Colorado-based Ball Aerospace, a provider of metal packaging for beverages, foods and household products, and of aerospace and other technologies, announced the release of the first images of Earth from the Tropospheric Emissions: Monitoring of Pollution (TEMPO) instrument.
This marks a significant advancement in their mission to enhance air quality monitoring across greater North America, with potential benefits for public health and the environment.
Everything you need to know about TEMPO
The TEMPO instrument, launched on April 7, 2023, as part of NASA’s Earth Venture Instrument programme, has reached a significant milestone.
Developed by Ball Aerospace and led by Principal Investigator Kelly Chance of the Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian (CfA), the instrument successfully opened its aperture after a commissioning process and conducted solar calibration during its inaugural scan across North America. It is performing as expected in its initial tests.
Dr. Alberto Conti, VP and GM, Civil Space, Ball Aerospace says, “Achieving first light from TEMPO is a major milestone in our goal to provide a complete picture of air quality issues across the United States and beyond.”
“This mission will fundamentally transform the way we measure pollutants in our air, providing new insights for public health officials, atmospheric researchers and members of the public looking to protect themselves from dangerous conditions,” adds Dr. Conti.
TEMPO utilises a geostationary UV/visible spectrometer to perform hourly scans across North America, covering the continental US, Mexico, and Canada. It captures daytime data on major air pollutants like ozone, nitrogen dioxide, sulfur dioxide, and formaldehyde.
The instrument’s high-resolution and frequent imaging provides precise insights into pollution’s origin, concentration, and movement over time, surpassing current ground-based monitoring capabilities.
TEMPO’s team will spend the next months validating its spatial, spectral and radiometric performance, as well as the science data processing chain. After validation, the public and scientists can access real-time data prepared by CfA and distributed by NASA.
Additionally, TEMPO was developed alongside the Geostationary Environment Monitoring Spectrometer (GEMS), a Ball Aerospace-built instrument launched in 2020 for air quality monitoring for the South Korean National Institute of Environmental Research.
The TEMPO mission is a collaboration between NASA’s Langley Research Center and the Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian. The mission involves the use of the TEMPO instrument, which is integrated into Intelsat’s IS-40e satellite built by Maxar.
Ball Aerospace claims to play a leading role in advancing discoveries and solutions across various domains, from space exploration to weather forecasts and defence support. Their motto encapsulates their drive: Go Beyond with Ball.
Brief About Ball Corporation
Founded in 1880, Ball Corporation is a supplier of innovative and sustainable aluminum packaging solutions for beverages, personal care, and household products.
The company also provides aerospace technology and services to the US government. With a global workforce of 21,000 and reported net sales of $15.35B in 2022, Ball Corporation operates across multiple industries.