Earth Science Technology Research Articles

Preface: 4th Asia Conference on Geological Research and Environmental Technology (GRET 2023)

The organizing committees are honored to present the proceedings of the 2023 4th Asia Conference on Geological Research and Environmental Technology (GRET 2023), held in Kamakura, Japan during 05-06 August, 2023.
 GRET 2023 aims to bring together outstanding scholars, researchers, and students to exchange and share their experiences and research results about all aspects of earth science, geological research, natural resources, energy engineering, and environmental technology. We also provide the keynote address and several plenary invited speeches for the discussion of most recent innovations, trends, concerns, practical challenges encountered, and the various solutions. In everyone's efforts, GRET 2023 was successfully held as scheduled. The conference model was divided into two parts, including keynote speeches and discussions. In the first part, keynote presentations were delivered in 30 minutes for each talk. The second part was held lasted nearly an hour in a communication group for experts and scholars to discuss more about the talks and presentations.
 We do believe your great participation will make our conference success and we would appreciate your participation. Hopefully, all participants and other interested readers will benefit or find inspirations from this proceeding.
 With our best regards,
 GRET 2023 Conference Organizing
 Kamakura, Japan

Preface: 3rd Asia Conference on Geological Research and Environmental Technology (GRET 2022)

The organizing committees are honored to present the proceedings of the 2022 3rd Asia Conference on Geological Research and Environmental Technology (GRET 2022), held in Kamakura City, Japan during 12-13 November, 2022.
 GRET 2022 aims to bring together outstanding scholars, researchers, and students to exchange and share their experiences and research results about all aspects of earth science, geological research and environmental technology. We also provide the keynote address and several plenary invited speeches for discuss the most recent innovations, trends, and concerns, practical challenges encountered and the various solutions in these fields.
 Considering the prevention and control of COVID-19 and travel restrictions worldwide, the organizing committee adjust the format to online meeting to avoid personnel gatherings. In everyone's efforts, GRET 2022 was successfully held as scheduled. The conference model was divided into two parts, including keynote speeches and online discussion. In the first part, keynote presentations were delivered in 30 minutes for each talk. The second part was held lasted nearly an hour in a communication group for experts and scholars to discuss more about the talks and presentations.
 By submitting a paper to GRET 2022, the authors agreed to the review process and understood that papers would undergo a peer-review process. Manuscripts were reviewed by qualified experts in the field selected by the conference committee. The committees invested great efforts in reviewing the papers submitted to the conference and organizing the sessions to enable the participants to gain maximum benefit.
 We do believe your great participation will make our conference success and we would appreciate your participation. Hopefully, all participants and other interested readers will benefit or find inspirations from this proceeding.
 With our best regards,
 Conference Organizing Chair
 Kamakura City, Japan

Preface

International Conference on Applications of Intelligent Computing in Engineering and Science (AICES)-2022 12th - 13th February 2022National Institute of Technology (NIT) Raipur is proud to host the IOP International Conference on Applications of Intelligent Computing in Engineering and Science (AICES)-2022 from 12th to 13th February 2022 in virtual mode. It was jointly organised by the Department of Applied Geology, Department of Information Technology (IT) and Department of Biomedical Engineering of NIT Raipur.Intelligent computing is one of the emerging fields that can add new and better application in a wide range of sectors like healthcare, service sector, and processing industry to name some. The conference showcases advancements that will enable the researchers to develop improved approaches for solving science and engineering problems.The conference aims to provide a forum for researchers, practitioners and professionals from the industry and the academia to share their research trends, findings, and results in the multidisciplinary field of intelligent computing. Various applications of intelligent computing in earth and environment science, biomedical engineering, and information technology was covered. Topics like geospatial analysis, weather and climate forecasting, biomedical imaging and signal processing, internet of things, machine learning and deep learning applications, biomedical instrumentation, medical imaging physics etc. are in the scope of conference. The Conference highlights diverse perspectives to interested geologists, meteorologists, biomedical engineers, software engineers and computer professionals, medical professionals, biotechnologists, pharmaceutical experts, sustainability researchers and also provided a platform for potential knowledge exchange on recent trends, theories and practices in the field of intelligent computing.List of Chief Patron, Patron(s), Chairman, Secretary, Technical Advisory Committee, Technical Program Chair (Internal), Management Chair, Session Chair/Reviewer, Editors are available in the pdf

