Science Objectives and Significance to NASA/NOAA

TROPICS will provide
high-resolution sounding
within hurricane eyes

Super Typhoon Haiyan (Nov 6, 2013)
Imaging (90 GHz shown) and sounding
reveal precipitation structure and intensity

TROPICS will meet state-of-the-art
performance requirements for
temperature and moisture sounding

VIS/IR observations are
blind to storm structure

TROPICS will provide 60-minute
median refresh rate at all
longitudes and +/-40° latitude


Science Objectives

  • Relate precipitation structure evolution, including diurnal cycle, to the evolution of the upper-level warm core and associated intensity changes
  • Relate the occurrence of intense precipitation cores (convective bursts) to storm intensity evolution
  • Relate retrieved environmental moisture measurements to coincident measures of storm structure (including size) and intensity
  • Assimilate microwave radiances and/or retrievals in mesoscale and global numerical weather prediction models to assess impacts on storm track and intensity

Significance to NASA/NOAA

  • Achieves first high-revisit microwave nearly global observations of precipitation, temperature, and humidity
  • Complements GPM, CYGNSS, and NOAA JPSS/GOES missions with high refresh, near-all-weather measurements of precipitation and thermodynamic structure
  • Increases understanding of critical processes driving significant and rapid changes in storm structure/intensity