LTU solution in next-generation weather satellite
A sensor called ICI developed from research at the Department of Computer Science, Electrical and Space Engineering at Luleå University of Technology has been selected to be part of next-generation metrological satellite. The sensor that measures the ice particles in high-altitude clouds are developed in the concept CloudIce that LTU professor Stefan Bühler been responsible for
- I have just found out that the ICI-sensor was accepted by the countries included in the Council of EUMETSAT and be included in the next generation of European weather satellite to be launched in 2020 and for us this is great news, says Stefan Bühler.
EUMETSAT is an intergovernmental organization with headquarters in Darmstadt, Germany and the countries of the EUMETSAT program voted yesterday on the instruments to be included on the upcoming weather satellite MetOp-SG. One of the instruments accepted by the organization is ICI-sensor that is based on research at Luleå University of Technology under the instrument concept Cloud Ice. Professor Stefan Bühler at Kiruna Space Campus, which was responsible for the project submitted the proposal for the European Space Agency in 2010 and now it has given positive results.
The CloudIce-based sensor ICI will be one of ten instruments of the next generation of European weather satellite. Both the British and Spanish industrial consortium according to the British media company BBC has already shown interest in building the instrument, but it should also be of great interest for the Swedish space industry, which has expertise in the sub millimeter radio meters, measurement techniques used by ICI.
Ice crystals in cirrus clouds that ICI will be able to measure, is a phenomenon that affects the amount of solar radiation reflected back into space and the amount of infrared radiation from Earth reflected back to Earth. Therefore, they have a crucial impact on the greenhouse effect.
