Welcome to the Center for Satellite Applications and Research (STAR)
The
Center for Satellite Applications and Research (STAR) is the science
arm of the NOAA Satellite and Information Service (NESDIS), which acquires and manages the nation's operational Earth-observing
satellites. NESDIS provides data from these satellites, and conducts research
to make that possible.
News Briefs
New NNVL GOES-East Imagery
The NOAA Visualization Lab has upgraded its webpage for real-time
GOES-East imagery.
JCSDA Seminar
Fuzhong Weng gave a seminar on ATMS
and SSMIS for
NWP Data Assimilation at JCSDA on Wednesday, June 20, 2012. Slides & audio.
VIIRS and Forest Fires
June 12, 2012 - The JPSS and NASA Active
Fire team at STAR and the University of Maryland, in
cooperation with NASA and the US Forest Service have
produced a fascinating set of preliminary views of recent forest fires.
STAR LSA Publishes
First Assessment of IceBridge Snow and Ice Data
May 21, 2012 - This study, led by Dr. Sinéad Farrell
and co-authored by Dr. Dave McAdoo and Dr. Larry Connor, shows the utility
of the suite of instruments carried by the NASA Operation
IceBridge Mission to determine Arctic snow and sea ice
thickness. Manuscript results were featured on the front cover of
the June 2012 IEEE Transactions on Geoscience and Remote Sensing.
See the full
article.
STAR News
June 15, 2012 -
The Center for Satellite Applications and Research is moving to a new
facility in August 2012. STAR's new home, the long-awaited NOAA Center
for Weather and Climate Prediction (NCWCP) is located in College Park,
MD. The NCWCP is a joint NOAA and General Services Administration (GSA)
project to replace and consolidate several NOAA leased facilities. The
new building will enhance NWS efforts to secure
delivery of critical weather forecasts, warning information and data to
the public, housing more than 800 NOAA employees, contractors, and
visiting scientists. Read
more.
May 30, 2012 - Catatumbo lightning is one of the
world's most frequent lightning displays, with thunderstorms forming
over the Catatumbo River in Venezuela an average of 160 nights per year.
The lightning displays last up to 9 hours, beginning shortly after dusk.
The lightning is nearly continuous and so vivid and reliable that it has
been called the "Lighthouse of Maracaibo" and was used by fisherman and
sailors as a navigation aid. Last month, when the moon was about 80%
full, Suomi NPP passed over Lake Maracaibo at night and, sure enough, a
thunderstorm was present right over the mouth of the Catatumbo River.
Curtis Seaman with the CIRA NPP VIIRS team captured this remarkable
image and explained the phenomenon behind it on the CIRA NPP blog. Read more.
May 2, 2012 - Last month 4 different STAR scientists
were honored for scientific excellence, government service and
leadership at the NOAA Bronze Medal Awards, held on May 1, 2012 at the
NOAA Auditorium in Silver Spring. At the same ceremony, Dr. Celso S. Barrientos was
also honored.
- Xiangqian "Fred" Wu - Honored for scientific engineering in developing
an international science algorithm to provide climate quality data
from geostationary weather satellites.
- Bob Kuligowski - Received his award for advancing satellite-based
real-time precipitation products to improve hydrologic monitoring and
forecasting globally.
- Mark DeMaria and John A. Knaff - Recognized along with John Kaplan (OAR)
for providing skillful operational hurricane intensity models as
demonstrated by the NHC forecast verifications for the 2009 and 2010
seasons.
- Celso S. Barrientos - Celso was posthumously awarded a
NOAA Distinguished Career Award for his 41 years of excellence in
scientific management, equal employment efforts, and community outreach at NOAA.
STAR congratulates these team members for their excellent work and for
contributing to STAR's support and enhancement of NOAA's mission. Read more.
Dept. of Commerce • NOAA • NESDIS • STAR • Last revised: July 3, 2012
