National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Homeland Security

Efforts to protect our nation's internal security have redoubled since the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. The nation's air and water resources, physical infrastructure, and national borders could be particularly vulnerable to future attacks. Contamination and disruption of these national resources would have profound consequences for society. Thus, it is essential that proactive monitoring and forecasting efforts be implemented to minimize vulnerability in these areas.

For Homeland Security efforts to be most effective, collaboration between Federal agencies is essential. NASA collaborates with a number of other Federal partners, including the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), the National Imagery and Mapping Agency (NIMA), the Department of Defense (DoD), the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), and the U.S. Geological Society (USGS). NASA's measurements, observations, and modeling systems can provide data and information to Homeland Security networks run by DHS to support risk, vulnerability, and mitigation assessments.

Knowledge of Earth's water cycle is a critical first step in protecting our water supply. Water flows over the Earth's surface in oceans, lakes, and streams, and is particularly vulnerable to attack.

NASA sensors provide a wealth of information about the water cycle. The Advanced Microwave Scanning Radiometer for EOS (AMSR-E) on Aqua and the Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE) contribute to improving our ability to monitor water resources and water quality from space. In addition, the Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM) mission planned for later this decade should contribute a wealth of new information on precipitation.

We must also protect the quality and safety of the air we breathe. Airborne contaminants can pose danger to human health. Chemical, nuclear, radiological, and biological attacks are plausible threats. Although traditional air monitoring efforts have focused on in situ sampling and limited airborne monitoring, new technologies such as hyperspectral and ultra spectral sensors, cloud penetrating radar, and lidar show promise for improved monitoring. These technologies already flying on Aura, and also deployed on upcoming NASA missions such as CloudSAT, and Cloud-Aerosol Lidar and Infrared Pathfinder Satellite Observations (CALIPSO).

NASA's contribution to our knowledge of air and water supports improved decision making for natural resource management and emergency response, thus enabling us to better respond to future homeland security threats.