BackForwardInstrument:  STRATOS 

Instrument details
Acronym STRATOS
Full name STRATOS
Purpose Temperature/humidity sounding with highest vertical resolution and space weather (TEC).
Short description

Measuring the phase delay due to refraction during occultation between GPS and LEO.
Background

Consolidated technology
Scanning Technique

Limb scanning from 400 km to close-to-surface by time sampling - Azimuth: 90° sectors fore- and aft-
Resolution About 300 km horizontal, 0.5 km vertical
Coverage / Cycle 3 GNSS constellations tracked. About 18000 soundings/day - Global coverage (300 km spacing) in 2 weeks but this improves as more satellites are launched.
Mass Power Data Rate

 

Providing Agency SPIRE
Instrument Maturity Flown on operational programme
Utilization Period: 2016 to 2040
Last update: 2024-06-03
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
  • Active and radio-occultation sensor
  • GNSS radio-occultation
WIGOS Subcomponents
  • Subcomponent 2
  • Magnetospheric energetic particles and magnetometers
  • Ionospheric total electron content sensor [at LEO and cross magnetosphere]
  • Ionospheric electron density sensor [in LEO and cross magnetosphere]
  • Subcomponent 4
  • GNSS radio occultation (commercial)
  • GNSS radio occultation constellation (commercial)
Mission objectives
Primary mission objectives
  • Atmospheric density
  • Atmospheric temperature
  • Electron Density
  • Height of the top of PBL
  • Height of the tropopause
  • Ionospheric Scintillation
  • Ionospheric Total Electron Content (TEC)
  • Specific humidity
  • Temperature of the tropopause
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
Note: * Primary mission objective.
VariableRelevance for measuring this variableOperational limitationsExplanation
Atmospheric temperature*1 - primaryInaccurate in low troposphere.Flown in a satellite cluster. Two directional antennas, three GNSS systems tracked, about 1500 soundings/day per satellite
Geoid4 - fairHighly indirect.Radio-occultation processing implies precise orbitography. Geoid derived from multi-temporal analysis
Gravity field5 - marginalHighly indirect.Radio-occultation processing implies precise orbitography. Gravity field derived from multi-temporal analysis
Height of the top of PBL*1 - primaryNo specific limitation.Flown in a satellite cluster. Two directional antennas, three GNSS systems tracked, about 1500 soundings/day per satellite. PBL top measured as discontinuity of the refraction index
Height of the tropopause*1 - primaryNo specific limitation.Flown in a satellite cluster. Two directional antennas, three GNSS systems tracked, about 1500 soundings/day per satellite. Tropopause height measured as discontinuity of the refraction index
Specific humidity*2 - very highInaccurate in high troposphere.Flown in a satellite cluster. Two directional antennas, three GNSS systems tracked, about 1500 soundings/day per satellite
Temperature of the tropopause*1 - primaryNo specific limitation.Flown in a satellite cluster. Two directional antennas, three GNSS systems tracked, about 1500 soundings/day per satellite
Atmospheric density*1 - primaryNo specific limitation.Measuring atmospheric density
Electron Density*1 - primaryNo specific limitation.Flown in a satellite cluster. Two directional antennas, three GNSS systems tracked, about 1500 soundings/day per satellite
Ionospheric Total Electron Content (TEC)*2 - very highNo specific limitation.Flown in a satellite cluster. Two directional antennas, three GNSS systems tracked, about 1500 soundings/day per satellite
Ionospheric Scintillation*4 - fairNo specific limitation.Flown in a satellite cluster. Two directional antennas, three GNSS systems tracked, about 1500 soundings/day per satellite