Measuring Greenhouse Gases from Space MOE / NIES / JAXA

GOSAT-2 is the successor for the Greenhouse gases Observing SATellite (GOSAT), “IBUKI”, launched in 2009 in Japan. It is under joint development by the Ministry of the Environment (MOE), the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) and the National Institute for Environmental Studies (NIES). The satellite is scheduled for launch in early 2018.

The GOSAT-2 Project Team at NIES is responsible for the generation, archiving and distribution of Level 2 to Level 4 data products (global distributions of concentrations and fluxes) for atmospheric greenhouse gases, notably CO2 and CH4. NIES also promotes the utilization of GOSAT data in initiatives for the mitigation of climate change such as REDD+ (Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation “plus”) and JCM (Joint Crediting Mechanism).

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© GOSAT-2 Project Team at NIES 2013.09 v1.0

Global map of the XCO2 in 2.5 deg. mesh by GOSAT (L2), July 2011

Global map of the CO2 flux (monthly average) in 64 regions

by GOSAT (L4A), July 2011

Variations of the monthly averages of XCO2

in North America and Australia by GOSAT (L2)

*preliminary

International Collaboration　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　 GOSAT and GOSAT-2 are being promoted by means of various international collaborative initiatives. Under the GOSAT RA (Research Announcement) initiative, over 100 scientists from more than 20 countries worldwide are engaged in scientific research which utilizes GOSAT data. A GOSAT RA meeting is held every one to two years either in Japan or another country. The Envisat satellite of the European Space Agency (ESA) measured XCO2 and XCH4 from 2002 to 2012 with a three-year overlap with GOSAT. Other countries also have plans to launch satellites for greenhouse gases observation, including the U.S. with OCO-2 and OCO-3, and China with TanSat. International collaborative initiatives between these satellite projects and GOSAT/GOSAT-2 will be strengthened to ensure long-term and

continuous measurement of greenhouse gases from space, in order to facilitate an improved understanding of the carbon cycle and measures for the mitigation of climate change.

The 5th GOSAT Research Announcement (RA) Principle Investigator (PI) Meeting May 27-29, 2013, Yokohama, Japan

Band 1 Band 2 Band 3 Band 4 Band 5

Targeted gases CO2, CH4, O3, H2O, CO

Spectral coverage (µm) 0.749 ～ 0.775 1.56 ～ 1.69 1.92 ～ 2.08 2.32 ～ 2.38 5.5 ～ 14.3

Spectral resolution (cm-1) 0.27

Polarized light observation Performed Not Performed

Field of view at nadir (km) Corresponds to less than 10.5

Band 1 Band 2 Band 3 Band 4 Band 5 Band 6 Band 7 Band 8

Targeted objects Clouds and Aerosols

Centre wavelength (µm) 0.34 0.435 0.87 1.60 0.38 0.55 0.87 1.60

Tilt angle (deg.) +20 -20

Spatial resolution at nadir (km) 0.5 1 0.5 1

Swath (km) 1000 500 1000 500

Specifications for the GOSAT-2 instruments GOSAT-2, the second Greenhouse gases Observing SATellite, is scheduled for launch in early 2018. JAXA is designing FTS-2 and CAI-2 instruments for GOSAT-2 with enhanced capabilities when compared to the TANSO aboard GOSAT. The GOSAT-2 Project Team at NIES is developing algorithms for XCO2 and XCH4 and flux estimation using FTS-2 and CAI-2 data.

The specifications for the GOSAT-2 instruments may be subject to revision without prior notice.

GOSAT is equipped with two instruments for observation of the Earth - the FTS (Fourier Transform Spectrometer) and the CAI (Cloud and Aerosol Imager), collectively known as TANSO (Thermal And Near infrared Sensor for carbon Observation). The TANSO-FTS operates in the SWIR (Short Wavelength InfraRed) and TIR (Thermal InfraRed) spectral regions. FTS SWIR data are mostly used to estimate global distributions of XCO2 and XCH4 (column-averaged volume mixing ratios of atmospheric carbon dioxide and methane). Currently, GOSAT XCO2 data are used to estimate global monthly CO2 flux. XCO2, XCH4 and CO2 flux data are freely available from http://data.gosat.nies.go.jp/ as GOSAT Level 2 and Level 4 Standard Data Products. Artist rendition of GOSAT in space

©JAXA

GOSAT Achievements

GOSAT-2 Project Team, National Institute for Environmental Studies,16-2 Onogawa, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-8506, Japan. Contact: gosat-2-info@nies.go.jp www.nies.go.jp

For inquiries relating to the distribution of the GOSAT data products please refer to: http://data.gosat.nies.go.jp/