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An artist’s impression showing one of the Block 5D-2 spacecraft in orbit. Eight were launched between 1987 and 2003.

Rendering of lights on Earth's surface created using DMSP observations

The Defense Meteorological Satellite Program (DMSP) monitors meteorological, oceanographic, and solar-terrestrial physics for the United States Department of Defense. The program is now run by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. [1]

During the 1960s, one of most important projects the civil space program was involved in dealt with meteorology and weather forecasting. Unbeknownst to the majority of the country, the military services were also starting up a weather satellite program. This program, the Defense Meteorological Support Program (DMSP), would relay important weather and climate data to the warfighter for more effective military operations. From the onset of the DMSP program, knowledge of its existence was limited to 'need-to-know' personnel. Congress had assigned a substantial budget towards the civil weather satellite program; if knowledge of a second military program came out, it would have been hard for the military to justify it.

The primary purpose of the weather satellites was to reconnoiter an area before photographic surveillance satellites flew over. A lot of film could be wasted by taking pictures of clouds, so the weather satellites gave warning if clouds were over the target area about to be photographed. The satellites operated in a sun-synchronous orbit; passing over the north and south poles, the satellite would 'see' different strips of the Earth at the same local time each day. The DMSP satellites had periods of roughly 101 minutes, so they would orbit the Earth 14.3 times in 24 hours. This period combined with the sun-synchronous orbit would have the satellite pass over the whole surface of the planet twice a day.

The photos obtained were relayed to the Earth and received by two Command/Readout Stations established at retired Nike missile sites located near Fairchild Air Force Base, Washington and Loring Air Force Base, Maine. From these sites, the photos were sent to Air Force Global Weather Central (AFGWC) located at Offutt Air Force Base, Nebraska. These snapshots would then be pieced together, forming a mosaic representing the weather that was observed from the orbiting satellites. Meteorologists could then provide flight crews and other commanders with up-to-date observations for their particular missions. Further advancements enabled data to be collected in the visual spectrum down to a half-moonlit scene. Infrared processing enabled night viewing. Other enhancements increased onboard processing by including multiple onboard computers and expanded power requirements.

Now in its third decade of service, the DMSP has proven itself to be a valuable tool in scheduling and protecting military operations on land, at sea, and in the air. In December 1972, DMSP data was declassified and made available to the civil/scientific community. On 1st June 1998 the control and maintenance of the satellites were transfered to NOAA in order to reduce costs.

• http://dmsp.ngdc.noaa.gov/
• Air Force Fact Sheet
• The High Ground - DMSP

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