Polar Radiant Energy in the Far InfraRed Experiment
Modified on 12 April 2026 | Erin Hokanson Wagner PREFIRE’s annual Science Team Meeting was held on October 13th and 14th of 2025 at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, Michigan. The project’s principal investigator (Tristan L’Ecuyer) and the team updated each other and project administrators on instrument and satellite health, PREFIRE science results, …
Published on 15 Oct 2025 | Hamish Prince In collaboration with PREFIRE, the Southern Hemisphere polar Infrared Radiation Experiment (SHIRE) has begun an intensive observation campaign at Scott Base (78°S, 166°E) in McMurdo Sound, Antarctica. Funded primarily by Earth Sciences New Zealand (formally NIWA), SHIRE is a USA-DOE ARM small campaign (https://www.arm.gov/research/campaigns/osc2024SHIRE) coordinating an instrument …
27 June 2025 | Erin Hokanson Wagner The PREFIRE Mission is excited to announce that all PREFIRE data products are available to the public via the Atmospheric Science Data Center (ASDC) Distributed Active Archive Center! This includes Level 1 Radiance, retrieved Level 2 products, Level 3 climatologies, and supporting auxiliary products. Level 2 science data …
03 Sep 2024 | Tim Michaels NASA has publicly released the first look at PREFIRE mission data, also known as the first light announcement! The PREFIRE science team worked with NASA’s Scientific Visualization Studio to create this first light video. It showcases some of the fascinating infrared details of the Arctic surface and atmosphere that …
15 Aug 2024 | Erin Hokanson Wagner The 2024 PREFIRE Science Team Meeting was held at the University of Colorado on August 8th and 9th. The PREFIRE team, led by Tristan L’Ecuyer (PI), discussed the status of the PREFIRE CubeSats and instruments, the Science Data Processing System (SDPS), and preliminary data output, as well as …
05 Jun 2024 | Tim Michaels Rocket Lab successfully launched the second of two PREFIRE satellites from Mahia, New Zealand at 3:15 pm NZST (3:15 am UTC)! Webcast of the launch This work is supported by NASA.
01 Jun 2024 | Tim Michaels Rocket Lab has scheduled the second attempt at the #2 (and final) PREFIRE launch for June 5, 2024 at 03:13 am UTC! That is June 04, 2024 at 10:13 pm Central time in North America. Its first launch attempt was scrubbed (called off) due to some sensor readings that …
25 May 2024 | Erin Hokanson Wagner Rocket Lab successfully launched the first of two PREFIRE satellites from Mahia, New Zealand at 7:41 PM NZST (7:41 AM UTC). Blue Canyon Technologies, the company that built the 6U CubeSat and integrated the Jet Propulsion Lab’s Thermal Infrared Spectrometer, has nearly finished the satellite In-Orbit Checkout (IOC). …
22 May 2024 | Tim Michaels A highlight for today is Radio New Zealand’s short interview with Tristan L’Ecuyer, the PREFIRE Principal Investigator (PI). Courtesy of Rocket Lab, we have some photos to share of the PREFIRE CubeSats being carefully attached to their Electron rockets (about 1 week ago): Link: Rocket Lab’s PREFIRE Flickr album. …
21 May 2024 | Tim Michaels It is late autumn at the Rocket Lab launch complex in New Zealand, since it is in the southern hemisphere. Forecasts of unsuitable weather have delayed the first PREFIRE CubeSat launch until May 25, 2024 at 7:28 am UTC. While you are waiting, enjoy a new mission overview video! …