Preface

The GRET 2021 organizing committees are honored to present the proceedings of the 2021 2nd Asia Conference on Geological Research and Environmental Technology (GRET 2021), held in Kamakura City, Japan during 21-22 August, 2021.GRET 2021 aims to bring together outstanding scholars, researchers, and students to exchange and share their experiences and research results about all aspects of earth science, geological research and environmental technology. We also provide the keynote address and several plenary invited speeches for discuss the most recent innovations, trends, and concerns, practical challenges encountered and the various solutions in these fields.Considering the prevention and control of COVID-19 and travel restrictions worldwide, the organizing committee adjust the format to online meeting to avoid personnel gatherings. In everyone’s efforts, GRET 2021 was successfully held as scheduled. The conference model was divided into two parts, including keynote speeches and online discussion. In the first part, keynote presentations were delivered in 30 minutes for each talk, all of which were conducted via Zoom. The second part was held lasted nearly an hour in a communication group via WeChat for experts and scholars to discuss more about the talks and presentations.List of Committees, Conference Chairs, Technical Program Committee Chairs, Program Committee are available in this pdf.

Preface

The GRET 2020 organizing committees are honored to present the proceedings of the 2020 Asia Conference on Geological Research and Environmental Technology (GRET 2020), held in Kamakura City, Japan during 10-11 October, 2020.GRET 2020 aims to bring together outstanding scholars, researchers, and students to exchange and share their experiences and research results about all aspects of earth science, geological research and environmental technology. We also provide the keynote address and several plenary invited speeches for discuss the most recent innovations, trends, and concerns, practical challenges encountered and the various solutions in these fields.Considering the prevention and control of COVID-19 and travel restrictions worldwide, the organizing committee adjust the format to online meeting to avoid personnel gatherings. In everyone's efforts, GRET 2020 was successfully held as scheduled. The conference model was divided into two parts, including keynote speeches and online discussion. In the first part, keynote presentations were delivered in 30 minutes for each talk, all of which were conducted via Zoom. The second part was held lasted nearly an hour in a communication group via WeChat for experts and scholars to discuss more about the talks and presentations.By submitting a paper to GRET 2020, the authors agreed to the review process and understood that papers would undergo a peer-review process. Manuscripts were reviewed by qualified experts in the field selected by the conference committee. The committees invested great efforts in reviewing the papers submitted to the conference and organizing the sessions to enable the participants to gain maximum benefit.We do believe your great participation will make our conference success and we would appreciate your participation. We express our heartfelt thanks to IOP publishing house. Hopefully, all participants and other interested readers will benefit or find inspirations from this proceeding.With our best regards,Conference Organizing ChairKamakura City, Japan

First results from an uncooled LWIR polarimeter for cubesat deployment

A compact long-wave infrared (LWIR) channeled spectro-polarimeter (IRCSP) has been developed for integration into the NASA Earth Science Technology Office (ESTO) funded submm-wave and LWIR polarimeters project to measure the microphysical properties of cloud ice. Once deployed, the IRCSP will produce the first linear Stokes measurements ( S0 , S1 , S2 ) of upper-tropospheric cirrus clouds from 8.5 to 12.5 μm. For the first time, a compact, light-weight, and uncooled LWIR polarimeter with off-the-shelf thermal optical components is demonstrated. We report narrowband calibration measurements which quantify metrics of polarimetric system performance. The response of the system to linearly polarized light is shown to agree with both a Mueller matrix model and modulation function for narrowband calibration measurements with an R2 > 0.98 from 8 to 11 μm. The polarimetric efficiency is >0.8 from 8 to 11 μm for narrowband measurements indicating satisfactory performance of the polarization optics. Beyond 11 μm, the agreement is significantly reduced as thermal noise compounds with reduced detector response. Ultimately, the observed system performance is limited by the spectral response of the detector past 11 μm in addition to the thermal noise inherent for the measurements at room temperature.

