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Instrument details
Acronym
MSU
Full name
Microwave Sounding Unit
Purpose
Nearly-all-weather atmospheric temperature profile
Short description
4-channel MW radiometer operating in the 54 GHz band [see detailed characteristics below]
Background
Follow-on of NEMS flown on Nimbus-5 and SCAMS flown on Nimbus-6. Part of the TOVS package (TIROS Operational Vertical Sounder)
Scanning Technique
Cross-track, step-and-dwell, 11 IFOV/line in 25.6 s, swath 2350 km
Resolution
110 km at s.s.p.
Coverage / Cycle
Global, twice/day
Mass
Power
Data Rate
320 bps
Providing Agency
NOAA
Instrument Maturity
Flown on operational programme
Utilization Period:
1979 to 1981-02-27
Last update:
2012-09-14
Detailed characteristics
Central frequency (GHz)
Bandwidth (MHz)
Polarisation
NEΔT
50.30
200
V
0.3 K
53.74
200
V
0.3 K
54.96
200
V
0.3 K
57.95
200
V
0.3 K
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 microwave radiometer Cross-track, special or non-scanning microwave radiometer
WIGOS Subcomponents
No WIGOS subcomponents have been defined.
Mission objectives
Primary mission objectives
Opportunity objectives Freezing level height in clouds Melting layer depth in clouds 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
Atmospheric temperature 3 - high Very coarse vertical resolution. A few MW channels in the 54 GHz band. Nearly all-weather sounding
Freezing level height in clouds 4 - fair No specific limitation. MW channels in the 54 GHz band. Inference from the temperature profile
Melting layer depth in clouds 4 - fair No specific limitation. MW channels in the 54 GHz band. Inference from the temperature profile
Instrument: MSU