Argos Data Collection and Location System (DCS) Satellite Direct Readout Conference April 4-8, 2011 Miami, FL Scott Rogerson Argos DCS Program Manager NOAA/NESDIS/OSPO/SPSD/DSB

Outline System Overview Applications Major Platform Types Global Environmental Data Key Global Successes (over last 20 years) Future Plans Space Segment Ground Segment Argos-4 Instrument

System Overview Global data collection & platform location system aboard polar-orbiting satellites In-situ data collection platforms w/sensors & transmitters Argos instruments on NOAA & EUMETSAT satellites Global telemetry ground stations (Alaska / Virginia / Norway) Local HRPT network (~60 stations around the globe) Data processing & distribution centers (Maryland / France) Administered under joint agreements among CNES, EUMETSAT and NOAA Major applications (~90%): Wildlife Tracking, Oceanography & Meteorology, and Fishery Management 20,000 active platforms, 1,700 users, 107 countries

Argos Data Collection and Location System Platforms transmit data up to passing satellite…and satellite transmits data down to ground stations. Data is processed & distributed to customers/users…including GTS for met-ocean data. (Platforms w/o GPS are located using Doppler shift calculations.)

Growth in Argos Use ( )

Global Distribution of Argos Platforms

7 Current Argos DCS Satellite Network 1200 local sun time 0600 Local time 1800 Local time N18 N19 MetOp A N17 N15 N16

Local HRPT Network This “real-time” network decreases data delivery time from >3 hrs for stored data to minutes when both a platform and an HRPT Station are in view of a passing satellite.

Applications Major Platform Types Global Environmental Data Key Global Successes (over last 20 years)

Major Platform Types (Number of Active Platforms)

Global Environmental Data Oceanic & Atmospheric Observations are used for: Weather Analyses & Forecasts Tropical Cyclone Forecasting Climate Studies & Predictions Argos Data  Global Telecommunication System (GTS) ~1,600 WMO Platforms ~50,000 Text Bulletins (daily) GTS  Global Atmospheric & Oceanic Models GTS data are exchanged according to WMO Resolution 40. Annex 1 to the resolution defined “essential” data and products to be exchanged without charge and with no conditions on use. All available in situ observations from the marine environment as well as upper air observations are regarded as “essential” by the resolution.

NOAA Numerical Weather Prediction Models

NOAA Climate Models

Key Global Successes (over last 20 yrs) Ability to monitor ENSO & predict the onset of El Nino events in the tropical Pacific. Increased accuracy & capabilities of both weather forecasting & climate monitoring/predicting. Improved hurricane predictions due to increased understanding of air-sea mixing. Better understanding of the ocean in 4-dimensions with use of global profiling floats. 3D hindcast-nowcast-forecast of global ocean.

Key Global Successes (over last 20 yrs) Marine environmental safety services; e.g., “Eddy Watch” in Gulf of Mexico. Rewriting textbooks on migration habits & patterns of wide range of wildlife. Fishery management plans on a global basis. Anti-piracy alerting for hijacked ships at sea. Photo by Naoto Honda, Japan’s Fisheries Agency

Future Plans Space Segment: 2011: SARAL launch in 0530 orbit 2012: MetOp-B launch in 0930 orbit (followed by MetOp-C in ~2016) : JPSS launches (spacecraft/orbits TBD) Ground Segment: : –Antarctica Telemetry Station –Optimize HRPT Network for all satellites Advanced Argos-4 Instrument (for JPSS+): –Expanded bandwidth –Increased receiver sensitivity and data throughput –Two-way communications, using spread-spectrum for downlink

Thank You For more information

Other Environmental Applications: USCG SLDMBs (2010) The U.S. Coast Guard uses Argos for their Self-Locating Data Marker Buoys, which are deployed to collect drift data for Search & Rescue cases. In 2010, 350 SLDMBs were deployed in the Atlantic, Caribbean, Great Lakes, Gulf of Mexico, and Pacific.

Most recent System Use Agreement approved by NOAA… Meteorologists and Oceanographers… Do you remember studying Rossby Waves? Dr. Thomas Rossby is a world-renowned physical oceanographer and co-creator of the SOFAR float. Dr. Rossby’s latest project will use RAFOS floats to determine the mean & time-dependent circulation of the Lofoten Basin Mode Water layer, estimate vortex properties, and diagnose the routes by which the cooled products are subsequently exported. The work is part of an NSF-funded collaborative project with the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution & NorthWest Research Associates, Inc. This is a new Argos DCS agreement under the “Oceanography” application. Argos was selected because of the need for polar coverage, location accuracy, service continuity & reliability, platform compatibility, and system access. Rossby waves are named after Carl-Gustav Rossby ( ). His son Thomas is a professor at the Graduate School of Oceanography at URI.