CubeSat Infrared Atmospheric Sounder technology development status

Hyperspectral infrared sounding in a CubeSat will provide a new dimension to the current suite of IR sounders by allowing measurements at multiple times of day and enabling formation flying of IR sounders for new data products such as atmospheric motion vector winds. We focus on technology development during the CubeSat Infrared Atmospheric Sounder (CIRAS) project sponsored by the NASA Earth Science Technology Office (ESTO) and coincident studies by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Office of Projects, Planning, and Analysis (OPPA). The CIRAS approach incorporates key instrument technologies, developed at the Microdevices Lab (MDL) at Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), including a two-dimensional array of High Operating Temperature Barrier Infrared Detector (HOT-BIRD) material, selected for its high uniformity, low cost, low noise, and higher operating temperatures than traditional materials. The second key technology is a mid-wavelength infrared grating spectrometer designed by Ball Aerospace with a JPL MDL slit and immersion grating to provide hyperspectral infrared imaging in a CubeSat volume. The third key technology is a blackbody calibration target fabricated with MDL’s black silicon to have very high emissivity in a flat plate construction. JPL has completed design and breadboard of the mechanical, electronic, and thermal subsystems for the CIRAS payload including a HOT-BIRD focal plane assembly, with filters in a dewar and a breadboard of the electronics and scan mirror assembly. Blue Canyon Technologies, developer of the CIRAS 6U CubeSat, completed the Final Design Review for the spacecraft. NOAA is sponsoring the continued development of the CIRAS Proto-Flight Model (PFM) instrument at JPL using many of the existing subsystems. Completion of the PFM is expected in mid 2021, with launch no earlier than 2022.

RainCube: the first ever radar measurements from a CubeSat in space

RainCube (Radar in a CubeSat) is a technology demonstration mission to enable Ka-band precipitation radar technologies on a low-cost, quick-turnaround platform. The 6U CubeSat, currently in orbit, features a radar payload built by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory and a spacecraft bus and operations provided by Tyvak Nano-Satellite Systems. Following the deployment of the half-meter parabolic antenna, the radar first observed rainfall over Mexico. The mission continues to operate and has met all requirements through repeated observations of precipitation in the atmosphere. RainCube is funded through the Science Mission Directorate’s Research Opportunities in Space and Earth Science 2015 In-Space Validation of Earth Science Technologies solicitation. We report on the first radar observations of precipitation.

The role of Earth and environmental science in addressing sustainable development priorities in Eastern Africa

Here we synthesise the results of three participatory workshops to explore sustainable development priorities in eastern Africa, and discuss these in the context of Earth and environmental science. The planet is a core pillar of sustainable development, and the engagement of Earth and environmental scientists is vital to achieving the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). In 2017, the British Geological Survey gathered 76 delegates from 48 organisations at three workshops in Nairobi (Kenya), Lusaka (Zambia), and Dar es Salaam (Tanzania). Using the SDGs as a reference tool, participants (i) identified development priorities at regional (eastern Africa) and national scales, (ii) explored the Earth and environmental science research and data needs to help address these, and (iii) co-designed relevant science-for-development projects. Participants identified sustainable development priorities to be basic (or immediate) needs, including zero hunger (SDG 2), education (SDG 4), ending poverty (SDG 1), and water and sanitation (SDG 6). Participants also described examples of Earth and environmental science research, training, technologies, monitoring and management to support sustainable development. Emerging themes included environmental data (collection, management, integration, access), policy and regulations (integrating environmental science, and policy coherence), resource management (degradation, pollution and environmental protection), and scientific education and understanding (training, knowledge exchange, public understanding of science). A comparative synthesis of existing regional and national development strategies indicates that current narratives of development interventions do not fully capture the opportunities from environmental data integration and policy coherence. Greater engagement with and by the Earth and environmental science community could help to advance these themes to support sustainable development in eastern Africa. This would support efforts to reduce environmental degradation, improve natural resource management, and inform the utilisation of natural resources to improve economic growth and social wellbeing.

