Foreward
Global climate change has become an urgent and important issue because of its
significant impact on our lives and the environment. In fact, to a great extent,
climate change is the bellwether of our environment and reflects our ability and
commitment to manage human activities in such a way as to support a sustainable
Earth environment for the benefit of present and future generations. A sustainable
future depends on our success in the race to develop far greater understanding of
climate change both natural and anthropogenic.
Changes in the north polar ice coverage, the number of wildfires, which is one
measure of the increasing frequency of severe weather events, and the ever growing
number of temperature records being broken annually attest to the fact that climate
change is real. Our understanding of climate change and its effects on the Earth and
its chain of life are directly dependent on our ability to observe all facets of Earth
systems, physical, chemical, and biological. Certainly in situ or Earth-based local
observations remain critical to understanding our planet, but only satellites can
provide complete coverage of the globe to allow scientists to monitor changes of the
Earth whether they occur in the tropics, over the oceans, within the continents, or in
the polar ice caps.
Satellite-based remote sensing measurements with their 24 Â 7 large data
streams are critical for understanding the complicated global changes of the Earth
system of systems. The environmental satellites operated by the National Oceanic
and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), National Aeronautics and Space
Administration (NASA), and our partner international space agencies have been
collecting information about the Earth’s atmosphere and environment for decades.
These satellite systems although relatively new and revolutionary in applications
to the Earth sciences have already led to enormous advances in our understanding
of the atmosphere, ocean, and land cover, as well as the significant improvement of
weather and climate forecasts in the past several decades. Satellite observations are
proving to be essential for global climate change study because they provide the
global, regional, and local context about how change in one area of the planet is
related to change in another region. This information helps scientists determine the
v
Global climate change has become an urgent and important issue because of its
significant impact on our lives and the environment. In fact, to a great extent,
climate change is the bellwether of our environment and reflects our ability and
commitment to manage human activities in such a way as to support a sustainable
Earth environment for the benefit of present and future generations. A sustainable
future depends on our success in the race to develop far greater understanding of
climate change both natural and anthropogenic.
Changes in the north polar ice coverage, the number of wildfires, which is one
measure of the increasing frequency of severe weather events, and the ever growing
number of temperature records being broken annually attest to the fact that climate
change is real. Our understanding of climate change and its effects on the Earth and
its chain of life are directly dependent on our ability to observe all facets of Earth
systems, physical, chemical, and biological. Certainly in situ or Earth-based local
observations remain critical to understanding our planet, but only satellites can
provide complete coverage of the globe to allow scientists to monitor changes of the
Earth whether they occur in the tropics, over the oceans, within the continents, or in
the polar ice caps.
Satellite-based remote sensing measurements with their 24 Â 7 large data
streams are critical for understanding the complicated global changes of the Earth
system of systems. The environmental satellites operated by the National Oceanic
and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), National Aeronautics and Space
Administration (NASA), and our partner international space agencies have been
collecting information about the Earth’s atmosphere and environment for decades.
These satellite systems although relatively new and revolutionary in applications
to the Earth sciences have already led to enormous advances in our understanding
of the atmosphere, ocean, and land cover, as well as the significant improvement of
weather and climate forecasts in the past several decades. Satellite observations are
proving to be essential for global climate change study because they provide the
global, regional, and local context about how change in one area of the planet is
related to change in another region. This information helps scientists determine the
v