BRANDYWINE PHOTONICS LLC — Department of Defense SBIR Phase I: AF171-073

Description

The upcoming gap in satellite weather data may be a significant crisis in the early 2020s, with the cancellation of the NPOESS satellite program, and the loss of the DMSP-19 Satellite. Weather sources resources are stretched thin, which may make the US reliant on foreign weather data. We propose a new Cubesat satellite called Gemini, which would be a pathfinder satellite for an Operational Responsive Meteorology Constellation called MetNet. The Gemini-A instrument proposed here is a multi-spectral imager which uses 32 MODIS bands for fast and simple theater weather imaging, all within a 1.5U CalPoly CubeSat standard. This is made possible through the innovative use of newer technologies, such as the High Operating Temperature MWIR FPA at 120K and a newly available Low-Light-Level CMOS Image Sensor. The most significant challenges will be the system, thermal, and electrical design involving integrating four cameras into a 1.5U form factor. Gemini-B would be a separate 3U Microwave Sounder, such as the Mirata CubeSat built by MIT-Lincoln Labs, and would be part of a later effort. As with AURA and JPSS, the combination of IR and Microwave Sounder would work synergistically to provide a total solution for Cloud Characterization.