Radar Technologies for Earth Remote Sensing From CubeSat Platforms

Space-based radar observations have transformed our understanding of Earth over the last several decades. Driven by increasingly complex science questions, space radar missions have grown ever more sophisticated with costs rising often to hundreds of millions of dollars. At the other end of the cost and complexity spectrum, CubeSats have emerged in recent years as a disruptive innovation in the satellite sector and are now considered a means to address targeted science questions in a rapid and affordable manner. CubeSats enable new kinds of constellation-based Earth science observations not previously affordable with traditional spacecraft. Constellations of low-cost sensors provide both global spatial and high temporal coverage. As such, CubeSats are not only viable platforms to address current Earth science goals, but they also open a new realm of possibilities for science advancement and unique applications. Radar instruments have often been regarded as unsuitable for small satellite platforms due to their traditionally large size, weight, and power (SWaP). Burgeoning missions such as Radar in a CubeSat (RainCube) and CubeSat Imaging Radar for Earth Science (CIRES), being developed by Jet Propulsion Laboratory and SRI International, respectively, and funded by NASA’s Earth Science Technology Office (ESTO), are slated to dispel this notion. The key to the simplification and miniaturization of the radar subsystems in a manner that still offers compelling science and applications is 1) component technological advancement; and 2) an integrated instrument architecture and mission design that exploits the capabilities offered by CubeSat platforms. This paper reviews the state-of-the-art and future developments of CubeSat radar missions for Earth remote sensing and the implications for NASA’s current and future Earth Science program. The key enabling technologies for radio frequency (RF), digital, and antennas are surveyed, as well as the evolution of the CubeSat avionics, in the aspects that mostly impact radar development, namely power, volume, and attitude control and knowledge and precision orbit determination (POD). We investigate various radar applications that could benefit from low-cost CubeSat platforms, such as altimetry, sounding, precipitation profiling, scatterometry, synthetic aperture radar (SAR), and interferometric SAR (InSAR). We also explore the science motivation and impact of future missions that are based on these technological advancements.

Note: A new method for directly reducing the sampling jitter noise of the digital phasemeter.

The sampling jitter noise is one non-negligible noise source of the digital phasemeter used for space gravitational wave detection missions. This note provides a new method for directly reducing the sampling jitter noise of the digital phasemeter, by adding a dedicated signal of which the frequency, amplitude, and initial phase should be pre-set. In contrast to the phase correction using the pilot-tone in the work of Burnett, Gerberding et al., Liang et al., Ales et al., Gerberding et al., and Ware et al. [M.Sc. thesis, Luleå University of Technology, 2010; Classical Quantum Gravity 30, 235029 (2013); Rev. Sci. Instrum. 86, 016106 (2015); Rev. Sci. Instrum. 86, 084502 (2015); Rev. Sci. Instrum. 86, 074501 (2015); and Proceedings of the Earth Science Technology Conference (NASA, USA, 2006)], the new method is intrinsically additive noise suppression. The experiment results validate that the new method directly reduces the sampling jitter noise without data post-processing and provides the same phase measurement noise level (10-6 rad/Hz1/2 at 0.1 Hz) as the pilot-tone correction.

Assessment of Radiometer Calibration with GPS Radio Occultation for the MiRaTA CubeSat Mission.

The Microwave Radiometer Technology Acceleration (MiRaTA) is a 3U CubeSat mission sponsored by the NASA Earth Science Technology Office (ESTO). The science payload on MiRaTA consists of a tri-band microwave radiometer and Global Positioning System (GPS) radio occultation (GPSRO) sensor. The microwave radiometer takes measurements of all-weather temperature (V-band, 50-57 GHz), water vapor (G-band, 175-191 GHz), and cloud ice (G-band, 205 GHz) to provide observations used to improve weather forecasting. The Aerospace Corporation's GPSRO experiment, called the Compact TEC (Total Electron Content) and Atmospheric GPS Sensor (CTAGS), measures profiles of temperature and pressure in the upper troposphere/lower stratosphere (∼20 km) and electron density in the ionosphere (over 100 km). The MiRaTA mission will validate new technologies in both passive microwave radiometry and GPS radio occultation: (1) new ultra-compact and low-power technology for multi-channel and multi-band passive microwave radiometers, (2) the application of a commercial off the shelf (COTS) GPS receiver and custom patch antenna array technology to obtain neutral atmospheric GPSRO retrieval from a nanosatellite, and (3) a new approach to spaceborne microwave radiometer calibration using adjacent GPSRO measurements. In this paper, we focus on objective (3), developing operational models to meet a mission goal of 100 concurrent radiometer and GPSRO measurements, and estimating the temperature measurement precision for the CTAGS instrument based on thermal noise. Based on an analysis of thermal noise of the CTAGS instrument, the expected temperature retrieval precision is between 0.17 K and 1.4 K, which supports the improvement of radiometric calibration to 0.25 K.

