Journal of the Indian Society of Remote Sensing | 2021
A Study of Rocket Exhaust Plume in the Lower Atmosphere using Geo-Imaging High Resolution Camera (GHRC) On-board Indian Geostationary Satellite
Abstract
Rocket exhaust plumes in atmosphere are remarkable phenomena that can be clearly seen from both the Earth s surface and space. A huge number of dispersed particles within the exhaust plume provide sufficient scattering of solar radiation that can be registered by photographic cameras from ground or space. In the present study, we have analysed rocket exhaust plumes from the Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV) MK-II F11 carrying the Geostationary SATellite (GSAT)-7A payload using the Geo-imaging High Resolution Camera (GHRC) on-board GSAT-29 satellite for the purpose of probing atmospheric states. This study deals with analysing the initial rocket plume produced by the GSLV vehicle launched from Satish Dhawan Space Centre, Sriharikota on 19 December, 2018. Approximately 2211 frames acquired by the GHRC instrument at\u2009~\u20091.5 frames per second around the time of GSAT-7A launch were processed, rocket exhaust plume was detected and motion vectors of exhaust plume were traced to estimate horizontal components of wind velocity at different altitudes. GHRC estimated U component of wind ranged from\u2009−\u20097.1 m/s at 200 hPa to\u2009+\u20094.0 m/s at 100 hPa with lower values close to surface. V component of wind ranged from\u2009−\u20094.8 m/s at 900 hPa to\u2009+\u20098.6 m/s at 400 hPa with intense shear between 200 and 100 hPa levels. Comparative analysis of results obtained from satellite data with Weather Research and Forecasting modelled wind fields showed a good match. For the first time in India, we analysed the dynamics of rocket exhaust plume in the troposphere and lower stratosphere using satellite-mounted imaging camera on a geostationary platform and demonstrate its application in obtaining atmospheric wind profile. This study also demonstrates the unique high-temporal capability of GHRC for its use in large-scale smoke/plume detection.