Trident Sensors work closely with Iridium on the Iridium NEXT Earth Observation project. For information, telephone Dr Bill Simpson on         +44(0) 1483 548 992 or email bill@tridentsensors.com

The image below shows the 66 Iridium satellites in orbit, providing truly global coverage ideal for the earth observation sensors described below.

New Ways to Explore the Planet

"The Earth observation community has a unique window of opportunity, starting now, to augment our ability to capture Earth climate, weather and environmental data through mission payloads on Iridium NEXT. It is critically important to act quickly to ensure the hosted payloads can be included on the Iridium NEXT satellites."
Dr. Jose Achache, Director, Group on Earth Observations

"Hosted payloads on Iridium NEXT can provide a unique blend of coverage, persistence, survivability and economy for government missions, filling the critical gap until the deployment of new major dedicated satellite programs."
Lt. Gen. John Campbell, U.S. Air Force (Ret.), Iridium Executive Vice President for Government Programs

Iridium NEXT satellites are designed to host 50-kilogram secondary payloads, which offer a unique opportunity for economical access to space at less than 20% of the cost of dedicated scientific missions.

Wide range of applications offering unprecedented visibility

Iridium NEXT hosted payloads give weather agencies and scientists a new and exciting capability for monitoring the Earth’s climate on a global scale in ways never before possible. Satellite-based sensors can yield accurate and real-time data to model global warming, polar ice cap melting, rising sea levels, ozone levels in the atmosphere and long-term measurements of solar radiation. They can also detect major events such as forest fires, hurricanes and tsunamis, and can provide images from space to reveal the impact of rain forest depletion and desertification.

Iridium and an international team of independent scientists, weather experts and industrial partners have completed a number of technical studies for the Group on Earth Observation (GEO), an intergovernmental body based in Geneva, and for U.S. space and weather agencies. These studies have validated the feasibility and costs of placing certain mission-specific sensors on Iridium NEXT satellites. These include:

• GPS Radio Occultation for measuring atmospheric humidity, temperature and space weather data
• Altimeters for monitoring height of sea surface, waves and ice
• Broadband Radiometers for measuring the Earth’s radiation budget
• Multi-spectral Imagers for ocean color and land imaging
• Other potential mission areas including cloud motion vector sensors, forest fire detection and polar wind observations

Iridium NEXT also offers a cost-effective opportunity for addressing a variety of near-term and long-term government and military requirements. Potential missions include:

• Dedicated communications
• Earth observation
• Signals collection
• Space weather
• Space situational awareness

Below are four of many examples of specific hosted payload application areas.

GPS Radio Occultation

Sounding of atmospheric humidity and temperature

Applications for monitoring climate, disasters, water, weather

Commercially available: mission ready
Feasibility study completed by JPL-NASA (USA) for GEO, Oct 2008
Iridium currently performing feasibility study for NOAA

DEVELOPMENT OF HURRICANE ERNESTO, Aug 2006. Computer-

generated model without and with (right) COSMIC data. Source:

UCAR COSMIC visuals and media gallery; COSMIC News: Images

courtesy Yongsheng Chen, NCAR, USA

Radio Altimeters

Monitoring sea-surface height, wave height, wind speed, ice height

Applications for monitoring climate, disasters, water, weather

Commercially available: minor development required
Feasibility study ongoing by CNES (France) for GEO

IMAGE OF SEA LEVEL ANOMOLIES SHOWING THE EFFECT OF El NIÑO, 30

Nov 1997. Source: ESR–Envisat Data from DEOS, Delft University of

Technology, The Netherlands

Broadband Radiometers

Measuring the Earth’s radiation budget

Applications for monitoring climate and weather
Commercially available: minor development required, with several options available.
Feasibility study completed by RAL, SEA Ltd. and Imperial College (UK) for GEO, Oct 2008

HEAT WAVE OVER PAKISTAN. Source: Bruce Wielicki and Takmeng

Wong, and the CERES Science Team at NASA Langley Research Center;

images courtesy of Tom Bridgman, NASA GSFC Scientific Visualization

Studio

Multi-spectral Imagers

For ocean color, deforestation and desertification

Applications for agriculture, biodiversity, climate, disasters
Commercially available: minor development of existing system [MERIS]
Feasibility study completed by ACRI (France), DST (South Africa), TAS (France) for GEO, Oct 2008

UPWELLING OF NUTRIENT RICH WATERS AND ASSOCIATED

PHYTOPLANKTON BLOOMS (off South Africa, May 2001). Source: The

SeaWifs Project, NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center and Orbimage