HU AIM Satellite Mission Extended

Dr. James Russell, principal investigator
of AIM and co-director of the HU Center
for Atmospheric Sciences.

Hampton, Va. –The Hampton University Aeronomy of Ice in the Mesosphere (AIM) satellite mission recently received a contract increase of $6.3 million to extend satellite mission operations until September 2014. AIM received a contract increase in 2009 to extend satellite operations through September 2012.

AIM, led by Dr. James Russell, principal investigator and co-director of the HU Center for Atmospheric Sciences, is the first satellite mission dedicated to the study of noctilucent (NLC) or "night-shining" clouds, which are also known as Polar Mesospheric clouds (PMCs). Theses clouds, that form 50 miles above the surface in polar summer, are called "night shining" because their high altitude allows them to continue reflecting sunlight after the sun has set below the horizon. AIM’s research has shown that the PMCs are brighter, appear more frequently and are extremely variable.

“The Hampton University researchers who are leading NASA satellite missions are continuing to make major discoveries and advancements,” said HU President Dr. William R. Harvey. “I applaud Dr. Russell and the AIM team for their continued research of global change in the atmosphere.”

AIM has provided a global-scale view of the clouds over six complete cloud seasons covering both poles and has documented for the first time the entire complex life cycle of NLCs. The satellite is providing an unprecedented horizontal resolution of 3 miles by 3 miles.

"Our knowledge of what causes noctilucent clouds to form and vary has significantly increased using data from the AIM mission,” stated Russell. "The measurements show that plunging temperatures at the beginning of the season and rapidly rising temperatures at the end control the season length that occurs from mid-May to mid-August in the northern hemisphere and mid-November to mid-February in the south.

“AIM data also show a remarkable global connection between hemispheres. Temperature changes in the winter hemisphere where there are no noctilucent clouds are indicators of cloud changes in the summer hemisphere 20,000 km away,” Russell said. “The new extended mission will allow AIM to operate through the next solar maximum that is projected to occur in mid-2013.”

The AIM satellite mission was recently ranked sixth out of 14 operating missions by the 2010 Heliophysics Mission Operations and Data Analysis Senior Review panel. The ranking was based on the scientific merit of the investigations.