[...]... vary diurnally, intraseasonally, seasonally, and annually? 2 What is the role of latent heat released in the tropics in both tropical and extratropical circulation? 3 What is the monthly average rainfall over tropical ocean areas of about 105 km2 and how does this rain and its variability affect the structure and circulation of the tropical oceans? 4 What is the relationship between precipitation and. .. of PR and TMI data for enhancing near-real-time rainfall products** • Another year of lightning data for air traffic advisories* • Realizing the potential to use PR as a global rainfall reference standard* OPERATIONS • Technology demonstration of the endurance of the first precipitation radar inspace* • Improved forecasts from the operational assimilation of PR and TMI data into weather and climate prediction... satellite radar and radiometer combination—PR, TMI, and VIRS—was designed to obtain high-quality vertical precipitation profiles as well as surface rainfall estimates TRMM’s rainfall- rate observations from the combined radar and passive microwave instruments—PR and TMI—calibrate the empirical rain estimates from the visible and infrared radiometer VIRS therefore allows comparison with and calibration of the. .. broader community outside of NASA and JAXA, 2 the new and unique nature of the PR data and the learning required to exploit them, 3 the perceived experimental nature and finite lifetime of the PR, and 4 the lack of sophistication in the representation of cloud and precipitation physics in current operational forecast models and global climate models such that they cannot yet take advantage of the native... goals and produced a greater than expected range of scientific results in 1 climate and weather research (e.g., a reliable seven-year climatology of the mean annual tropical rainfall and its interannual and diurnal cycles; fundamental new information on the synoptic climatology of tropical weather systems, e.g., the first detailed precipitation and latent heating profiles throughout the tropics and subtropics,... reentry because of the operational and scientific benefits of doing so THE ROLE OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMIES In August 2004 NASA Administrator Sean O’Keefe requested that the National Academies provide advice on the anticipated scientific and operational contributions from extending TRMM beyond 2004 The charge to the Committee on the Future of the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission in the first phase of its... INTRODUCTION The Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) case exemplifies a broader challenge faced by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and other federal agencies that operate research satellites and sensors that work superbly past completion of their primary scientific mission and hold impressive possibilities for both scientific and operational advances.1 Extending TRMM is also part... Internationally the data are used operationally by entities such as JAXA, the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts, and the World Meteorological Organization tropical cyclone warning centers In July 2004 NASA announced that it would finally terminate TRMM in August 2004 At the request of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), and with additional urging from others in the. .. Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), in cooperation with the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), launched the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) in 1997 Designed as a minimum threeyear mission with the goal of five years duration, TRMM has been collecting data for seven years, in large part due to the reliability of its sensors and the high quality of their measurements Although initially... http://dels.nas.edu/basc/trmm INTRODUCTION 13 HISTORY OF THE TROPICAL RAINFALL MEASURING MISSION The TRMM was motivated by recognition of the fundamental importance of precipitation in Earth’s climate system, the inadequate network of surface precipitation measurements over much of Earth, and recognition of the crucial role of tropical rainfall in global climate dynamics and the global hydrologic cycle The . on Earth and Life Studies ASSESSMENT OF THE BENEFITS OF EXTENDING THE TROPICAL RAINFALL MEASURING MISSION A PERSPECTIVE FROM THE RESEARCH AND OPERATIONS. Aeronautics and Space Adminis- tration (NASA) and focused on the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM). The second phase was sponsored by the National Oceanic