BackForward Satellite: GCOM-W 

Satellite details
Acronym GCOM-W
Full name Global Change Observation Mission for Water
WIGOS Station Identifier ---
Satellite Description
  • 1st flight unit of the GCOM programme.  Japanese name:"Shizuku".
  • Main mission: ocean observation.
  • Substantial contribution to operational meteorology and hydrology.
Mass at launch 1991 kg Dry mass 1840 kg
Power 4050 W
Data access link https://gportal.jaxa.jp/gpr/?lang=en
Data access information
  • Data available at JAXA for the general user community.
  • Specific rapid delivery to NOAA for complementing the Suomi-NPP and JPSS data suite.
Orbit Sunsynchronous orbit Altitude 700 km
ECT 13:30 asc

 

Space agency JAXA
Status Operational
Details on Status
(as available)
Launch 17 May 2012 EOL ≥2024
Last update: 2023-12-11
Associated satellite programme and related satellites

Note: red tag: no longer operational , green tag: operational , blue tag : future

Satellite Payload

All known Instruments flying on GCOM-W

Acronym Full name
AMSR2 Advanced Microwave Scanning Radiometer - 2
Show instrument status and calibration
Satellite frequencies for Earth Observation, data transfer and platform communications and control
Earth observation MW frequencies
Service Sensing mode Frequency (GHz) Bandwidth (MHz) Polarisation Comments
AMSR2 passive 6.925 GHz 350 MHz H&V Window channel
AMSR2 passive 7.3 GHz 350 MHz H&V Window channel
AMSR2 passive 10.65 GHz 100 MHz H&V Window channel
AMSR2 passive 18.7 GHz 200 MHz H&V Window channel
AMSR2 passive 23.8 GHz 400 MHz H&V Water vapour channel
AMSR2 passive 36.5 GHz 1000 MHz H&V Window channel
AMSR2 passive 89 GHz 3000 MHz H&V Window channel