Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM) is a joint mission between

JAXA The is the Japanese national air and space agency. Through the merger of three previously independent organizations, JAXA was formed on 1 October 2003. JAXA is responsible for research, technology development and launch of satellites into orb ...

and

NASA The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agency of the US federal government responsible for the civil space program, aeronautics research, and space research. NASA was established in 1958, succeeding t ...

as well as other international space agencies to make frequent (every 2–3 hours) observations of Earth's

precipitation In meteorology, precipitation is any product of the condensation of atmospheric water vapor that falls under gravitational pull from clouds. The main forms of precipitation include drizzle, rain, sleet, snow, ice pellets, graupel and hail. ...

. It is part of NASA's Earth Systematic Missions program and works with a

satellite constellation A satellite constellation is a group of artificial satellites working together as a system. Unlike a single satellite, a constellation can provide permanent global or near-global coverage, such that at any time everywhere on Earth at least one sa ...

to provide full global coverage. The project provides global precipitation maps to assist researchers in improving the forecasting of extreme events, studying global climate, and adding to current capabilities for using such satellite data to benefit society. GPM builds on the notable successes of the

Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission The Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) was a joint space mission between NASA and JAXA designed to monitor and study tropical rainfall. The term refers to both the mission itself and the satellite that the mission used to collect data. ...

(TRMM), which was also a joint NASA-JAXA activity. The project is managed by NASA's

Goddard Space Flight Center The Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) is a major NASA space research laboratory located approximately northeast of Washington, D.C. in Greenbelt, Maryland, United States. Established on May 1, 1959 as NASA's first space flight center, GSFC empl ...

, and consists of a GPM Core Observatory satellite assisted by a constellation of spacecraft from other agencies and missions. The Core Observatory satellite measures the two and three dimensional structure of Earth's precipitation patterns and provides a new calibration standard for the rest of the satellite constellation. The GPM Core Observatory was assembled and tested at Goddard Space Flight Center, and launched from

Tanegashima Space Center The (TNSC) is the largest rocket-launch complex in Japan with a total area of about 9.7 square kilometers. It is located on the southeast coast of Tanegashima, an island approximately south of Kyushu. It was established in 1969 when the ...

, Japan, on a

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries is a Japanese multinational engineering, electrical equipment and electronics corporation headquartered in Tokyo, Japan. MHI is one of the core companies of the Mitsubishi Group and its automobile division is the predecessor of Mitsubishi Mo ...

H-IIA H-IIA (H-2A) is an active expendable launch system operated by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) for the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency. These liquid fuel rockets have been used to launch satellites into geostationary orbit; lunar or ...

rocket. The launch occurred on February 28, 2014, at 3:37am JST on the first attempt. Agencies in the United States, Japan, India and France (together with

Eumetsat The European Organization for the Exploitation of Meteorological Satellites (EUMETSAT) is an intergovernmental organisation created through an international convention agreed by a current total of 30 European Member States. EUMETSAT's primary ...

) operate the remaining satellites in the constellation for agency-specific goals, but also cooperatively provide data for GPM. __TOC__

Science objectives

GPM has five broad science objectives: * advance precipitation measurement from space * improve knowledge of precipitation systems, water-cycle variability and freshwater availability * improve climate modeling and prediction * improve weather forecasting and climate reanalysis * improve hydrological modeling and prediction

Main instruments

Dual-Frequency Precipitation Radar (DPR)

The DPR is a spaceborne radar, providing three-dimensional maps of storm structure across its swath, including the intensity of rainfall and snowfall at the surface. The DPR has two frequencies, allowing researchers to estimate the sizes of precipitation particles and detect a wider range of precipitation rates. The Ku-band radar, similar to the PR on TRMM, covers a 245 km (152 mile) swath. Nested inside that, the Ka-band radar covers a 120 km (74.5 mile) swath. Data from the DPR is sent to the ground via a single-access link with

TDRSS The U.S. Tracking and Data Relay Satellite System (TDRSS) is a network of American communications satellites (each called a tracking and data relay satellite, TDRS) and ground stations used by NASA for space communications. The system was desig ...

relay satellites."Global Precipitation Measurement Mission Core Observatory"
''NASA Goddard Space Flight Center.'' Retrieved: 6 March 2018.

