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| Titel |
Contributions of the Orbiting Carbon Observatory (OCO) to the detection of anthropogenic CO2 emissions |
| VerfasserIn |
David Crisp, Charles Miller, The OCO Science Team |
| Konferenz |
EGU General Assembly 2010
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| Medientyp |
Artikel
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| Sprache |
Englisch
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| Digitales Dokument |
PDF |
| Erschienen |
In: GRA - Volume 12 (2010) |
| Datensatznummer |
250038040
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| Zusammenfassung |
| When the Orbiting Carbon Observatory (OCO) was originally proposed to the NASA Earth
System Science Pathfinder (ESSP) Program in 2001, its objective was to return space based
estimates of the column-averaged atmospheric CO2 dry air mole fraction, XCO2, with the
sensitivity, resolution, and accuracy needed to characterize CO2 fluxes (sources and sinks) on
regional scales over the globe. The OCO proposal emphasized the detection of
natural CO2 sinks because the predominant carbon cycle science question at that
time was the identification of the so-called “missing” terrestrial sink [Fan et al.
(2000); Bousquet et al. (2001)]. The OCO instrument was therefore optimized for
sensitivity, spatial resolution, and coverage because natural sinks tend to produce XCO2
signatures that are spatially diffuse and relatively weak compared to anthropogenic
CO2 sources, which are generally more localized and intense. Immediately after
the OCO spacecraft was lost due to a malfunction of its launch system, NASA
encouraged the OCO Science Team to work closely with GOSAT and other space
based CO2 monitoring missions to exploit the calibration, retrieval algorithm, and
validation capabilities developed for OCO. The U.S. Congress has since instructed
NASA to begin implementing an OCO reflight. While OCO-2 will be a “carbon
copy” of the original observatory, there is now a much greater emphasis on the
detection of anthropogenic CO2 emissions. Here, we summarize the lessons learned
from GOSAT data and show how future OCO capabilities still provide an essential
contribution to the suite of space-based CO2 measurements from SCIAMACHY, GOSAT,
AIRS, and IASI. We discuss the merits and complementarities of each sensor for
detecting anthropogenic emissions and outline several potential paths forward as
space-based CO2 remote sensing transitions from investigative science to operational
monitoring.
Fan, S., et al., Science 282, 442, 1998.; Bousquet, P., et al., Science 290, 1342,
2000. |
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