MIGHTI: ICON Satellite Thermospheric Wind Vectors from Doppler Spectroscopy

The MIGHTI instrument on the ICON satellite measures horizontal wind vectors in Earth's thermosphere. It uses two perpendicular fields of view (MIGHTI A and B) to observe Doppler shifts in atomic oxygen emissions at 630.0 nm and 557.7 nm wavelengths, combined with temperature measurements from the molecular oxygen A-band around 762 nm. Data is collected by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, with metadata last updated in March 2026.

Use Cases

• Modeling thermospheric wind patterns based on Doppler shift measurements of atomic oxygen lines.
• Analyzing temperature variations in the upper atmosphere based on spectral shape measurements of the molecular oxygen A-band.
• Validating and improving global circulation models using horizontal wind vector data derived from two perpendicular satellite views.
• Studying space weather effects on the thermosphere by correlating wind data with other geophysical events.

Strengths

• Data is derived from a sophisticated instrument employing Doppler Asymmetric Spatial Heterodyne (DASH) spectrometers.
• Wind vectors are determined by combining measurements from two perpendicular fields of view (MIGHTI A and B) separated by 90 degrees.
• Simultaneous measurement of multiple atmospheric emission lines (red, green, and A-band) on a single cooled CCD detector.

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Row count and dataset size are unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.

Provenance

Source

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Collection Method

Satellite remote sensing via the MIGHTI instrument on the ICON spacecraft.

Time Range

null

Freshness

Last updated 2026-03 13 06:55:03.402125; freshness should be verified.

Geography

Global coverage from satellite orbit.