The publication is reproduced in full below:
HONORING THE 15TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE CALIPSO SATELLITE MISSION
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HON. ELAINE G. LURIA
of virginia
in the house of representatives
Friday, May 7, 2021
Mrs. LURIA. Madam Speaker, I rise today to recognize the CALIPSO satellite mission upon the 15th anniversary of its space-based lidar measurements. CALIPSO's unique observations have revolutionized our knowledge of the vertical distributions of clouds and of layers of dust, smoke, and pollution. These findings have also greatly improved our understanding of how these vertical distributions affect climate, weather, and air quality. CALIPSO data are widely used by the international science community and academia, and this data has contributed to significant new findings by state and U.S. government agencies, including NASA, the NOAA, the DoD, the USDA, and the EPA.
CALIPSO measurements are the foundation of over 3200 peer-reviewed publications that have appeared since the mission launched on April 28, 2006--a tremendous accomplishment for a first-of-its-kind measurement system. Furthermore, CALIPSO discoveries now appear in textbooks for the next generation of climate scientists.
NASA Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia, manages CALIPSO with operations accomplished through a strong and enduring partnership with the French Space Agency, Centre National d'Etudes Spatiales
(CNES). The mission's longevity and scientific success is a testament to international collaboration, especially when it is employed to solve global issues.
NASA Langley is now looking forward to developing new instruments needed to improve our understanding of extreme weather events and regional climate change. The next generation spaceborne lidar, which has been identified for a new observing system, will build upon knowledge and experience gained from CALIPSO and will benefit from innovative technology developments now underway at NASA Langley.
CALIPSO continues to be an on-going tribute to NASA's tremendous can-
do spirit and engineering excellence. While CALIPSO began its challenging mission with an expected lifetime of only 3 years, it has continued to deliver valuable measurements for 15 years. The longevity of the mission and the large number of scientific discoveries emerging from CALIPSO is a huge credit to the project and to the Agency.
With these many accomplishments, it is my honor to recognize the 15th anniversary of CALIPSO's launch, and I wish the international mission team continued success in the future.
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SOURCE: Congressional Record Vol. 167, No. 79
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