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Instrument: AVCS
Instrument details
Acronym
AVCS
Full name
Advanced Vidicon Camera System
Purpose
Cloud imagery
Short description
Single-channel camera operating in the VIS range (0.45-0.65 µm)
Background
First installed on Nimbus 1 and 2, then on the operational ESSA series and the first ITOS and NOAA satellites. Designed for diferred transmission after on-board storage
Scanning Technique
Snapshot and then scanning of 800 lines x 800 pixels/line. Three parallel cameras on Nimbus, for a total swath of 3500 km. Single camera on ESSA, for a swath of 3000 km
Resolution
Ranging from 0.9 km s.s.p. (Nimbus) to 3.7 km (ESSA) depending on the satellite orbital height and the number of parallel cameras
Coverage / Cycle
Global coverage each day, in daylight
Mass
Power
Data Rate
Providing Agency
NASA
Instrument Maturity
Flown on operational programme
Utilization Period:
1964 to 1964-09-23
Last update:
2017-03-26
Detailed characteristics
Satellites this instrument is flying on
Note: a red tag indicates satellites no longer operational, a
green tag indicates operational satellites, a blue tag indicates
future satellites
Instrument classification
Earth observation instrument Passive optical radiometer or spectrometer Moderate resolution optical imager
WIGOS Subcomponents
No WIGOS subcomponents have been defined.
Mission objectives
Primary mission objectives
Secondary mission objectives
Opportunity objectives Show all Show fewer
Tentative Evaluation of Measurements
The following list indicates which measurements can typically be
retrieved from this category of instrument. To see a full Gap Analysis by Variable,
click on the respective variable.
Note: table can be sorted by clicking on the column headers
Variable Relevance for measuring this variable Operational limitations Explanation
Cloud cover 5 - marginal Daylight only.. Dense cloud only. VIS channel(s)
Fire fractional cover 5 - marginal Cloud sensitive.. Coarse spatial resolution.. Daylight only. VIS channels
Sea-ice cover 5 - marginal Cloud sensitive.. Daylight only. VIS channel(s)
Snow cover 5 - marginal Cloud sensitive.. Daylight only. VIS channel(s)