A short video animation demonstrating the SMAP spacecraft
PREVIEW
NASA's SMAP and University of Texas scientists are rounding up critical soil information for managing the Lone Star State's limited water.
Maps of global soil moisture were created using data from the radiometer instrument on NASA's Soil Moisture Active Passive (SMAP) observatory. Each image is a composite of three days of SMAP radiometer data, centered on April 15, 18 and 22, 2015.
Initial data from SMAP capture the 2015 spring thaw progression over the Northern Hemisphere, with a thaw front extending from predominantly non-frozen southern latitudes to the still-frozen north.
The SMAP antenna fully unfurled during testing in the Spacecraft Assembly Facility.
While pointed toward the sun, the Soil Moisture Active Passive, or SMAP, satellite separated from the Delta II upper stage as it was deployed into Earth orbit. Liftoff took place from Vandenberg Air Force Base's Space Launch Complex 2 at 6:22 a.m. PST (9:22 a.m. EST).
A United Launch Alliance Delta II rocket with the Soil Moisture Active Passive (SMAP) observatory onboard is seen in this long exposure photograph as it launches from Space Launch Complex 2, Saturday, Jan. 31, 2015, Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif. SMAP is NASA’s first Earth-observing satellite designed to collect global observations of surface soil moisture and its freeze/thaw state. SMAP will provide high resolution global measurements of soil moisture from space. The data will be used to enhance scientists' understanding of the processes that link Earth's water, energy, and carbon cycles.
A video about the challenges of testing the largest rotating mesh antenna ever launched into space.
NASA doesn’t study just the stars and planets; it is also concerned with the soil beneath your feet. Studying the moisture in the top two inches of the soil from space with a satellite named "SMAP" can help weather forecasters predict flash floods, farmers grow more crops, and communities plan for drought.
NASA held a media briefing at 11 a.m. PST (2 p.m. EST) Thursday, Jan. 8, at NASA Headquarters in Washington to discuss the upcoming Soil Moisture Active Passive (SMAP) mission.
The NASA press kit for the SMAP launch
An animation of the SMAP mission
A feature about the SMAP mission
A video about the SMAP GLOBE program
A trailer for the SMAP mission
Promotional video for the NASA's Earth Campaign
An animated video about NASA's SMAP (Soil Moisture Active Passive) mission.
SMAP Observatory labeled and combined.
The deployable mesh reflector is offset from nadir and rotates about the nadir axis at 14.6 rpm, providing a conically scanning antenna beam with a surface incidence angle of 40°. The 6 m (20 foot) antenna is made of gold-coated mesh.
A simple illustration of the major elements of the energy cycle is shown in the figure.
The water cycle refers to the movement of water between different parts of the Earth’s environment, including the atmosphere, natural reservoirs such as oceans and lakes, and the soil and rock formations making up the Earth’s land surfaces.
Shows the swath path illustrating the scanning pattern of the antenna.
This image the swath size cut by the RADAR and radiometer on SMAP.
