View source for Soil Moisture and Ocean Salinity

{{Short description|ESA Earth Observation Satellite}}
{{about|the satellite|the hydrologic concepts|Soil moisture|and|Ocean salinity}}
{{Infobox spaceflight|auto=all
| name                  = SMOS
| image                 = SMOS.jpg
| image_caption         = Artist's view of SMOS
| insignia              = SMOS_logo.jpg

| mission_type          = Earth observation
| operator              = [[ESA]]
| website               = {{url|http://www.esa.int/Our_Activities/Observing_the_Earth/SMOS}}
| COSPAR_ID             = 2009-059A
| SATCAT                = 36036
| mission_duration      = Planned: 3 years <br /> Elapsed: {{time interval|2 November 2009 14:21|show=ymd|sep=,}}

| spacecraft_bus        = Proteus
| manufacturer          = [[Thales Alenia Space]]<br />[[CNES]]
| dry_mass              = {{convert|630|kg|lb}}
| launch_mass           = {{convert|658|kg|lb}}
| dimensions            = {{convert|2.4|x|2.3|m|ft}} (diameter)
| power                 = up&nbsp;to&nbsp;1065&nbsp;watts
| launch_date           = {{start-date|2 November 2009, 14:21:00|timezone=yes}}&nbsp;UTC<ref name="smosLaunch">{{cite web|url=http://www.esa.int/Our_Activities/Observing_the_Earth/SMOS/Two_new_ESA_satellites_successfully_lofted_into_orbit |publisher=ESA |title=Two new ESA satellites successfully lofted into orbit |date=2009-11-01 |access-date=2013-10-18}}</ref>
| launch_rocket         = [[Rokot]]/[[Briz-KM]]

| launch_site           = [[Plesetsk Cosmodrome|Plesetsk]] [[Plesetsk Cosmodrome Site 133|133/3]]
| launch_contractor     = [[Eurockot Launch Services|Eurockot]]

| disposal_type         = 
| deactivated           = 
| last_contact          = <!-- {{end-date|[insert date here]}} -->
| decay_date            = <!-- when craft re-entered the atmosphere -->

| orbit_epoch           = 25 January 2015, 00:45:13&nbsp;UTC<ref name="n2yo">{{cite web|url=http://www.n2yo.com/satellite/?s=36036|title=SMOS Satellite details 2009-059A NORAD 36036|publisher=N2YO|date=25 January 2015|access-date=25 January 2015}}</ref>
| orbit_reference       = [[geocentric orbit|Geocentric]]
| orbit_regime          = [[Sun-Synchronous Orbit|Sun-synchronous]]
| orbit_periapsis       = {{convert|765|km|mi}}<ref name="n2yo"/>
| orbit_apoapsis        = {{convert|766|km|mi}}<ref name="n2yo"/>
| orbit_inclination     = 98.44&nbsp;degrees<ref name="n2yo"/>
| orbit_repeat          = 23&nbsp;days
| orbit_period          = 100.02&nbsp;minutes<ref name="n2yo"/>
| apsis                 = gee

| instruments           = '''MIRAS''': Microwave Imaging Radiometer using Aperture Synthesis

<!--transponder parameters-->
| trans_band            = [[S Band]] (TT&C support)<br />[[X band|X Band]] (science data acquisition)
| trans_frequency       = 
| trans_bandwidth       = up&nbsp;to&nbsp;722&nbsp;kbit/s&nbsp;download&nbsp;(S Band)<br />up&nbsp;to&nbsp;18.4&nbsp;Mbit/s&nbsp;download&nbsp;(X Band)<br />up&nbsp;to&nbsp;4&nbsp;kbit&nbsp;/s&nbsp;upload&nbsp;(S Band)
| trans_capacity        = <!--capacity of the transponders-->
| trans_coverage        = <!--area covered-->
| trans_TWTA            = <!--TWTA output power-->
| trans_EIRP            = <!--equivalent isotropic power-->
| trans_HPBW            = <!--half-power beam width-->

| programme             = '''[[Living Planet Programme]]'''
| previous_mission      = ''[[GOCE]]''
| next_mission          = ''[[CryoSat-2]]''
}}

