.<\/p>\n Atmospheric sounders allow researchers to gather data describing humidity, temperature, and wind speed \u2014 important factors for weather forecasting and atmospheric analysis. From low-Earth orbit, these devices help make air travel safer, shipping more efficient, and severe weather warnings more reliable.<\/p>\n In the early 2000s, meteorologists and atmospheric chemists were eager to find a new science tool that could peer deep inside storm systems and do so multiple times a day. At the same time, CubeSat constellations (groupings of satellites each no larger than a shoebox) were emerging as promising, low-cost platforms for increasing the frequency with which individual sensors could pass over fast-changing storms, which improves the accuracy of weather models.<\/p>\n The challenge was to create an instrument small enough to fit aboard a satellite the size of a toaster, yet powerful enough to observe the innermost mechanisms of storm development. Preparing these technologies required years of careful development that was primarily supported by NASA\u2019s Earth Science Division.<\/a> William Blackwell and his team at MIT Lincoln Laboratory in Cambridge, Massachusetts, accepted this challenge and set out to miniaturize vital components of atmospheric sounders. \u201cThese were instruments the size of a washing machine, flying on platforms the size of a school bus,\u201d said Blackwell, the principal investigator for TROPICS. \u201cHow in the world could we shrink them down to the size of a coffee mug?\u201d<\/p>\n With a 2010 award from NASA\u2019s Earth Science Technology Office (ESTO),<\/a> Blackwell\u2019s team created an ultra-compact microwave receiver, a component that can sense the microwave radiation within the interior of storms.<\/p>\n The Lincoln Lab receiver weighed about a pound and took up less space than a hockey puck. This innovation paved the way for a complete atmospheric sounder instrument small enough to fly aboard a CubeSat. \u201cThe hardest part was figuring out how to make a compact back-end to this radiometer,\u201d Blackwell said. \u201cSo without ESTO, this would not have happened. That initial grant was critical.\u201d<\/p>\n In 2023, that atmospheric sounder was sent into space aboard four TROPICS CubeSats, which have been collecting torrents of data on the interior of severe storms around the world.<\/p>\n By the time TROPICS launched, Tomorrow.io developers knew they wanted Blackwell\u2019s microwave receiver technology aboard their own fleet of commercial weather satellites. \u201cWe looked at two or three different options, and TROPICS was the most capable instrument of those we looked at,\u201d said Joe Munchak, a senior atmospheric data scientist at Tomorrow.io.<\/p>\n In 2022, the company worked with Blackwell to adapt his team\u2019s design into a CubeSat platform about twice the size of the one used for TROPICS. A bigger platform, Blackwell explained, meant they could bolster the sensor\u2019s capabilities.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen we first started conceptualizing this, the 3-unit CubeSat was the only game in town. Now we\u2019re using a 6-unit CubeSat, so we have room for onboard calibration,\u201d which improves the accuracy and reliability of gathered data, Blackwell said.<\/p>\n Tomorrow.io\u2019s first atmospheric sounders, Tomorrow-S1 and Tomorrow-S2, launched in 2024. By the end of 2025, the company plans to have a full constellation of atmospheric sounders in orbit. The company also has two radar instruments that were launched in 2023 and were influenced by NASA\u2019s RainCube instrument<\/a> \u2014 the first CubeSat equipped with an active precipitation radar.<\/p>\n More CubeSats leads to more accurate weather data because there are more opportunities each day \u2014 revisits \u2014 to collect data. \u201cWith a fleet size of 18, we can easily get our revisit rate down to under an hour, maybe even 40 to 45 minutes in most places. It has a huge impact on short-term forecasts,\u201d Munchak said.<\/p>\n Having access to an atmospheric sounder that had already flown in space and had more than 10 years of testing was extremely useful as Tomorrow.io planned its fleet. \u201cIt would not have been possible to do this nearly as quickly or nearly as affordably had NASA not paved the way,\u201d said Jennifer Splaingard, Tomorrow.io\u2019s senior vice president for space and sensors.<\/p>\n The relationship between NASA and industry is symbiotic. NASA and its grantees can drive innovation and test new tools, equipping American businesses with novel technologies they may otherwise be unable to develop on their own. In exchange, NASA gains access to low-cost data sets that can supplement information gathered through its larger science missions.<\/p>\n Tomorrow.io was among eight companies selected by NASA\u2019s Commercial SmallSat Data Acquisition (CSDA)<\/a> program in September 2024 to equip NASA with data that will help improve weather forecasting models. \u201cIt really is a success story of technology transfer. It\u2019s that sweet spot, where the government partners with tech companies to really take an idea, a proven concept, and run with it,\u201d Splaingard said.<\/p>\n