Teledyne Space Imaging CIS120 sensors launch on Japanese GOSAT-GW climate change observation mission

The Global Observing SATellite for Greenhouse gases and Water cycle (GOSAT-GW) launched on June 29 at 1:33am (JST) from the Tanegashima Space Center in Japan. This mission is a collaborative project between Japan's Ministry of the Environment (MOE), the National Institute for Environmental Studies (NIES), and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA).

The GOSAT-GW mission carries the two CIS120 sensors from Teledyne Space Imaging as part of its Total Anthropogenic and Natural emissions mapping SpectrOmeter-3 (TANSO-3). TANSO-3 has been designed to provide high-precision, wide-area monitoring of greenhouse gases in space to gauge their effects on climate change. TANSO-3 will specifically observe gases such as carbon dioxide, methane and nitrogen dioxide, while other parts of the satellite will gather data around the physical qualities of water, such as sea surface temperatures.

This will be the first satellite in the GOSAT series to include the CIS120 sensor. Imaging data gathered from this 2025 launch will be shared with other agencies and organisations for the betterment of human knowledge around climate change and greenhouse gases.