NASA Administrator and a Wash100 award recipient Jim Bridenstine announced in December that the space agency’s GeoCarb Earth science hosted payload mission passed its confirmation review, SpaceNews reported Sunday.
The GeoCarb mission will help map the concentrations of the planet’s carbon dioxide, methane and carbon monoxide concentrations over South and North America. The review clears the mission for transition into Phase C development.
“The innovative GeoCarb measurements of CO2 and methane and its novel technology implementation hosted on a commercial spacecraft are a priority for me and NASA,” Bridenstine said.
Lockheed Martin is developing the instrument as a hosted payload on a communications satellite, which will operate in geostationary orbit. NASA will enter into an agreement with SES Government Solutions to launch GeoCarb.
