BackForwardInstrument:  HYMS 

Instrument details
Acronym HYMS
Full name Hyperspectral Microwave Sounder
Purpose To provide low noise microwave radiances for NWP in a compact instrument aiming to reduce the cost of traditional MW sounders.
Short description A hyperspectral microwave radiometer centred on 6 spectral regions to sound the atmospheric temperature and water vapour profiles from 54 to 183 GHz. Details in table below. About each centre frequency the spectrum is sampled at high spectral resolution within the bandwidth specified.
Background This is a new development funded by UKSA and Spire.
Scanning Technique Cross-track +/- 49 deg
Resolution 24 km at 50 GHz 17 km at 183 GHz
Coverage / Cycle Global with 2 passes a day.
Mass 20 kg Power 100 W Data Rate

 

Providing Agency UKSA
Instrument Maturity Flown on an R&D satellite
Utilization Period: 2024 to 2027
Last update: 2023-04-17
Detailed characteristics
Frequency GHz Bandwidth MHz Footprint km at nadir NeDT (K)
54 156 24 0.28
54 64 24 0.43
54 32 24 0.61
54 12 24 1.00
89 3000 18 0.14
183 500 18 0.35
Satellites this instrument is flying on

Note: a red tag indicates satellites no longer operational, a green tag indicates operational satellites, a blue tag indicates future satellites

Instrument classification
  • Earth observation instrument
  • Passive microwave radiometer
  • Cross-track, special or non-scanning microwave radiometer
WIGOS Subcomponents
  • Subcomponent 3
  • Hyperspectral MW sensors
  • Hyperspectral MW radiometer
Mission objectives
Primary mission objectives
  • Atmospheric temperature
  • Specific humidity
Evaluation of Measurements