--Andrew Yee (ayee@nova.astro.utoronto.ca), University of Toronto
A multimillion-dollar scientific instrument that will measure pollution in the Earth's troposphere during a collaborative Canadian, Japanese, and National Aeronautics and Space Administration mission will be rigorously tested at the University of Toronto. The testing will take place at a physics laboratory from April 15 to May 31.
The Canadian-built Measurements of Pollution in the Troposphere (MOPITT) instrument will be subjected to conditions similar to those it may find in space once it flies on board the first polar platform of NASA's Earth Observing System, to be launched in June 1998. In space, MOPITT will gauge the amount of carbon monoxide and methane over the entire globe for a period of five years as part of the Mission to Planet Earth program.
"MOPITT is part of a very significant international project," says Professor Drummond of the Department of Physics and the project's principal investigator.
"Canada and the Canadian Space Agency are contributing the instrument as part of the country's commitment to monitor the planet. We are testing it at U of T because we have built up a unique capability for testing and calibrating this type of instrumentation in a realistic environment."
The amount of carbon monoxide and methane is increasing at rates that scientists do not fully understand. Measuring these gases will help scientists better comprehend how the troposphere reacts to stimuli from Earth. These range from natural occurrences such as the growth of forests to catastrophic events like forest fires and human-induced phenomena such as agricultural emissions and combustion of fossil fuels for vehicles.
MOPITT was built by a consortium of Canadian companies led by COMDEV of Cambridge, Ont., BOMEM of Quebec City, Hughes-Leitz of Midland, Ont., and SED Systems of Saskatoon and is funded by the Canadian Space Agency's Space Science Program.
For information, contact:
Professor James Drummond, Department of Physics
(416) 978-4723
e-mail: jim@atmosp.physics.utoronto.ca
Suzanne Soto, U of T Public Affairs
(416) 978-6974
email: suzannes@dur.utoronto.ca