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Instrument details
Acronym
SAPHIR
Full name
Sondeur Atmospherique du Profil d’Humidite Intertropicale par Radiometrie
Purpose
Humidity sounding in nearly-all-weather conditions. Also precipitation
Short description
6 channels in the 183 GHz band [see detailed characteristics below]
Background
New development
Scanning Technique
Cross-track: 130 steps of 10 km s.s.p., swath 1700 km - Along-track: one 10-km lines every 1.6 s
Resolution
10 km IFOV
Coverage / Cycle
Intertropical coverage 2 to 5 times/day depending on latitude (best coverage at 15°N and 15°S)
Mass
18 kg
Power
30 W
Data Rate
1.5 kbps
Providing Agency
CNES
Instrument Maturity
Flown on an R&D satellite
Utilization Period:
2013-01-15 to ≥2021
Last update:
2021-06-17
Detailed characteristics
No.
Central frequency (GHz)
Bandwidth (MHz)
Polarisation
NEΔT
6
183.31 ± 11
2000
H
1.0 K
5
183.31 ± 6.6
1200
H
1.3 K
4
183.31 ± 4.2
700
H
1.3 K
3
183.31 ± 2.7
500
H
1.5 K
2
183.31 ± 1.1
350
H
1.5 K
1
183.31 ± 0.2
200
H
2.0 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
Subcomponent 1 MW sounder and imager in inclined orbits
Mission objectives
Primary mission objectives
Secondary mission objectives Integrated Water Vapour (IWV) Precipitation intensity at surface (liquid or solid) Opportunity objectives Downward long-wave irradiance at Earth surface Upward long-wave irradiance at Earth surface 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
Instrument: SAPHIR