IAVWOPSG/3-WP/23
International Civil Aviation Organization
5/02/07
WORKING PAPER
INTERNATIONAL AIRWAYS VOLCANO WATCH OPERATIONS GROUP
(IAVWOPSG)
THIRD MEETING
Bangkok, Thailand, 19 to 23 March 2007
Agenda Item 6: Development of the IAVW
6.1: Monitoring of the development of future satellite sensors and other systems to
improve detection of volcanic eruptions and VA clouds
DEVELOPMENTS IN THE USE OF SATELLITE SENSORS FOR THE
DETECTION OF VOLCANIC CLOUDS
(Presented by France, the United States and the United Kingdom)
SUMMARY
The National Aeronautical and Space Administration of the United States and the
European Space Agency are funding projects to develop near-real-time satellite-data
products for use by Volcanic Ash Advisory Centers and Volcano Observatories.
These projects involve new and existing sensors that were designed primarily to
detect ozone and related atmospheric gases but also are being used to improve the
detection of volcanic gas and ash clouds.
1.
INTRODUCTION
1.1
The National Aeronautical and Space Administration (NASA) of the United States and
the European Space Agency (ESA) have recognized the importance of using satellite data to identify
volcanic ash and gas clouds, and both agencies are funding projects to develop near-real-time (NRT) data
products for use by Volcanic Ash Advisory Centers (VAAC) and Volcano Observatories (VO). A key
aspect of these projects, which use SO2 as a unique marker of volcanic clouds, is to improve the
reliability of operational systems for aviation users.
1.2
The NASA Applied Sciences Program has funded a 3-year project, led by scientists at the
University of Maryland/Baltimore County, to provide volcanic-cloud data from instruments on NASA
polar-orbiting satellites. The other partnering agencies on the project are NASA Goddard Space Flight
Center, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the U.S. Geological Survey, the
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National Center for Atmospheric Research, and the Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute (KNMI).
The project’s objective is to develop systems to produce near-real-time (NRT) observations (i.e., within
3 hours of the time of the satellite overpass) of sulphur dioxide (SO2) and ash from the Ozone Monitoring
Instrument (OMI, supplied by the KNMI) and the Atmospheric Infrared Sounder (AIRS), for use by
VAAC and VO. The NOAA National Environmental Satellite Data and Information Service (of which
the Washington VAAC is part) will serve as the central distribution point for the OMI and AIRS data
products. The products under development include mapped images of SO2 and ash clouds in various file
formats specified by the users, automatically generated and disseminated alerts to VAAC and VO when
any volcanic emissions are detected by the OMI and AIRS algorithms, and a public web site with access
to files containing recent mapped SO2 data and images globally.
1.3
Within the framework of the Global Monitoring of the Environment and Security
(GMES) initiative, ESA currently is developing operational atmospheric services to end-users
(http://www.gse-promote.org), including Support to Aviation Control Service (SACS). The objective of
SACS is to deliver NRT SO2 and aerosol data products from the SCIAMACHY, GOME, OMI, and,
eventually, GOME-2 instruments, for use by the aviation sector. SACS is being developed by the Belgian
Institute for Space Aeronomy, in collaboration with the German Space Agency (DLR), the Dutch
Meteorological Office (KNMI) and NASA (on OMI data provision). The project end-users, the Toulouse
and London VAAC, are actively involved in the project in order to optimize the service and to provide the
best information possible to aviation companies. ESA has also issued a request for proposals for its
GLOBVOLCANO project (Data User Element at http://dup.esrin.esa.it/) to provide other volcanic hazard
data to VO and civil protection agencies. The GLOBVOLCANO components are: deformation mapping
by synthetic aperture radar, surface thermal anomalies, optical and infrared characteristics of plumes and
eruption clouds, and post-crisis damage mapping. SACS and GLOBVOLCANO are complementary
services and together will provide a range of satellite data to characterize volcanic activity.
2.
DISCUSSION
2.1
The satellite-based instruments used in the projects described in this paper initially were
developed to monitor ozone and related atmospheric gases. Nevertheless, their utility for identifying
volcanic clouds is now widely recognized and important technology-transfer projects are underway. ESA
and NASA are actively coordinating their efforts to provide global hazard information to aviation users;
for example, scientists – both data providers and data users – that are involved in the NASA and ESA
projects met in Brussels, Belgium, in October 2006 to share ideas and methods for NRT data processing
and distribution.
2.2
Of particular interest is the OMI sensor, developed by the KNMI and launched by NASA
on its polar-orbiting Aura satellite in 2004 to replace the aging TOMS sensor that has been used
successfully for decades to detect ozone and volcanic SO2 clouds. OMI, which is producing data in a
preliminary mode, has very high sensitivity and resolution and has demonstrated the capability to detect
pre-eruptive degassing of volcanoes in Alaska and Indonesia. This capability will help VO and VAAC
detect eruptive activity in a more timely and accurate manner, especially at volcanoes with no groundbased monitoring.
2.3
Some limitations of satellite sensors for detecting volcanic clouds and related volcanic
activity should be kept in mind. Sensors operating in the ultraviolet and infrared spectra, such as those to
detect SO2 and ash, cannot “see through” meteorological clouds. Also, ultraviolet sensors such as, OMI,
GOME, and SCIAMACHY must have sunlight to operate; moreover, the polar-orbiting satellites on
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which these sensors reside pass over a point on the Earth’s surface only once per orbit and take up to 3
hours to download their data to ground receiving stations. Nevertheless, even with these inherent
limitations, the ESA and NASA projects will provide highly useful data that can be incorporated with
other monitoring data streams to help mitigate the ash threat to aviation.
2.4
conclusion:
In accordance with the discussion above the group may wish to formulate the following
Conclusion 3/.. — Development of satellite sensors to detect
volcanic clouds
That, the World Meteorological Organization and the International
Union of Geodesy and Geophysics, based on the progress of the ESA
and NASA projects, be invited to provide a report on the utility of these
capabilities to support operations in the VAAC and VO for the issuance
of a VAA, VAG, and the proposed VANA.
3.
3.1
ACTION BY THE IAVWOPSG
The IAVWOPSG is invited to:
a) note the information in this paper; and
b) decide on the draft conclusion proposed for the group’s consideration.
— END —