Airbus and CNES Collaborate on Radiometer Technology for Upcoming NASA/JAXA Climate Satellite Initiative

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Airbus has been chosen by the French Space Agency (CNES) to design and construct two next-generation microwave radiometers, contributing to the Atmosphere Observing System (AOS) through the C²OMODO mission (Convective Core Observations through MicrOwave Derivatives in the trOpics). This initiative, a collaboration among the United States, Canada, Japan, Italy, and France, aims to enhance our understanding of the interactions between aerosols, clouds, atmospheric convection, and precipitation. AOS will consist of six satellites along with airborne and terrestrial suborbital platforms, providing crucial data to improve weather, air quality, and climate predictions.

“Working on climate missions is something that really matters to us at Airbus. Just a few weeks after launch of the EarthCARE mission with Europe and Japan, it is an honour to be part of another climate mission, this time NASA-led with international partners,” said Alain Fauré, Head of Space Systems at Airbus. “I would like to thank the French Space Agency, CNES, for supporting European industry: with this contract Airbus is further reinforcing its role in helping better understand clouds, weather and climate.”

C²OMODO is set to deliver an unprecedented global perspective on vertical air movements and precipitation characteristics within convective storms. This advancement will significantly enhance our comprehension of intense precipitation formation and improve the representation of these processes in computer-based weather models, thereby leading to more accurate global weather forecasts.

Developed in Toulouse, France, the C²OMODO high-frequency microwave radiometers will be installed on two AOS satellites, collaborating in an inclined orbit. The AOS-Storm mission, led by the United States, and the Precipitation Measuring Mission (PMM), headed by Japan, will work together to achieve this goal.