Leonardo DRS, Inc. has developed a high-precision radiometer technology that can measure the Earth’s surface temperature from space. The Multiband Uncooled SmallSat Imaging Radiometer (MUSIR) payload uses unique, space-based uncooled thermal imaging radiometer technology and is part of an innovative demonstration mission for NASA. The technology could pave the way for small, affordable satellite constellations that would allow for faster revisit times, enabling more frequent measurements that are important during times of change on the Earth’s surface. The MUSIR payload launched aboard a small, commercial satellite earlier this year and is testing a new technique using bolometers in an instrument operated at room temperature to perform high-precision radiometry. The uncooled technology makes the radiometer instrument much lighter, smaller and with a much lower power requirement, suitable for a SmallSat or a CubeSat. DRS is a leading provider of advanced cooled and uncooled infrared camera systems for the US government and allies around the world.
