The IEEE Geoscience and Remote Sensing Society Chapter in Los Angeles presents a special lecture event on SMAP!

The Soil Moisture Active Passive (SMAP) Mission: First Out of the Gate for NASA’s Decadal Survey

Dr. Michael Spencer
Jet Propulsion Laboratory

Wednesday, March 18, 2015 
5:30–7:30 PM

Buwalda Room/Sharp Lecture Hall
151 Arms Laboratory
Caltech Campus, Pasadena, California

Abstract: The Soil Moisture Active Passive (SMAP) observatory was launched into orbit on January 31, 2015. This mission combines a passive radiometer and an active radar, both operating at L-Band, to measure global soil moisture at high spatial and temporal resolutions. A unique feature of the instrument is the large rotating mesh antenna, the first use of such technology for a remote sensing application. This talk will cover the SMAP soil moisture measurement approach and system design, technical innovations associated with the mission, developmental difficulties encountered and overcome, and, to the extent that they are available, early mission results.

About the Speaker: Michael Spencer received the B.S. degree in physics from the College of William and Mary, the M.S. degree in electrical engineering from the University of Southern California, and the Ph.D. degree in Electrical and Computer Engineering from Brigham Young University. He also holds an M.S. degree in planetary science from The California Institute of Technology.  He joined JPL in 1990 and has worked as a systems engineer on a variety of spaceborne radar projects.  He is currently the deputy manager of JPL’s Radar Science and Engineering Section.

See the event flier for more details.