CALIPSO

CALIPSO (Cloud - Aerosol Lidar and Infrared Pathfinder Satellite Observations ) is an American- French Earth observation satellite, NASA and CNES. CALIPSO is the study of the effects of clouds and aerosols on weather and air quality on earth. The satellite is part of the research program of Earth Observing System (EOS ), which includes a series of environmental satellites.

Mission

CALIPSO works in a 700 km high, sun-synchronous orbit and flies with the satellite CloudSat, who also studied clouds, and three other environmental satellites (Aura, Aqua and PARASOL ) in formation. These five satellites together form the A-Train. Because CALIPSO and CloudSat were started as the last two satellites, they had to be properly classified into the formation. Therefore, the launch window on a particular day was just for a second open. Delays were so intolerable.

CALIPSO would have after the start had already been postponed several times, to be launched on 21 April 2006 together with CloudSat aboard a Delta II launch vehicle. Due to technical problems with the communication between CALIPSO and the ground station in France the countdown but was stopped less than a minute before ignition. Further attempts to start had to be canceled due to bad weather or other technical problems.

April 28, 2006 at 12:02 CEST, the satellites were finally launched at the seventh attempt at starting. An hour later, CALIPSO was separated and exposed in orbit.

CALIPSO was designed for a mission life of three years, the use was but now extended until 2013.

Instruments

Cloud - Aerosol Lidar with Orthogonal Polarization ( calioP )

Imaging Infrared Radiometer ( IIR)

Wide Field Camera (WFC )