Doppler Scanning Gas Filters (DSGF): A passive sensor solution to global observation of upper atmosphere dynamics

This proposed effort will establish the ability to observe global upper atmosphere dynamics at the vertical and horizontal resolutions required to dramatically advance weather forecasts and predict upper atmosphere turbulence. We will show this can be accomplished with simple static thermal DSGF imagers looking in both the limb and nadir. The limb measurements, with a sensor called the Doppler Wind and Temperature Sounder (DWTS), provide global wind and temperature fields from 20 to 200km. An effort to demonstrate DWTS, funded by NASA, is already underway with a flight planned for 2021. However, the DWTS data will dramatically advance high altitude wind and temperature observations, but will not fully resolve the thermal wave fields that carry the energy and momentum from lower to upper atmosphere that also carries weather information and triggers turbulence. To achieve those observations, DWTS technology must be extended to include nadir thermal observations with DSGF sensors called High-Altitude Temperature Sounders (HATS). By augmenting DWTS data with HATS data, a complete dynamical state can be observed that will advance our dynamics understanding, improve weather forecasting, and enable high altitude turbulence forecasting (a serious need for reliable operation of hypersonic aircraft and distant communications). This study will provide a