'''Soil Moisture and Ocean Salinity''' ('''SMOS''') is a [[satellite]] which forms part of [[European Space Agency|ESA]]'s [[Living Planet Programme]]. It is intended to provide new insights into Earth's [[water cycle]] and [[climate]]. In addition, it is intended to provide improved [[weather forecasting]] and monitoring of snow and ice accumulation.<ref name = "ESAMBA2VMOC_LPsmos_0">[http://www.esa.int/esaLP/ESAMBA2VMOC_LPsmos_0.html ESA's water mission SMOS] European Space Agency</ref><ref name="URSI-F-2005-Art_6.1">SMOS Project Team, [http://ursi-f-2005.jrc.it/fullpapers/URSI-F-2005-Art_6.1.pdf The Soil Moisture and Ocean Salinity (SMOS) Mission] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060506200325/http://ursi-f-2005.jrc.it/fullpapers/URSI-F-2005-Art_6.1.pdf |date=2006-05-06 }} European Space Agency</ref><ref name = "ESA Bulletin">SMOS Special Issue of ESA Bulletin [http://www.esa.int/SPECIALS/ESA_Publications/SEMU9CWX3RF_0.html ESA Bulletin] Special Issue  137, February 2009</ref><ref name="IEEE Proceedings 2010-05-Font-Camps-Borges">''SMOS: The Challenging Sea Surface Salinity Measurement from Space'', J. Font, A. Camps, A. Borges, M. Martin-Neira, J. Boutin, N. Reul, Y. Kerr, A. Hahne and S. Mecklenburg, [[Proceedings of the IEEE]], vol. 98, no. 5, May 2010, pp. 649-665</ref>

==History==
The project was proposed in November 1998; in 2004 the project passed ESA-phase "C/D" and,<ref name = "CESBIO">[http://www.cesbio.ups-tlse.fr/us/indexsmos.html The Living Planet Program Soil Moisture and Ocean Salinity (MIRAS on RAMSES)] Mission SMOS at Centre d'Etudes Spatailes de la BIOsphere (CESBIO)</ref> after several delays, it was launched on 2 November 2009 from [[Plesetsk Cosmodrome]] on a [[Rockot]] rocket.<ref name=bbc >{{cite news | author=Jonathan Amos | title=European water mission lifts off | date=2 November 2009 | publisher=BBC News | url =http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/8331962.stm | access-date = 2009-11-02 }}</ref> The first data from the [[Microwave Imaging Radiometer with Aperture Synthesis|MIRAS]] ([[Microwave]] Imaging [[Radiometer]] using [[Aperture]] Synthesis) instrument was received on 20 November 2009.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.esa.int/esaEO/SEMDGULX82G_index_0.html|title=First SMOS data received|date=20 November 2009|publisher=ESA|access-date=26 January 2010}}</ref> The SMOS programme cost is about €315 million ($465 million; £280 million). It is led by ESA but with significant input from French and Spanish interests.<ref name=bbc />

The satellite is part of ESA's Earth Explorer programme – satellite missions that are performing innovative science in obtaining data on issues of pressing [[environmental science|environment]]al concern. The first is already complete – a mission called [[GOCE]], which mapped variations in the pull of [[gravity]] across the Earth's surface. SMOS was the second Explorer to launch; and was followed by [[CryoSat-2]] (the first [[CryoSat]] failed on launch), [[Swarm (spacecraft)]], and [[ADM-Aeolus]].

