Extreme Temperature

The image shows the heat emanating from Death Valley on 30 June 2013. The measurement is surface temperature as measured by the Thermal Infrared Sensor on the Landsat 8 satellite. The accompanying natural color view from the Operational Land Imager on Landsat 8 shows that the cooler areas are either higher in elevation or covered with plants. Image: NASA.

Definition

A general term for temperature variations above (extreme heat) or below (extreme cold) normal conditions (IRDR Glossary).

Since climate varies regionally, the definition of an extreme temperature and its threshold will differ from location to location. In other words, an extreme value in one location may be within the normal range in a different location (WMO).

A simple method is to establish a specific threshold for temperature and extreme precipitation events and evaluate the extremes that occur over (or under) that given threshold. Another common mean of ascertaining thresholds is based on selecting the tail of distributions for temperature and precipitation.Statistical partitions such as by quartiles or percentiles of the distribution have provided a means for evaluating extremes (WMO).

Facts and figures

Heat waves

A period of marked unusual hot weather (maximum, minimum and daily average temperature) over a region persisting at least three consecutive days during the warm period of the year based on local (station-based) climatological conditions, with thermal conditions recorded above given thresholds. Heat waves differ from warm spells. Similar to heat waves, warm spells are defined as a persistent period of abnormal warm weather. A warm spell occurs at any time of the year, whereas heat waves can only occur in the warm season (WMO).

Cold waves

A period of marked and unusual cold weather characterized by a sharp and significant drop of air temperatures near the surface (maximum, minimum and daily average) over a large area and persisting below certain thresholds for at least two consecutive days during the cold season. “Cool spell” refers to persistently below-average temperature conditions occurring during the warm season (WMO).

Further information

GISS Surface Temperature Analysis (GISTEMP v3)
IPCC report on Managing the Risks of Extreme Events and Disasters to Advance Climate Change Adaptation
WMO Guidelines on the Definition and Monitoring of Extreme Weather and Climate Events

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SAM Satellite

Terra

Terra explores the connections between Earth's atmosphere, land, snow and ice, ocean, and energy balance to understand Earth's climate and climate change and to map the impact of human activity and natural disasters on communities and ecosystems. It was launched on 18 December 1999 and has far exceeded its design life, having a strong chance of operating successfullty into the early 2020s.
Terra is in a circular sun-synchronous polar orbit that takes it from north to south (on the daylight side of the Earth) every 99 minutes.

On October 6, 2018 Terra completed 100,000 orbits around Earth.

Approximately the size of a small school bus, the Terra satellite carries five instruments that take coincident measurements of the Earth system.

Instruments:
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Launch date:
18/12/1999
Landsat 7

The government-owned Landsat 7 was successfully launched on April 15, 1999, from the Western Test Range of Vandenberg Air Force Base, California, on a Delta-II expendable launch vehicle. The Earth observing instrument on Landsat 7, the Enhanced Thematic Mapper Plus (ETM+), replicates the capabilities of the highly successful Thematic Mapper instruments on Landsats 4 and 5.
Landsat 7 is the most accurately calibrated Earth-observing satellite, i.e., its measurements are extremely accurate when compared to the same measurements made on the ground.  Landsat 7’s sensor has been called “the most stable, best characterized Earth observation instrument ever placed in orbit.”  Landsat 7’s rigorous calibration standards have made it the validation choice for many coarse-resolution sensors.
Considered a calibration-triumph, the Landsat 7 mission went flawlessly until May 2003 when a hardware component failure left wedge-shaped spaces of missing data on either side of... read more

Launch date:
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NOAA-15

NOAA-15 (designated NOAA-K before launch) is one of the NASA-provided TIROS series of weather forecasting satellite run by NOAA. It was launched on May 13, 1998, and is currently operational, in a sun-synchronous orbit, 807 km above the Earth, orbiting every 101 minutes. It hosts the AMSU-A and AMSU-B instruments, the AVHRR and High Resolution Infrared Radiation Sounder (HIRS/3) instruments, as well as a Space Environment Monitor (SEM/2).

Instruments:
AMSU-A (Advanced Microwave Sounding Unit - A)
AMSU-B (Advanced Microwave Sounding Unit - B)
AVHRR/3 (Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer/3)
HIRS/3 (High Resolution Infra Red Sounder/3)
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SEM/TED (SEM/Total Energy Detector)

Launch date:
13/05/1998

Advisory Support

Remote technical advisory support to Mongolia
Mission dates: 01/07/2020

Noticias

UNOOSA and NASA sign landmark Memorandum of Understanding to advance peaceful uses of outer space

The United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs (UNOOSA) and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration of the United States Government (NASA) signed a landmark Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on 17 December 2020 pledging cooperation in areas of science and technology to support the peaceful uses of outer space.

The MoU brings together NASA's wealth of open-source spacecraft data, tools, and expertise and UNOOSA's unique position as the only UN entity dedicated to outer space affairs, to expand global opportunities to leverage the benefits of space. The partners will design capacity-building programmes, particularly for institutions in countries that do not yet have or that are developing space capabilities, to help them access space.

