SMAP Radar Fails But Mission Continues “Mission managers for NASA’s Soil Moisture Active Passive (SMAP) observatory have determined that its radar, one of the satellite’s two science instruments, can no longer return data. … The SMAP spacecraft continues normal operations and the first data release of soil moisture products is expected in late September. “Although some of the planned applications of SMAP data will be impacted by the loss of […]

SMAP Launched and Deployed (with video) “NASA’s Soil Moisture Active Passive (SMAP) successfully lifted off from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California at 9:22 a.m. EST Saturday. SMAP is a three-year mission to study and map the Earth’s soil moisture, which regulates plant growth and has impacts on weather, emergency management and more.” Update: SMAP has been deployed. Just watched a rocket launch on my tablet while waiting for my […]