QuikTOMS

The QuikTOMS mission uses the Total Ozone Mapping Spectrometer Flight Model 5 (TOMS-5) instrument to map the daily levels of total column ozone in the Earth's atmosphere. QuikTOMS will follow in the footsteps of previous TOMS instrument based satellites like EarthProbe, Nimbus 7, Meteor 3, and ADEOS. Though origionally scheduled to fly aboard the Russian satellite, Meteor-3M(2), its mission was cancelled so NASA created a new mission for the TOMS-5. The continuous monitoring of global ozone is essential in being able to observe and detect the recovery of ozone levels as levels of chloroflourocarbons (CFCs) decrease. QuikTOMS is a secondary payload, it shares its delivery system (Taurus rocket) with the Orbview-4 mission. QuikTOMS uses Orbital's innovative MicroStar satellite platform which supports payloads up to 68 kg [150 lbs] and provides a three-to five-year mission life. The Microstar bus for the QuikTOMS mission is comprised of two rings stacked together vertically, a core ring, housing all primary spacecraft systems and a payload support module and the second ring carries four propulsion tanks and two solar arrays.The MicroStar platform was originally developed to support the ORBCOMM global communications system, which will provide real-time, mobile, two-way data and messaging communications services worldwide. The TOMS instrument records daily global measurements of the Ozone, Aerosols, Erythemal UV exposure, and Reflectivity.

Main Objectives:

• Determination of long term change in global total ozone level
• Understanding the processes related to the "ozone hole" formation and local anomalies in the equatorial region
• Improved understanding of processes that govern the generation, depletion, and distribution of global total ozone

Additional Objectives:

Check out where the QuikTOMS data will be.