NPOESS Science Advisory Team

Gregory W. WitheeAssistant Administrator for Satellite and Information Services

July 16,2003

A Proposal to the NOAA

Science Advisory Board

Background

• The IPO and NESDIS share responsibility for components of the overall NPOESS system

• A number of groups provide guidance, advice and/or oversight concerning various aspects of the overall NPOESS system

• There is no group looking at the overall NPOESS system from the perspective of NOAA end users

NPOESS Top Level Architecture

SpaceSegment

Command& ControlSegment

Command& ControlSegment

NPP(1030)

NPOESS1330

NPOESS1730

NPOESS2130

Mission ManagementCenter (MMC)at Suitland

Mission ManagementCenter (MMC)at Suitland

Alternate MMCat Schriever AFBAlternate MMCat Schriever AFB Interface Data Processing SegmentInterface Data Processing Segment

15 Globally DistributedReceptor Sites15 Globally DistributedReceptor Sites

Field Terminal SegmentField Terminal Segment

FNMOC NAVOCEANO AFWA NESDIS/NCEP

GPS

Low Rate Data/High Rate Data(LRD/HRD)

NPP Science Data Segment

CLASS ADS

NPP Data & Control Flow NPOESS Data & Control Flow CLASS ADSNOAA Comprehensive Large Array Data Stewardship System NPP Archive & Distribution Seg

SvalbardSvalbard

Data Collection

NPOESS Satellite

NPOESS Functional Architecture

Command, Control & Communications

Interface Data Processing

Segment

•L3/4 Product Generation

•Blended Products

•Reformatted Products

NOAA Central

Science Support

Product Processing

Long Term Archive

(CLASS)

User Community

NOAA

IPO

XDRs

(HDF5)

Data Utilization

Environ. Modeling Systems

•System Integration

•Operational Test & Eval.

•Data Assimilation

Groups providing guidance, advice and/or oversight for NPOESS

• NPOESS Science Advisory Team, an internal group reporting to Northrop Grumman

• NPOESS Science Advisory Board, an external group chaired by Joe Friday reporting to Northrop Grumman

• Integrated Weather Product Test Bed Team, overseeing Raytheon’s IDPS and reporting to Northrop Grumman

• A number of Instrument Cal/Val Teams reporting to Northrop Grumman and the IPO

• Eight Operational Algorithm Teams and a Central Users’ Forum reporting to the IPO

• Data Archive Board reporting to NESDIS OSDPD

• Council on Long-term Climate Monitoring, presently chaired by Tom Karl and reporting to NOAA SAB

• Climate and Global Change Panel chaired by Otis Brown and reporting to NOAA SAB

• A new 1-year NAS/BASC study looking at Climate Data Records

Wide Range of NOAA Users

• Operational – operational observations to support, for example, weather and ocean forecasting – where these is feedback within hours to days re: the impact of observations on forecasts

• Research – sustained systematic observations to support, for example, climate change and Earth science – where similar feedback may not come for years to a decade or more

Opportunities for Visibility

Understanding how NPOESS will contribute to meeting these needs is of special importance given the visibility now being afforded Earth observations:

• G-8 Summit early last month

• Earth Observations Summit July 31

• COP-9 in December

• A subsequent summit in Japan next May

Proposed General Terms of Reference

• Provide guidance and advice to NOAA concerning the NPOESS system in the overall NOAA architecture from the perspective of the end user

This can:

• Provide a mechanism for the research community to interact with NPOESS

• Inform NOAA of opportunities to interact constructively with other agencies or institutions

Proposed Specific Terms of Reference

• Performance assessment– how well the overall system will provide sustained systematic Earth observations to meet the wide range of user needs

• Product improvement – how to access, provide feedback on, and secure improvements in the generation of data and products – especially as they contribute to the long-term climate record

• Identification of possible gaps – how to satisfy, for example, needs for continuing observations of sea surface topography and surface vector winds

Suggested Research Members

• Atmospheric – Rick Anthes, Kevin Trenberth

• Oceanographic – Mark Abbott, Otis Brown, Charlie Kennel

• Terrestrial – Berrien Moore, Eric Barron, John Townshend

• Space Weather – Ernie Hildner

• Polar – Roger Barry

Suggested Operational Members

• NWS NCEP – Louis Uccellini

• ECMWF – Tony Hollingsworth

• Private Sector: The Weather Channel, OceanWeather – Vince Cardone

• DoD: FNMOC, NavOceano, AFWA –

• National Ice Center – Director

• Ocean.US – Director

• Other Agencies: FEMA, USGS –

Next Steps

• NOAA SAB approve proposal and agree to membership

• First meeting in early CY04

• The NPOESS Science Advisory Team starts by reviewing the various components of the overall NPOESS system