India, May 2 -- NASA has deployed two pathfinding missions into low-Earth orbit, where they are demonstrating novel technologies for observing atmospheric gases, measuring freshwater, and detecting signs of potential volcanic eruptions.
The Hyperspectral Thermal Imager (HyTI) is measuring trace gases linked to volcanic eruptions. HyTI, a 6U CubeSat the size of a shoebox, could pave the way for future missions dedicated to detecting volcanic eruptions weeks or months in advance.
The Signals of Opportunity P-Band Investigation (SNoOPI), a low-noise radio receiver, tests a new technique for measuring root-zone soil moisture by harnessing radio signals produced by commercial satellites - a big job for a 6U CubeSat.
Both instruments were laun...