Explorer-7 Satellite Thermal Radiation Temperature Readings

Temperature readings from all five bolometers on the Explorer-7 satellite, measuring solar, reflected, and terrestrial radiation. The dataset covers the mission from October 19, 1959, to June 4, 1960, with data restored from original IBM 7094 magnetic tapes. Principal Investigator Verner E. Suomi from the University of Wisconsin led the experiment.

Use Cases

• Analyze time-series trends in bolometer temperature readings to study early observations of Earth's energy balance.
• Correlate temperature sensor data from the five bolometers to understand instrument performance and calibration.
• Use the mission's temporal coverage from 1959-1960 as a baseline for comparing historical and modern radiation data.

Strengths

• Contains the first set of Earth-looking thermal radiation data collected from space.
• Data covers a specific mission period from October 1959 to June 1960, with instrument operation until February 1961.

Limitations

• No geolocation information is included with the temperature readings.
• Data is stored in its original, legacy IBM 36-bit word binary format, requiring specialized tools for access.

Provenance

Source

GES DISC, originally from the NSSDC with identifier ESAD-00249.

Collection Method

Temperature measurements from five bolometers on the Explorer-7 satellite.

Time Range

October 19, 1959 to June 4, 1960 (instrument operational until February 28, 1961).

Freshness

Historical dataset; last data point from June 4, 1960.

Geography

Global coverage with a radius of approximately 2500 km at perigee and 3500 km at apogee.