Page 26 - International Space Station Benefits for Humanity, 3rd edition.

on the ISS, or the development of any novel sensor
technologies. Instead, imagery is gathered by simply
...the Planet story illustrates aiming a camera that is mounted within the Cupola—
how the ISS can provide early the dome-shaped Earth observatory of the ISS.
access to space, thereby allowing Although small ground-based systems such as
hurricane-hunting aircraft are capable of gathering
new business models to prove storm data, a benefit of using the ISS to gather
themselves and attract the measurements on storm and weather systems is that
monitoring from space is safer, less expensive, and
investment capital needed to potentially more effective than ground observation.
truly take off in the marketplace. In addition to the CyMISS investigation, another
instrument aboard the ISS has generated data on wind
speeds and wind directions over oceans around the
world. From September 2014 through August 2016,
the U.S. Navy, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric
RapidEye. In February 2017, Planet acquired Google’s Administration (NOAA), and European and Indian
Terra Bella, a company possessing a constellation of scientists used the ISS-RapidScat measurements
seven sub-meter imaging satellites. In the same month, in near real-time to improve weather forecast models
Planet launched the largest satellite constellation in (including those used for storm events).
history with its Flock3p, which consisted of 88 Earth By improving the accuracy of weather modeling and
observation satellites. As of March 2018, Planet storm track prediction, these Earth observation data
operates a fleet of more than 175 satellites and has sets provide concrete benefits—both economic and
achieved its original goal of being able to photograph quality of life. However, these benefits are difficult to
the entire surface of the Earth every day. quantify or to separate from the many other sources
With both its technology and business model maturing, of information that are used in weather modeling.
Planet now uses commercial launch providers. Another pathway in which ISS benefits emerge in
However, the Planet story illustrates how the ISS this focus area is through the maturation of Earth
can provide early access to space, thereby allowing observation technologies and analysis methods. Once
new business models to prove themselves and attract confirmed or demonstrated on the space station, new
the investment capital needed to truly take off in the sensors, technologies, and methods of data analysis
marketplace. As of March 2018, Planet employs lead to better capabilities in other satellites and Earth
more than 470 people, has an estimated annual observing platforms. The CyMISS example above
revenue of $64.4 million, and an estimated value illustrates this pathway, as well. Building on the success
that exceeds $1 billion. of the project on the ISS, Visidyne has formed a new
commercial company: Trans World Analytics, Inc.
(TWAI). TWAI plans to use high-altitude, solar-powered
Earth Observation Data vehicles and microsatellites to collect the data needed
For much of the world, real-time information on to characterize tropical cyclone eyewall clouds and
hazardous weather, such as tropical cyclones (i.e., measure storm intensities, with the goal of achieving
hurricanes and typhoons) is not available. Earth imaging
supplied by instruments on the ISS can provide real-
time data to researchers, meteorologists and disaster
response authorities here on the ground. Earth imaging supplied by
Since 2014, Visidyne, Inc. has demonstrated the
feasibility of studying powerful tropical cyclones from instruments on the ISS can provide
space by measuring the altitudes of the cloud tops real-time data to researchers,
within the eyewall, the region of extreme winds and
torrential rainfall that lies just outside the cloud-free eye meteorologists and disaster response
at the center of a tropical cyclone. The Cyclone Intensity authorities here on the ground.
Measurements from the ISS (CyMISS) investigation
does not require any new instruments to be installed

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