==Launcher==
The satellite was launched on 2 November 2009 (04:50 (01:50 GMT)) to a nearly circular orbit of 763&nbsp;km aboard a [[Rokot]], a modified [[Russians|Russian]] [[Intercontinental Ballistic Missile]] (ICBM) [[SS-19]] launched from a decommissioned SS-19 launcher from Northern Russia's  [[Plesetsk Cosmodrome]].<ref name = "URSI-F-2005-Art_6.1"/><ref>{{cite news | author=Jonathan Amos | title=Smos satellite unfurls instrument | date=3 November 2009 | publisher=BBC News | url =http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/8341400.stm | access-date = 2009-11-06 }}</ref> The SMOS satellite was launched together with the [[Proba-2]], a technology demonstration satellite.<ref>[http://www.esa.int/esaTQM/1220880349148_index_0.html Successful launch qualification test for PROBA2] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090302233049/http://www.esa.int/esaTQM/1220880349148_index_0.html |date=2009-03-02 }}</ref><ref>[http://www.eurockot.com/alist.asp?cnt=20040811&main=3&subm=97# ESA's SMOS Mission to be launched in July 2009 from Plesetsk] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090126061131/http://www.eurockot.com/alist.asp?cnt=20040811&main=3&subm=97 |date=2009-01-26 }} The Rockot Missions. Eurolaunch Launch Service Provider</ref>

==Science==
The goal of the SMOS mission is to monitor surface [[soil moisture]] with an accuracy of 4% (at 35–50&nbsp;km [[spatial resolution]]).<ref name = "CESBIO"/> This aspect is managed by the HYDROS project. Project Aquarius will attempt to monitor sea surface [[salinity]] with an accuracy of 0.1 [[Practical salinity unit|psu]] (10- to 30-day average and a spatial resolution of 200&nbsp;km x 200&nbsp;km).<ref name = "CESBIO"/><ref name = "EGU2008-A-01922">Mecklenburg S, Kerr Y, Font J and Hahne A. [http://www.cosis.net/abstracts/EGU2008/01922/EGU2008-A-01922.pdf?PHPSESSID= ''The Soil Moisture and Ocean Salinity (SMOS) Mission - An overview'']. Geophysical Research Abstracts, Vol. 10, 2008,</ref>
[[File:SMOS2010.png|thumb|left|upright=1.35|alt=Global salinity map (Aug.–Sept. 2010 & 2011) produced by the ESA's Soil Moisture and Ocean Salinity satellite. Released 2012.|The first global map of oceanic surface salinity, produced by the SMOS satellite. The salinity varies from 32[[‰]] (deep purple) to 38[[‰]] (bright red).]]
Soil moisture is an important aspect of climate, and therefore [[forecasting]]. Plants transpire water from depths lower than 1 meter in many places and satellites like SMOS can only provide moisture content down to a few centimeters, but using repeated measurements in a day, the satellite can extrapolate soil moisture.<ref name = "URSI-F-2005-Art_6.1"/><ref name = "ESA Bulletin"/> The SMOS team of ESA hope to work with farmers around the world, including the [[United States Department of Agriculture]] to use as ground-based calibration for models determining soil moisture, as it may help to better understand [[crop yield]]s over wide regions.<ref name = "SD_080424152254">[https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080424152254.htm How Dry We Are: European Space Agency To Test Earth's Soil Moisture Via Satellite]-Science News, Science Daily</ref>

Ocean [[salinity]] is crucial to the understanding of the role of the ocean in climate through the global [[water cycle]].<ref>{{cite web|title=The water cycle and Global Warming|url=http://www.whoi.edu/sbl/liteSite.do?litesiteid=18912&articleId=35166|publisher=WHOI|access-date=6 December 2011}}</ref> Salinity in combination with temperature determine ocean circulation by defining its density and hence [[thermohaline circulation]].<ref>{{cite web|title=High-latitude salinity effects and interhemispheric thermohaline circulations|url=http://wind.mit.edu/~jscott/AMOC/bryan_86.pdf|access-date=6 December 2011}}</ref> Additionally, ocean salinity is one of the variables that regulate CO<sub>2</sub> uptake and release and therefore has an effect on the oceanic [[carbon cycle]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Carbon Cycle - NASA Science|url=https://science.nasa.gov/earth-science/oceanography/ocean-earth-system/ocean-carbon-cycle/}}</ref>
 
