Global Weather & Climate Solutions, Inc. — Department of Defense SBIR Phase I: X224-OCSO1

Description

PlanetiQ will modify software/firmware in our existing and future RO receivers to acquire reflected signals during occultations to create the NAS’ identified, critically needed, first spaceborne, all-weather, global PBL-profiling system to greatly improve nowcasts and forecasts to increase DoD environmental situational awareness, particularly at and near the surface, and increase mission success for a wide variety of DoD applications. Because weather affects everything the military does, weather must be considered in every facet of military force planning, deployment and employment, and system design and evaluation. PlanetiQ’s RO forward operator platform will significantly improve nowcasts and forecasts to increase DoD environmental situational awareness, particularly at and near the earth’s surface, and greatly increase mission success for a wide variety of DoD applications. Observing the planetary boundary layer (PBL) is critical for predicting weather and climate and at present the measurements of the PBL are extremely poor globally. PlanetiQ’s Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) Radio Occultation (RO) is the only remote sensing system capable of observing the PBL, with sufficiently high vertical resolution to profile the PBL, over all types of surfaces, in any and all weather conditions, across the entire globe. National Academy of Sciences and NASA both recognize that GNSS RO is critical for predicting weather and climate.