Changing of the Guard for Total Solar Irradiance
Abstract
The Total Irradiance Monitor (TIM) on the SORCE mission established an accuracy of total solar irradiance (TSI) measurements that was about ten times better than previous instruments achieved. The instrument also demonstrated improvements in inherent stability, being four to twenty times better than other spacecraft instruments. Both of these achievements are due to an improved design over prior such instruments. The SORCE/TIM continued on to achieve several other notable accomplishments, including the first detection of a solar flare in TSI, measuring the largest short-term solar-irradiance decrease recorded during the spacecraft era, and observing six planetary transits. Its primary accomplishment, however, may be contributing one of the longest-duration time series of the TSI to the critical solar-climate data record, being 17 years (and one day) long (shown in red in the figure).
The fourth successor to this innovative and stalwart instrument has now been built and launched. The TSIS-1/TIM began regular measurements in early 2018, providing two years of overlap with the SORCE/TIM before the latter was decommissioned in Feb. 2020. The TSIS-1/TIM has improved accuracies over those of even the SORCE/TIM, and is currently the only TSI instrument providing publicly-available data to maintain the 42-year-long spaceborne TSI measurement record.- Publication:
-
AGU Fall Meeting Abstracts
- Pub Date:
- December 2020
- Bibcode:
- 2020AGUFMA237...05K
- Keywords:
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- 3305 Climate change and variability;
- ATMOSPHERIC PROCESSES;
- 3359 Radiative processes;
- ATMOSPHERIC PROCESSES;
- 7536 Solar activity cycle;
- SOLAR PHYSICS;
- ASTROPHYSICS;
- AND ASTRONOMY;
- 7538 Solar irradiance;
- SOLAR PHYSICS;
- ASTROPHYSICS;
- AND ASTRONOMY