Instrument Description


Definition
General information about the instrument from which the data were collected.
 
Syntax

<Description>text</Description>


* Multiple lines of text are permitted, each line containing a maximum of 4000 characters. Characters may be selected from the printable UTF-8 character set.
 
Usage
  • The <Description> field is required and may not be repeated.
  • Includes background information on the instrument.
  • Must provide reference to the source of the description if it was abstracted from an existing document.
  • Text should be single spaced with blank lines separating paragraphs.
  • For readability, use the appropriate upper/lower case where applicable.
  • Acronyms should be expanded to provide understanding.
 
Example

<Description>
MODIS is a multi-disciplinary, keystone instrument on Aqua and Terra, providing a wide array of multispectral, daily observations of land, ocean, and atmosphere features at spatial resolutions between 250 m and 1000 m. Approximately 40 data products are produced from the MODIS data. Data are distributed not only through the EOS Data and Information Service (EOSDIS) Distributed Active Archive Centers (DAACs) at Goddard Space Flight Center, the EROS Data Center in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, and the National Snow and Ice Data Center (NSIDC) in Boulder, Colorado, but also via over 100 Direct Broadcast (DB) stations distributed worldwide.

  Instrument_Facts:
Launches: December 18, 1999 on Terra; May 4, 2002 on Aqua
Heritage: AVHRR, HIRS, Landsat TM, and Nimbus-7 CZCS
Instrument Type: Medium-resolution, multi-spectral, cross-track scanning radiometer; daylight reflection and day/night emission spectral imaging
Channels: 36 spectral bands
Spectral Range: 20 bands with 0.4-3.0 µm; 16 bands within 3-14.5 µm
Swath Width: 2,300 km at 110° (±55°)
Coverage: Global coverage every 1 to 2 days
Spatial Resolution: 250 m, 500m, 1 km
Dimensions: 1.04 m x 1.18 m x 1.63 m
Mass: 229 kg
Thermal Control: Passive radiators
Thermal Operating Range: 268 ± 5 K
Power: 162.5 W (average), 225 W (peak)
Duty Cycle: 1005
Data Rate: 6.2 Mbps (average), 10.5 Mbps (daytime), 3.2 Mbps (nighttime)
Instrument Nadir IFOV: 250 m (2 bands), 500 m (5 bands), 1,000 m (29 bands)
Polarization Sensitivity: 2 % from 0.43 µm to 2.2 µm and ± 45° scan
Signal-to-Noise Ratios: From 500 to 1100 for 1-km ocean color bands at 70° solar zenith angle
NE t: Typically < 0.05 K at 300 K
Absolute Irradiance Accuracy: 5 % for wavelengths < 3 µm and 1 % for wavelengths > 3 µm
Direct Broadcast: Yes
Prime Contractor: Raytheon Santa Barbara Remote Sensing
Responsible Center: NASA Goddard Space Flight Center

[Source: Earth Science Reference Handbook: A Guide to NASA’s Earth Science Program and Earth Observing Satellite Missions. Revised May 2006.]
</Description>

 

This document should be cited as:
Ancillary Description Writer's Guide, 2013.
Global Change Master Directory.
National Aeronautics and Space Administration.
[http://gcmd.nasa.gov/add/ancillaryguide/].

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