The looming demise of three NASA satellites has scientists bracing for the loss of climate and atmospheric data — especially since there are no plans to replace some of the specialized instruments aboard the Earth-observing probes.
The dying missions — known as the Terra, Aqua and Aura satellites — have been a source of scientific concern for years. Launched one after the other between 1999 and 2004, NASA researchers have always known they had built-in expiration dates. Most instruments don’t work properly forever, and the satellites themselves are running out of fuel, meaning they’re gradually drifting out of their intended orbits.
All three could go dark within the next year. And some of the instruments they carry have no immediate replacements, meaning certain long-term datasets are poised to discontinue. These include climate and environmental measurements, from changes in the Earth’s ozone layer to the solar radiation that warms the planet.
That’s a big concern for climate scientists, who use these observations to track the ways the Earth is responding to greenhouse gas emissions. These measurements have grown increasingly important over the last two decades, as the planet’s temperatures have climbed skyward.
