We have power! Two months after launch, following the successful testing of its Maxar built host satellite Intelsat 40e, NASA's TEMPO (short for Tropospheric Emissions: Monitoring of Pollution) air quality instrument has been turned on for the first time. A team at the Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian in Cambridge, Massachusetts, will now …
Signal Acquired
The team has received signal from Intelsat 40e satellite. Commissioning activities for TEMPO will begin in late May or early June. Researchers expect the first public data to be available in October. TEMPO will observe the air quality over North America during daylight hours, providing critical insights into air pollution in North America.
Intelsat 40e Separates from Second Stage
The Falcon 9 rocket's second stage has reached the point of payload separation and its engine has been cut off. Intelsat 40e and the TEMPO instrument will separate from the Falcon 9 rocket's second stage, deploying the spacecraft, which will continue on to its geostationary orbit.
Falcon 9 First Stage Lands!
The Falcon 9 rocket's first stage has landed on a SpaceX drone ship. Coming up next, Intelsat 40e, along with the TEMPO instrument, will separate from the Falcon 9 rocket's second stage and begin settling into orbit.
Main Engine Cutoff; First Stage Separates
The Falcon 9 rocket's first-stage engines have finished their burn, and the first stage has separated from the vehicle. As the second stage continues its journey with Intelsat 40e and the TEMPO instrument, the first stage will aim for landing on a SpaceX drone ship. The second stage Merlin engine has ignited to begin boosting …
We’ve Got Liftoff! The Falcon 9 Begins its Journey
Liftoff! At 12:30 a.m. EDT, SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket lifted off the pad at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida, beginning its approximately hour-long journey to deliver the Intelsat 40e, along with NASA's Tropospheric Emissions: Monitoring of Pollution (TEMPO) instrument, into orbit. Coming up at about two minutes and 30 seconds after liftoff, the …
It’s Time for TEMPO! TEMPO Launches Early Tomorrow Morning Aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 Rocket on Intelsat 40e
Hello from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida! A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, with the Intelsat 40e and NASA's Tropospheric Emissions: Monitoring of Pollution (TEMPO) instrument aboard, stands ready for liftoff at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station Complex 40. TEMPO will be the first satellite instrument to make hourly daytime observations of air quality over …
TEMPO Arrives Safely in Florida
The satellite host of NASA's Tropospheric Emissions: Monitoring of Pollution (TEMPO) instrument recently arrived by aircraft at NASA's Kennedy Space Center ahead of its launch from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in early April. From a geostationary, or fixed, orbit aboard the Maxar-built Intelsat 40e, TEMPO will be the first satellite instrument to make hourly …
NASA Air Pollution Sensor Integrated and Tested with Commercial Satellite Host
Air pollution is an existential threat to millions of Americans with asthma and other health issues. Responding to that threat, NASA and the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory are innovating to improve observations of air quality in North America. Tropospheric Emissions: Monitoring of Pollution (TEMPO) is an ultraviolet and visible spectrometer that will be hosted on Intelsat …