Information from SMOS is expected to help improve short and medium-term weather forecasts, and also have practical applications in areas such as agriculture and water resource management. In addition, climate models should benefit from having a more precise picture of the scale and speed of movement of water in the different components of the hydrological cycle.<ref name=bbc />

SMOS has been used to improve [[Tropical cyclone forecasting|hurricane forecasting]] by collecting hurricane surface-level wind speed data using its novel microwave imaging radiometer, which can penetrate the thick clouds surrounding a cyclone. Hurricanes that have been studied by SMOS include [[Hurricane Florence]], [[Typhoon Mangkhut]], and [[Typhoon Jebi (2018)|Typhoon Jebi]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.esa.int/Our_Activities/Observing_the_Earth/SMOS/SMOS_offers_new_perspective_on_hurricanes |title=SMOS offers new perspectives on hurricanes |publisher=[[ESA]] |date=25 September 2018 |access-date=12 March 2019}}</ref>

===Instrumentation===
The SMOS satellite carries a new type of instrument called [[Microwave Imaging Radiometer with Aperture Synthesis]] (MIRAS). Some eight metres across, it has the look of helicopter rotor blades; the instrument creates images of radiation emitted in the [[microwave]] [[L-band]] (1.4&nbsp;GHz). MIRAS will measure changes in the wetness of the land and in the salinity of seawater by observing variations in the natural microwave emission coming up off the surface of the planet.<ref name="IEEE Proceedings 2010-05-Font-Camps-Borges"/><ref name=bbc/><ref name = "EGU2008-A-01922"/>

===Operations and ground segment===
The [[CNES]] Satellite Operations [[ground segment|Ground Segment]] operates the spacecraft with telecommunications from ESA's [[S-band]] facility located in [[Kiruna]], [[Sweden]]. The Data Processing Ground Segment is located in [[European Space Astronomy Centre|ESAC]], [[Villanueva de la Cañada|Villafranca del Castillo]], Spain. Higher level processing of information is done by scientists globally.<ref name = "URSI-F-2005-Art_6.1"/>
{{further|Global Energy and Water Cycle Experiment}}

==See also==
{{Portal|Spaceflight}}
* ESA's [[Living Planet Programme]]
** [[GOCE]]
** [[CryoSat]] & [[CryoSat-2]]
** [[Swarm (spacecraft)|Swarm]]
** [[ADM-Aeolus]]
** [[EarthCARE]]
** [[BIOMASS]]
** [[FLEX (satellite)|FLEX]]
* [[Aquarius (SAC-D instrument)|Aquarius payload]] (NASA)
* [[Soil Moisture Active Passive]] satellite
* [[Proba-2]]

==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}

==External links==
* [http://www.esa.int/Our_Activities/Observing_the_Earth/SMOS ESA] – SMOS home page
* [https://earth.esa.int/eogateway/missions/smos SMOS on ESA Earth Online]
* [http://www.cesbio.ups-tlse.fr/us/indexsmos.html SMOS CESBIO page]
* [https://directory.eoportal.org/web/eoportal/satellite-missions/s/smos SMOS on eoPortal]
* [http://www.smos.zmaw.de/ SMOS Project Germany] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160714101904/http://www.smos.zmaw.de/ |date=2016-07-14 }}
* [http://www.smos.com.pt SMOS Processor Prototype Page] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170925173227/http://smos.com.pt/ |date=2017-09-25 }}
* [http://www.salinityremotesensing.ifremer.fr/ SMOS IFREMER Expert Centre]
* [http://www.smos-bec.icm.csic.es SMOS Barcelona Expert Centre]
*SMOS [https://uphere.space/satellites/36036 Real Time Tracking] - [https://uphere.space uphere.space]
{{European Space Agency}}
{{Orbital launches in 2009}}

{{Use British English|date=January 2014}}

[[Category:Earth observation satellites of the European Space Agency]]
[[Category:Environmental science]]
[[Category:Satellite meteorology]]
[[Category:Spacecraft launched by Rokot rockets]]
[[Category:Spacecraft launched in 2009]]