![]() ![]() ![]() Update on Terra’s New Orbit: Since 2020, Terra has been drifting to an earlier equator crossing time, and in October 2022 was lowered by ~5km in altitude. Read more and find resources from our anniversary events, Terra 20 Events Us understand how the evolving systems of our planet affect our lives – and how ![]() Season after season, Terra data continues to help Its mission – to understand how Earth is changing and to identify the consequences for life on Earth. Designed and built in the 1980s and 90s, NASA and Lockheed Martin engineers set out to build a satellite that could take simultaneous measurements of Earth’s atmosphere, land, and water. But, at the same time that our lives on Earth were being shaped by our access to technology, 705 kilometers above us, a satellite was changing how we understood our planet.įor 20 years, Terra, the flagship Earth observing satellite, There is no question that technology has changed. In those twenty years, new applications and contributions to science have been made possible. Terra’s suite of instruments allows us to understand our world well beyond what we knew twenty years ago, when Terra launched. Terra’s twenty years of data continue to contribute to how we understand Earth and how we respond when disasters strike. Terra’s five sensors help us understand out changing planet and provide critical data used in applications from food security, volcanic monitoring, wildfire safety, public health, and climate modeling. Read more… Terra: Providing Critical Data to Help Society However, despite impacts to some of Terra’s nearly 100 data products, Terra’s five sensors continue to collect meaningful scientific data, producing one of the longest continuous climate data records collected by a satellite. With no maneuvers planned to sustain Terra’s altitude and crossing time, Terra will slowly get closer and closer to Earth – crossing the equator earlier and earlier as time passes. What’s Next?Īfter more than 20 years orbiting at 705 km above Earth’s surface and routinely crossing the equator at approximately the same time every day, Terra is now drifting. Past News Features Terra’s Lower Orbit Virtual Community Forum NASA’s Terra, Aqua, and Aura Drifting Orbits Workshop Information Animated Overview of the Request for Information Terra Begins Drifting. ![]()
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