Together, UNOOSA and NASA will develop ways to leverage the Artemis programme as part of UNOOSA's Access to Space 4 All Initiative, which offers opportunities for international researchers and institutions, especially in... read more

Publishing date: 11/01/2021
Mexico and Argentina align satellite networks to resolve regional challenges
Snapshot of the SIRIS platform in action. Image: Mexican Space Agency (AEM)

In collaboration with the National Commission for Space Activities (CONAE) of Argentina, the Mexican Space Agency (AEM) recently launched a digital platform to improve the integration of satellite data for environmental monitoring in Latin America. The Comprehensive Regional Satellite Information System (SIRIS) provides access to satellite information in order to enhance decision-making and facilitate disaster management.

The SIRIS platform provides access to satellite imagery for different areas. The platform supplies information on the agriculture and forestry sector to better monitor the impact of natural disasters on agricultural production and woodland. It also offers up-to-date and archived data on fires to strengthen early warning and build long-term resilience. On floods, information provided by SIRIS indicates the water level to improve damage evaluation of the impacted area and facilitate humanitarian relief. In... read more

Publishing date: 20/12/2020
Regional Support Offices mentioned:
Argentina Regional Support Office, Mexico Regional Support Office
ESA and Thales Alenia Space sign contract for a new addition to Europe's Copernicus programme: ROSE-L mission
The signing ceremony of the ROSE-L mission. Image: ESA.

The European Commission plans to rapidly expand its environmental monitoring programme Copernicus. For this purpose, the European Space Agency (ESA) recently pledged 2.55 billion Euros towards contracts to advance the production of six new Copernicus satellite missions. The final of the six contracts was signed last Thursday between ESA and Thales Alenia Space for a mission that will provide new and important information to climate research and disaster management.

The high-priority Copernicus Radar Observation System for Europe in L-band (ROSE-L) mission is planned to launch in 2028 for a period of 7.5 years. The ROSE-L mission will orbit Earth every few days at an altitude of 690km and will carry a L-Band synthetic aperture radar (SAR). With a wavelength of approximately 23cm... read more

Publishing date: 18/12/2020
NASA integrates soil moisture data into Disasters Mapping Portal
Screenshot of the SMAP tool in action. Image: NASA

Officially launched in 2015 by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), the SMAP mission is an orbiting satellite that measures the amount of wetness in the top layer of soil incrementally every 2-3 days. These Soil Moisture Active Passive (SMAP) measurements rely on radiation frequencies that point to different levels of moisture on the surface of  earth’s soil and are useful for scientists because it allows them to construct maps indicating the level of soil moisture globally. Acknowledging the relevance and usability of this data for the field of disaster management, NASA recently integrated the SMAP data into its Disasters Mapping Portal. 

The Disasters Mapping Portal has been developed by the Geographic Informations Systems (GIS) Team at NASA in an effort to make their satellite data... read more

Publishing date: 25/11/2020
World Disasters Report 2020 highlights role of smart financing and space-based information in humanitarian response
Cover of the IFRC World Disasters Report 2020. Image: Indian Red Cross Society.

A new report by the world’s largest humanitarian aid network highlights global disasters, populations most vulnerable to them and the efforts of local institutions in preventing, preparing for and responding to them. The 2020 edition of the World Disasters Report, “Come Heat or High Water”, was launched virtually from the offices of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) in Vienna on November 16. This year’s report discusses climate- and weather-related disasters and their humanitarian impact. It argues for the usefulness of smart financing and space-based information in disaster management support.

The report warns that the global effort to address climate change is leaving behind countries most vulnerable to... read more

Publishing date: 19/11/2020

Evento

Reunión Regional Virtual de ONU-SPIDER - Soluciones espaciales para la gestión para la reducción de riesgos y la respuesta en caso de desastres para América Latina
Participants at the virtual expert meeting. Image: UNOOSA.

En décadas recientes muchas comunidades en América Latina y el Caribe han experimentado desastres ocasionados por inundaciones, sequías, deslizamientos, terremotos, erupciones volcánicas y maremotos o tsunamis que han erosionado los logros asociados a procesos de desarrollo. Además, en este año 2020 la pandemia ocasionada por el virus COVID-19 ha impactado a muchos países del mundo, forzando a los gobiernos, al sector privado, a la sociedad civil y a organismos regionales e internacionales a modificar sus planes de trabajo. De manera paralela, varios países del Este de África, del Sudoeste de Asia y de América Latina están experimentando los impactos de la plaga de langosta.  

Convencidos que las tecnologías espaciales pueden jugar un papel preponderante en apoyar los esfuerzos que llevan a cabo las instituciones en materia de gestión para la reducción de riesgos, la preparación, la respuesta y la recuperación en caso de desastres; la Asamblea General de las Naciones Unidas... read more

Regional Support Offices mentioned:
Argentina Regional Support Office, Brazil Regional Support Office, Colombia Regional Support Office, Mexico Regional Support Office

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