GPM Microwave Imager (GMI)

The GMI is a passive sensor that observes the microwave energy emitted by the Earth and atmosphere at 13 different frequency/polarization channels. These data allow quantitative maps of precipitation across a swath that is 885 km (550 miles) wide. This instrument continues the legacy of TRMM microwave observations, while adding four additional channels, better resolution, and more reliable calibration. Data from the GMI is continuously sent to the ground via a multiple-access link with TDRSS relay satellites.

Precipitation data sets

GPM produces and distributes a wide variety of precipitation data products. Processing takes place at the Precipitation Processing System (PPS) at NASA

, as well as at the JAXA facility in Japan. Data is provided at multiple "levels" of processing, from raw satellite measurements to best-estimate global precipitation maps using combinations of all the constellation observations and other meteorological data. All data from the mission is made freely available to the public on NASA websites. Precipitation data is made available in a variety of formats, spatial and temporal resolutions, and processing levels which are accessible on the Precipitation Measurement Missions "Data Access" webpage. Several data visualization and analysis tools have been made available to provide easy access for the science and applications communities, which include the in-browser Earth science data analysis tool Giovanni, a web API, and a 3D near-realtime global precipitation viewer. GPM testing

Social media and outreach

In addition to maintaining social media accounts and th
GPM Road to Launch Blog

and

developed several outreach activities specific to this mission prior to launch that the public could participate in. After launch a series of featured articles and videos were produced to highlight various scientific goals and discoveries of the mission, and an "Extreme Weather" blog is maintained to provide timely updates about the latest extreme precipitation events and natural disasters occurring around the world. A Precipitation Education website is also maintained to provide teachers and students with lesson plans, animations, and other resources to teach about the

water cycle The water cycle, also known as the hydrologic cycle or the hydrological cycle, is a biogeochemical cycle that describes the continuous movement of water on, above and below the surface of the Earth. The mass of water on Earth remains fairly cons ...

, Earth science, and the GPM mission. *

NASA Social NASA has hosted many events for its social media enthusiasts called NASA Socials (formerly NASA Tweetups) beginning in 2009. These events are targeted at the social media followers of NASA through platforms such as Twitter, Facebook, Google Plus, I ...

s **JAXA-NASA DC Cherry Blossom Event ***April 12, 2013, at NASA's

in Greenbelt, Maryland **GPM Media Day ***Friday, Nov. 15, 2013, at NASA's

in Greenbelt, MD ***Social media users were invited to apply for credentials to attend the media day activities and share their experiences via their own accounts. * Photo Contests **Extreme Weather **Let it Snow **Unique Perspectives *GPM Anime Challenge

In popular culture

The main character Mohan Bharghav (

Shahrukh Khan Shah Rukh Khan (; born 2 November 1965), also known by the initialism SRK, is an Indian actor, film producer, and television personality who works in Hindi films. Referred to in the media as the " Baadshah of Bollywood", "King of Bollywood" ...

) in 2004 Indian film '' Swades: We, the People'' is a Project Manager in NASA's GPM project. Movie starts from NASA's GPM project analysis. Bharghav discuss the importance of GPM and its positive impact on Earth. In the movie the GPM satellite is launched by the

Space Shuttle The Space Shuttle is a retired, partially reusable low Earth orbital spacecraft system operated from 1981 to 2011 by the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) as part of the Space Shuttle program. Its official program na ...

. A short anime film of 6 minutes, ''Dual frequency Precipitation Radar Special Movie'', was produced by JAXA and White Fox in 2013.DPR Dual-frequency Precipitation Radar Special Movie / DPRスペシャルムービー
Sky-Animes

References

External links

* (NASA) *

* (JAXA) *
Global Precipitation Measurement/ Dual-frequency Precipitation Radar pamphlet
*
GPM videos

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