Radiometer Calibration Using Colocated GPS Radio Occultation Measurements

We present a new high-fidelity method of calibrating a cross-track scanning microwave radiometer using Global Positioning System (GPS) radio occultation (GPSRO) measurements. The radiometer and GPSRO receiver periodically observe the same volume of atmosphere near the Earth's limb, and these overlapping measurements are used to calibrate the radiometer. Performance analyses show that absolute calibration accuracy better than 0.25 K is achievable for temperature sounding channels in the 50-60-GHz band for a total-power radiometer using a weakly coupled noise diode for frequent calibration and proximal GPSRO measurements for infrequent (approximately daily) calibration. The method requires GPSRO penetration depth only down to the stratosphere, thus permitting the use of a relatively small GPS antenna. Furthermore, only coarse spacecraft angular knowledge (approximately one degree rms) is required for the technique, as more precise angular knowledge can be retrieved directly from the combined radiometer and GPSRO data, assuming that the radiometer angular sampling is uniform. These features make the technique particularly well suited for implementation on a low-cost CubeSat hosting both radiometer and GPSRO receiver systems on the same spacecraft. We describe a validation platform for this calibration method, the Microwave Radiometer Technology Acceleration (MiRaTA) CubeSat, currently in development for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Earth Science Technology Office. MiRaTA will fly a multiband radiometer and the Compact TEC/Atmosphere GPS Sensor in 2015.

Transitioning research satellite data to the operational weather community: The SPoRT Paradigm [Organization Profiles

Established in 2002 to demonstrate the weather forecasting application of real-time EOS measurements, the SPoRT project has grown to be an end-to-end research to operations activity focused on the use of advanced modeling and data assimilation techniques, nowcasting tools, and unique high-resolution multispectral observational data from NASA, NOAA, DoD, and international partner satellites to improve short-term weather forecasts on a regional and local scale. Through these efforts, SPoRT strives to be a focal point and facilitator for the transfer of unique Earth science technologies to the operational weather community with an emphasis on short-term forecasting. To achieve this vision, the SPoRT project will continue to address new data and technologies and develop and test solutions to critical forecast problems, and integrate solutions into end user decision support tools. SPoRT will draw on new instrumentation from satellites such as the Soil Moisture Active Passive (SMAP), which will provide high spatial resolution soil moisture data for diagnostic studies and data assimilation and weather forecasting, and the Global Precipitation Mapping (GPM) mission for more accurate measurements of precipitation at fine space and time scales.

Moving the science data quality dialogue forward

Federation of Earth Science Information Partners Summer 2011 Meeting; Santa Fe, New Mexico, 12–15 July 2011 Scientific data quality is important to scientists, archivists, decision makers, and the public. Uncertain quality costs valuable research dollars and has impacts beyond the initial science. The Federation of Earth Science Information Partners (ESIP) is a consortium of Earth science data and technology professionals spanning the government (NASA, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), National Science Foundation), academia, and private sectors (both commercial and nonprofit). The organization is dedicated to transforming research data and information into useful and usable data and information products for decision makers, policy makers, and the public.

A Wireless Soil Moisture Smart Sensor Web Using Physics-Based Optimal Control: Concept and Initial Demonstrations

This paper introduces a new concept for a smart wireless sensor web technology for optimal measurements of surface-to-depth profiles of soil moisture using in-situ sensors. The objective of the technology, supported by the NASA Earth Science Technology Office Advanced Information Systems Technology program, is to enable a guided and adaptive sampling strategy for the in-situ sensor network to meet the measurement validation objectives of spaceborne soil moisture sensors. A potential application for this technology is the validation of products from the Soil Moisture Active/Passive (SMAP) mission. Spatially, the total variability in soil-moisture fields comes from variability in processes on various scales. Temporally, variability is caused by external forcings, landscape heterogeneity, and antecedent conditions. Installing a dense in-situ network to sample the field continuously in time for all ranges of variability is impractical. However, a sparser but smarter network with an optimized measurement schedule can provide the validation estimates by operating in a guided fashion with guidance from its own sparse measurements. The feedback and control take place in the context of a dynamic physics-based hydrologic and sensor modeling system. The overall design of the smart sensor web-including the control architecture, physics-based hydrologic and sensor models, and actuation and communication hardware-is presented in this paper. We also present results illustrating sensor scheduling and estimation strategies as well as initial numerical and field demonstrations of the sensor web concept. It is shown that the coordinated operation of sensors through the control policy results in substantial savings in resource usage.

