The Benefits of High Resolution Multispectral TIR Data and Its Impending Loss by NASA After Four Decades

Abstract

NASA has led multispectral (≥3 wavelength bands) thermal infrared (TIR) sensor development from the earliest days of the agency. These data are critical in addressing a wide range of scientific questions and administration priories by measuring both temperature (for wildfire and volcanic eruption monitoring, agricultural plant stress, and characterizing the urban environment) as well as emissivity (for critical mineral resources and surface geology on the Earth, Moon, and Mars). With the recent termination of the aging ASTER TIR instrument, the only remaining high resolution multispectral sensor in orbit is ECOSTRESS on the International Space Station (ISS). Should it fail, multispectral TIR data will become unavailable from NASA for the first time in a quarter of a century. Formulation of NASA's Surface Biology and Geology (SBG) mission, seen as the gold standard for future TIR data, had been underway for several years with a planned launch in 2029. However, its development was unexpectedly stopped and later reformulated under a new name, with no definitive launch date nor budget. Other governmental space agencies (e.g., India, China, France, and the European Union) realize the data's importance and are moving forward with their own multispectral TIR sensors. Unless NASA accelerates the development of what was SBG, the U.S. government will lose its leadership and technological advantage for resource development in this critical space. When it does, users will be forced to access non‐NASA multispectral TIR data elsewhere at increased costs and decreased availability, thus putting both science and U.S. national priorities at risk.