The Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM) mission Core Satellite's Microwave Imager (GMI) performed flawlessly in its first year in orbit as the most accurately calibrated radiometer in the 12-satellite GPM constellation.

This coming fall, rain drops and snow flakes will be tracked as never before. Researchers are preparing for OLYMPEX, a ground-based effort to calibrate and validate precipitation. The GPM satellite is equipped with new instruments that can measure a range of precipitation intensities, from light snowfall to heavy tropical rain.

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"The Ball GMI enhanced subsystems design enables excellent science data performance with calibration accuracy that is unparalleled. GMI incorporates lessons learned from other radiometers which have taken Earth science measurements from low and medium Earth orbits for the last 20 years," said Jim Oschmann, vice president and general manager of Ball's Civil Space and Technology business unit.

The Ball Aerospace GMI engineering design features a radio frequency (RF) receiver subsystem highly temperature stable, including a shade that protects the instrument electronics from the sun's heat. This helps prevent high temperatures from compromising the calibration accuracy of the instrument.

The high-tech storm watch will track weather from the air and on the ground. Instruments will measure the exact amount of precipitation in different places, determine the height where snow turns to rain in a storm system, and measure the size of the drops - whether the precipitation falls as many small drops, or fewer big drops.

Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corporation supports critical missions for national agencies such as the Department of Defense, NASA, NOAA and other U.S. government and commercial entities.

The company develops and manufactures spacecraft, advanced instruments and sensors, components, data exploitation systems and RF solutions for strategic, tactical and scientific applications.

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