1999 EOS Science Plan (Revised)

The Earth Observing System (EOS) Science Plan is the product of leading scientists around the world who are participating in NASA's EOS program. The purpose of the 1999 Plan was to state the concerns and problems facing Earth Science at that time, and to indicate contributions that would be made toward providing solutions to those problems, primarily through the use of satellite-based observations obtained with EOS satellites and instruments.

Within this publication, the reader will find types and quality of data expected to be produced from the satellite observations from 1999 forward, how they were expected to improve over existing measurements, and how the data would be applied to solving the problems described. Seven "topical" chapters discuss the nature of the science being reviewed: radiation, clouds, water vapor, precipitation, and atmospheric circulation; ocean circulation, productivity, and exchange with the atmosphere; greenhouse gases and atmospheric chemistry; land ecosystems and hydrology; cryospheric systems; ozone and stratospheric chemistry; and volcanoes and climate effects of aerosols. In addition to the topical chapters, there is a chapter that broadly defines the scope of EOS science.

All 7 topical chapters and the chapter summaries are provided in Adobe Acrobat Portable Document Format (PDF). Information about the Adobe Acrobat PDF reader and how to download a FREE copy is available from Adobe. To properly view these documents you will need Adobe Acrobat Reader.

Executive Summary of Topical Chapters

Preface - Guide to this Plan

Chapter 1 - Overview

Chapter 2 - Radiation, Clouds, Water Vapor, Precipitation, and Atmospheric Circulation (Hartmann)

Chapter 3 - Ocean Circulation, Productivity, and Exchange with the Atmosphere (Rothrock)

Chapter 4 - Atmospheric Chemistry and Greenhouse Gases (Schimel)

Chapter 5 - Land Ecosystems and Hydrology (Running, Collatz, Washburne, Sorooshian)

Chapter 6 - Cryospheric Systems (Goodison, Brown, Crane)

Chapter 7 - Ozone and Stratospheric Chemistry (Schoeberl)

Chapter 8 - Volcanoes, Aerosols, and Climate Change (Hartmann, Mouginis-Mark)

EOS Science Plan Acronyms and Index

Complete Science Plan (5.9mb file)