MeznSat—A 3U CubeSat for Monitoring Greenhouse Gases Using Short Wave Infra-Red Spectrometry: Mission Concept and Analysis

Abstract

Climate change and global warming are attributed to the increased levels of greenhouse Gases in the atmosphere. Miniature low-cost, lightweight instruments on-board low-cost nanosatellite platforms such as CubeSats could be used to provide precise measurements of greenhouse gases levels. CubeSats, which usually have a narrow field of view, cost a fraction of what more expensive satellites with wide swaths cost. MeznSat is a 3U CubeSat that will carry a shortwave infrared (SWIR) micro-spectrometer as its primary payload, with the aim of deriving greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere by making observations in the 1000–1650 nm wavelength region. The satellite, which is planned for launch in March 2020, is the result of a collaborative project between Khalifa University of Science and Technology (KUST) and the American University of Ras Al-Khaimah (AURAK) with a fund from the United Arab Emirates Space Agency (UAE-SA). The primary payload, Argus 2000, is a miniature, low-cost, space-qualified spectrometer that operates in the shortwave infrared (SWIR) bands. Argus 2000 is a ruggedized unit with a mass of less than 230 g and power consumption of less than 1 W. Also, the Argus 2000 has 0.15 degrees viewing angle and 15 mm fore-optics. The secondary payload will consist of a high definition (HD) camera that will allow post-processing to achieve the high geolocation accuracy required for the SWIR spectrometer data. The RGB combination of visible and SWIR bands setup makes MeznSat a unique CubeSat mission that will generate an interesting dataset to explore atmospheric correction algorithms, which employ SWIR data to process visible channels. This paper describes the mission feasibility, mission analysis, design, and status of MeznSat.

CMOS Image Sensors in Surveillance System Applications

“…CubeSats [ 44 ] could be used to monitor the levels of greenhouse gases. Jallad et al [ 4 ] described the MeznSat, a 3U CubeSat which carries a shortwave infrared (SWIR) microspectrometer as its primary payload to detect the greenhouse gas levels in the atmosphere. The two familiar greenhouse gases that exist in the atmosphere are carbon dioxide and methane.…”

“…CIS is implemented in applications like HODET [ 1 ] in intelligent surveillance systems (ISS), Fish Eye [ 2 ] in the automotive field, KINECT-KII [ 3 ] in the internet of things (IoT), CUBESAT and MENZ SAT [ 4 ] in space, IPASS [ 5 ] in the military, TIGERCENCE [ 6 ] in wireless sensor networks (WSN), etc.…”

A Highly Modular Software Framework for Reducing Software Development Time of Nanosatellites

“…This section demonstrates the proposed software architecture applied to MeznSat; a CubeSat developed jointly by the American University of Ras Al Khaimah (AURAK) and Khalifa University (KU) [7]. MeznSat is a 3-unit (3U) Cube-Sat with exterior dimensions of 10cm × 10cm × 30cm and a mass of approximately 4 kg.…”

“…The paper begins by outlining the characteristics of existing frameworks and defines the most desired attributes of a flight architecture based on literature and experience. These attributes are described within the proposed architectural software design before their applications are demonstrated based on own experience in building MeznSat, a CubeSat for Greenhouse Gases Monitoring [7].…”

Remote sensing of submerged aquatic vegetation: an introduction and best practices review

“…Bands across the VIS to SWIR range may be placed to detect specific features such as the green peak, red edge, or reflectance features of valuable minerals (or other materials of interest). Short-wave IR bands can also be positioned to detect atmospheric greenhouse gas concentrations such as water vapour and carbon dioxide (Jallad et al 2019). Thermal bands may be chosen to record sea-surface temperatures (Byfield 2017).…”