Adaptive Sky: From Instrument Pixels to a Sensor Web Gestalt

A variety of sensors have been developed and deployed to monitor the Earth, ranging from in situ seismographic networks to hyperspectral imaging instruments carried onboard NASA satellites. Despite an impressive collection of sensing assets, there is still much untapped potential, as evidenced by the limited number of studies that successfully employ high-resolution data from multiple instruments. Sensor webs offer the potential to go beyond simple data fusion by dynamically combining sensing assets into coordinated, multi-instrument observers of specific geophysical objects, phenomena, and processes. In this paper, we describe Adaptive Sky, an algorithm package for sensor webs developed through funding from the NASA Earth Science Technology Office under the Advanced Information Systems Technology program. Fundamentally, Adaptive Sky aims to relate the observations from one sensor at time t to the observations from another sensor at time t', providing a “gestalt,” or unified, perspective that is more than the sum of its parts. A scenario involving the eruption of Bezymianny Volcano on the remote Kamchatka Peninsula on 14 October 2007 demonstrates conceptually how Adaptive Sky can be leveraged to create unprecedented spatio-temporal and phenomenological coverage of a complex geophysical event of interest, despite limitations inherent in the individual sensors.

Analysis of laser remote sensing technology needs in the earth sciences: a decadal-scale outlook

In late 2005 the NASA Earth Science Technology Office convened a working group to review decadal-term technology needs for Earth science active optical remote sensing objectives. The outcome from this effort is intended to guide future NASA investments in laser remote sensing technologies. This paper summarizes the working group findings and places them in context with the conclusions of the National Research Council assessment of future Earth science and applications requirements, completed in 2007.

Microwave Observatory of Subcanopy and Subsurface (MOSS): A Mission Concept for Global Deep Soil Moisture Observations

The Microwave Observatory of Subcanopy and Subsurface (MOSS) is a mission concept for a spaceborne synthetic aperture radar (SAR) system that provides global observations of soil moisture under substantial vegetation cover (exceeding 20 kg/m2 ) and at useful depths (1-5 m). The concept was developed and a number of new required technologies were demonstrated through a National Aeronautics and Space Administration Earth Science Technology Office Instrument Incubator Program project. This very high frequency (VHF)/ultrahigh frequency (UHF) polarimetric SAR is designed to provide 7-10-day observations of soil moisture at 1-km resolution. The rapid repeat cycle mandates swath widths in the range of 300-400 km, which must be realized by a 30-m-long antenna. Conventional array implementations would result in a mass of more than 4000 kg, whereas with the technology proposed and demonstrated in this project, the total antenna mass is less than 500 kg. The antenna concept is a dual-stacked patch array feed illuminating a 30-m mesh reflector to synthesize the long apertures and achieve the wide swath. The feed system prototype was fabricated and its performance demonstrated. Other major project components were: (1) system-level SAR and mission design; (2) demonstration of science data and products, using a tower-based VHF/UHF radar; (3) spacecraft and mesh reflector antenna mechanical design; (4) developing mitigation strategies for ionospheric effects; and (5) assessing frequency interference effects. Experimental science data were generated from the tower radar for soil moisture profiling in Arizona and for forest penetration in Oregon. The soil moisture products were demonstrated through an integrated inversion-processing algorithm. This paper summarizes the results from the MOSS project and demonstrates the feasibility of the spaceborne mission.

High-performance Earth system modeling with NASA/GSFC’s Land Information System

The Land Information System software (LIS; http://lis.gsfc.nasa.gov/, 2006) has been developed to support high-performance land surface modeling and data assimilation. LIS integrates parallel and distributed computing technologies with modern land surface modeling capabilities, and establishes a framework for easy interchange of subcomponents, such as land surface physics, input/output conventions, and data assimilation routines. The software includes multiple land surface models that can be run as a multi-model ensemble on global or regional domains with horizontal resolutions ranging from 2.5° to 1 km. The software may execute serially or in parallel on various high-performance computing platforms. In addition, the software has well-defined, standard-conforming interfaces and data structures to interface and interoperate with other Earth system models. Developed with the support of an Earth science technology office (ESTO) computational technologies project round~3 cooperative agreement, LIS has helped advance NASA’s Earth–Sun division’s software engineering principles and practices, while promoting portability, interoperability, and scalability for Earth system modeling. LIS was selected as a co-winner of NASA’s 2005 software of the year award.