The final pair of NASAs TROPICS (Time-Resolved Observations of Precipitation structure and storm Intensity with a Constellation of Smallsats) are in orbit after successfully launching at 11:46 p.m. EDT, May 25, (3:46 p.m. NZST Friday, May 26th), completing the constellation.
TROPICS launched aboard an Electron rocket from Rocket Labs Launch Complex 1 Pad B in Mhia, New Zealand. The smallsats were deployed at 12:20 am EDT on May 26. Signal for the first CubeSat was acquired at 1:16 a.m. EDT and at 2:19 a.m. for the second.
Through this mission, NASA will study tropical cyclones and aims to improve forecasting for hurricanes and typhoons.
As a lifelongFloridian, I know firsthand how critical it is for millions of Americans to have timely and accurate forecasts for hurricanes. More intense rainfall and increased coastal flooding are devastating livelihoods andtakinglives, demonstrating the importance of NASAs cutting-edge science to help answer questions that nobody else can, said NASA Administrator Bill Nelson. With missions like TROPICS, NASA continues to lead the way in getting satellite data morequicklyto our partners like the National Hurricane Center and Joint Typhoon Warning Center, providing vital forecasts that help our communities before, during, and after landfall.
This launch follows a previous successful TROPICS launch with two other small satellites earlier this month.
As we move into hurricane season for 2023, TROPICS will be in position to provide unprecedented detail on these storms, helping us better understand how they form, intensify, and move across the ocean, said Karen St. Germain, lead of NASAs Earth Science Division. We rely on targeted, innovative missions like this to help create a robust Earth science portfolio.
TROPICS is a constellation of four identical CubeSats designed to observe tropical cyclones in a unique, inclined low Earth orbit over Earths tropics an orbit that allows them to travel over any given storm about once an hour. Current weather tracking satellites have a timing of about once every six hours.
We are very excited to have the four satellites launched. We expect the new observing capabilities from TROPICS will improve our understanding of tropical cyclones and our ability to predict their track and intensity, said William Blackwell, the missions principal investigator at MITs Lincoln Laboratory in Lexington, Massachusetts.
In addition to Blackwell, the TROPICS team includes researchers from NASA, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and several universities and commercial partners. NASAs Launch Services Program, based at the agencys Kennedy Space Center in Florida, is managing the launch service.
