Thermal Infrared Spectrometers for the Polar Radiant Energy in the Far‐Infrared Experiment (PREFIRE)

Journal article

Plain Language Summary: Earth absorbs energy emitted by the Sun, radiating some of that as heat back into space. The energy exchange between Earth and space drives weather and climate. Scientists measure and track this energy using satellite instruments that can identify which parts of Earth's surface and atmosphere emit specific portions of the overall heat radiated into space. But these instruments are complicated and expensive, and until now, no one has built a sensor that can look at and separate all of Earth's heat emissions in a systematic way. The Polar Radiant Energy in the Far‐InfraRed Experiment (PREFIRE) has developed a novel instrument that combines simple, miniaturized heat sensors with specially shaped optics and microelectronics to provide such measurements to further our understanding of the planet's weather and climate. Furthermore, implementation of the sensors has been done within a cost‐capped mission profile that encourages development of a sustainable sensor system for Earth monitoring. This manuscript describes the instrument design, including its components and their characteristics, the system and its functionality, its trade‐offs, cost limitations, and testing and performance information. PREFIRE began operating two of these instruments in space in 2024, in order to start quantifying the heat exchange processes in Earth's polar regions.

Authors: Drouin, BJ; L’Ecuyer, T; Padmanabhan, S; Foote, M; Bendig, R

• Publication status: Published
• Peer review status: Peer reviewed
• Publisher: Wiley
• Journal: Earth and Space Science
• Volume: 12
• Issue: 10
• Article number: e2024EA003711
• Publication date: 2025-09-26
• Acceptance date: 2025-09-04
• DOI: 10.1029/2024ea003711
• EISSN: 2333-5084
• ISSN: 2333-5084
• Language: English
• Keywords: atmospheric greenhouse effect; far‐infrared spectrometry; polar heat balance; outgoing longwave radiation; far‐infrared remote sensing; surface emissitivity