In January 2007, the decadal survey for Earth Science and Applications from Space: National Imperatives for the Next Decade and Beyond was completed.
15 missions were identified for launch in the 2007 to 2016 timeframe. Only 1 of the 15 has been launched, the Soil Moisture Active-Passive (SMAP) satellite.
A 2nd is actively collecting data, but using pre-existing hardware launched by Taiwan, the GPS Radio Occultation (GPSRO) experiment.
A 3rd is still on target for launch in 2017, ICESAT-II.
Technology demonstrators for two others have been flown, one on the ISS and one on balloon.
For the other 10 missions no hardware and has been built and the mission has either been cancelled, abandoned, or is still in the concept discussion phase. Details below.
AEROSOL-CLOUD-ECOSYSTEMS (ACE)
Launch: 2013-2016 Mission Size: Large
Status – split up and delayed until at least 2020. The Cloud-Aerosol Transport System (CATS) using atmospheric lidar was deployed on the International Space Sation in Jan 2015. What is left of ACE, “ACE-C” where C stands for Core, is up for approval for then next 2017 decadal plan.
CLIMATE ABSOLUTE RADIANCE AND REFRACTIVITY OBSERVATORY (CLARREO)
Launch: 2010-2013 Mission Size: Small
Status – delayed or cancelled until after 2020. In 2016, the CLARREO project received funding for a CLARREO Pathfinder
mission to demonstrate essential measurement technologies required for the full CLARREO mission. One instrument, a Reflected Solar spectrometer, will be hosted on the International Space Station (ISS) in the 2020 time frame.
DEFORMATION, ECOSYSTEM STRUCTURE, AND DYNAMICS OF ICE (DESDynI)
Launch: 2010-2013 Mission Size: Large
Status: eliminated in 2012.
EXTENDED OCEAN VECTOR WINDS MISSION (XOVWM)
Launch: 2013-2016 Mission Size: Medium
Status: Appears to be extinct, last heard from in 2010.
GEOSTATIONARY COASTAL AND AIR POLLUTION EVENTS (GEO-CAPE)
Launch: 2013-2016 Mission Size: Medium
Status: Delayed until “the 2020 time frame”.
GLOBAL ATMOSPHERIC COMPOSITION MISSION (GACM)
Launch: 2016-2020 Mission Size: Large
Status: Remains as a concept only for the “future”.
GRAVITY RECOVERY AND CLIMATE EXPERIMENT II (GRACE-II)
Launch: 2016-2020 Mission Size: Medium
Science: “Changes in aquifers and deep-ocean currents. Ice sheet mass, volume, and distribution. Changes in Earth’s mass
distribution due to dynamic processes”
Status: Earliest possible launch 2030, hasn’t progressed beyond the “concept” stage.
HYPERSPECTRAL INFRARED IMAGER (HYSPIRI)
Launch: 2013-2016 Mission Size: Medium
Status: Still under active discussion. No hardware. There is a proposal to launch a technology demonstrator to the ISS, but
no proposed launch date for either the spacecraft or technology demonstrator exists.
ICESAT-II
Launch: 2010-2013 Mission Size: Medium
Status: Some hardware built. Scheduled for launch in 2017.
LIDAR SURFACE TOPOGRAPHY (LIST)
Launch: 2016-2020 Mission Size: Medium
Science: “Global high-resolution topography. Detection of active faults. Global shifts in vegetation patterns and forest stand structure”
Status: Remains as a concept only for the “future”.
OPERATIONAL GPS RADIO OCCULTATION (GPSRO)
Launch: 2010-2012 Mission Size: Small
Status: Not a separate mission any more. Instead, the work has been carried out since the year 2006 by the joint Taiwan-U.S. GPS system called COSMIC/FORMOSAT-3.
PRECIPITATION AND ALL-WEATHER TEMPERATURE AND HUMIDITY (PATH)
Launch: 2016-2020 Mission Size: Medium
Status: Remains as a concept only for the “future”.
SNOW AND COLD LAND PROCESSES (SCLP)
Launch: 2016-2020 Mission Size: Medium
Status: Remains as a concept only for the “future”.
SOIL MOISTURE ACTIVE-PASSIVE (SMAP)
Launch: 2010-2013 Mission Size: Medium
Science: “Soil freeze-thaw state. Effect of soil moisture on vegetation”
Status: Launched in Jan 2015. Still actively collecting data.
SURFACE WATER AND OCEAN TOPOGRAPHY (SWOT)
Launch: 2013-2016 Mission Size: Medium
Status: Still under active discussion. A balloon flight Feb 2016 tested the Lidar operation. Problems are to be discussed with NASA in 2017. No proposed launch date, but the date 2023 has been mentioned.
THREE-DIMENSIONAL TROPOSPHERIC WINDS FROM SPACE-BASED LIDAR (3D-Winds)
Launch: 2016-2020 Mission Size: Large
Status: Remains as a concept only. Earliest possible launch date is 2023.