L3Harris To Build Geostationary Weather Satellite Sensors For Japan

The award continues L3Harris' legacy of producing critical space-based weather instruments for Japan.

Under the terms of the contract with the Mitsubishi Electric Group, L3Harris will build and deliver an advanced imager and sounder for JMA’s Himawari-10 satellite. The imager will use a similar technical platform as L3Harris’ Advanced Baseline Imager (ABI) on NOAA’s Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite-R (GOES-R). The imager will also carry enhancements beyond its predecessor, Himawari-8/-9, including tailored Japanese spectral bands to supply the most advanced geostationary weather information for the international community.

The addition of a next-generation hyperspectral infrared sounder on the Himawari-10 mission will provide improved weather prediction accuracy and enhanced environmental monitoring for extreme weather events impacting Japan. This includes enabling precise measurements, such as temperature, moisture and pressure, throughout the atmosphere.