Thermal And Near infrared Sensor for carbon Observation (TANSO)
onboardthe Greenhouse gases Observing SATellite (GOSAT)

Research Announcement

August 2012

Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA)
National Institute for Environment Studies (NIES)
Ministry of the Environment (MOE)Japan

GOSAT/TANSO Research Announcement
CONTENTS
1. Introduction ........................................................................................................................1
2. Definitions of the GOSAT/TANSO Research Announcement (RA) ................................3
2.1 GOSAT Project..............................................................................................................3
2.2 Purpose..........................................................................................................................3
2.3 Scope..............................................................................................................................3
2.4 Basic Policies ................................................................................................................4
2.5 Implementing Organization of the GOSAT/TANSO RA............................................5
3. Outline of GOSAT and TANSO Sensors ...........................................................................6
3.1 Outline of GOSAT.........................................................................................................6
3.2 Outline of GOSAT/TANSO-FTS ..................................................................................6
3.3 Outline of GOSAT/TANSO-CAI...................................................................................6
4. GOSAT/TANSO Data Policies ...........................................................................................7
5. Data Distribution of GOSAT/TANSO Products and Standards for their Use ............ 12
5.1 List of Products to be Distributed ............................................................................ 12
5.2 Data Format and Distribution Media ...................................................................... 12
6. Funding ............................................................................................................................ 13
7. Qualifications .................................................................................................................. 14
8. Rights and Obligations of the Principal Investigator (PI) ........................................... 15
8.1 Rights ......................................................................................................................... 15
8.2 Obligations ................................................................................................................. 17
8.2.1 Interim reporting ................................................................................................ 17
8.2.2 Final reporting and termination of the contract .............................................. 17
9. Preparation and Submission of Research Proposals .................................................... 18
9.1 Notes to the preparation of research proposals ...................................................... 18
9.2 Language.................................................................................................................... 18
9.3 Volume ........................................................................................................................ 18
9.4 Contents to be included in research proposals and the preparation procedure ... 18
9.5 Submission of research proposals ............................................................................ 18
10. Selection of Research Proposals ................................................................................... 20
10.1 Evaluation and Selection Procedure ...................................................................... 20
10.2 Evaluation Criteria ................................................................................................. 20
10.3 Post-selection Procedure ......................................................................................... 20
11. Cancellation and Postponement of RA ........................................................................ 21
12. Expected Research Topics............................................................................................. 2212.1 Research Topics conducted or targeted by the GOSAT Project............................ 2212.2 Expected Research Topics to be proposed in the RA............................................. 23
13. Schedule......................................................................................................................... 24
13.1 1st Announcement .................................................................................................... 24
13.2 2nd Announcement ................................................................................................... 24
13.3 3rd Announcement (Current Announcement)........................................................... 24
14. Contact Information...................................................................................................... 26iAppendices
Appendix A
Appendix B
Appendix C
Appendix D
Appendix E
Appendix F

Outlines of GOSAT and Overview of TANSO Sensors
GOSAT/TANSO Calibration and Validation Plans and Overview ofProcessing Algorithms
Operation Policies of GOSAT and Basic Observation Plans of the TANSO
Sensors
Contents of Research Proposal and Application Forms
General Contractual Conditions for the Joint Research on the GOSAT data
User Category, Glossary and Abbreviation List

*Please note that Appendices A, B, and C have not revised since the first research announcement
was made. Consequently, some descriptions differ from current conditions; such as, a version-up of
the processing algorithm has not explained in Appendix B. Updates are provided at the GOSAT User
Interface Gateway, a website for GOSAT data distribution (GUIG).

ii

1. Introduction
The Fourth Assessment Report issued by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) in2007 states that most of the observed increase in global average temperatures since themid-20th century is very likely due to the observed increase in anthropogenic Green
House Gas (GHG) concentrations. The drastic increase in the concentration of GHGs,
particularly carbon dioxide (CO2), caused directly and indirectly by human activities, is attributed to
the fact that the emission of CO2 into the atmosphere in the process of the mass consumption offossil fuel, deforestation, etc., significantly surpasses the absorption by the land ecosystem and theoceans. Thus, it is imperative to balance the emission due to human activities and the absorption by
the nature, in order to stabilize the climate for the future. In the meantime, however, we, humans,
have not grasped, to a sufficient level, the mechanisms of the absorption by land ecosystem andocean, and the climatological feedback in the carbon cycle involving atmosphere, land ecosystemand ocean. This lack of understanding comprises a substantial part of the uncertainty in predicting
future climate change.
The clarification of these problems involves not only an ascertainment of the spatial and temporalvariations in the CO2 emission from human activities but also a calculation of the spatial distribution
and temporal variation of CO2 and also methane (CH4), which is the second largest contributor to
global warming after CO2, and the spatial distribution and temporal variation of the source and sinkin land ecosystem and oceans, based on earth observation, and ultimately an attainment of adequate
scientific knowledge on the underlying mechanisms. These efforts to observe GHG concentrations
and to analyze the causes of their variations at some locations are, though still limited, in progress.
On top of these attempts, it is vital to observe the distributions of CO 2, CH4, and other GHG
concentrations, which fluctuate both spatially and temporally, on the global scale, using satellite
platforms, in a continuous and systematic manner, and to elucidate the current issues, with a goal toelevate the reliability of prediction of future climate change and climate system models effective forassessing the consequences of climate change.
Under such circumstances, the GOSAT (Greenhouse gases Observing SATellite) Project was
initiated and has been promoted jointly by the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), theNational Institute for Environmental Studies (NIES) and the Ministry of the Environment (MOE)(hereinafter referred to as the “Three Parties” collectively). One of the missions of the Project is toincrease the accuracy of the flux (source and sink) estimation of the GHGs on the sub-continental
basis (a few thousand kilometers square), thereby to contribute to environmental administration
efforts such as ascertainment of fluxes per region and evaluation of the carbon balance in forests.
The Project will further contribute, through research on applications of the data acquired by GOSAT,
to an accumulation of scientific knowledge regarding the global distribution of GHG concentrations
and its temporal variations as well as the global carbon cycle mechanism and its impact on climatechange, which will assist the prediction of climate change and evaluation of consequences therefrom.
At the same time, the Project aims to maintain and further evolve conventional earth-observing
technologies to develop new methodologies to measure GHGs and enable engineering development
necessary for future earth-observing satellites.
To achieve these goals, JAXA takes charge of developing and launching the satellite with the sensors
on board, calibrating and operating the sensors, acquiring observation data, and processing the1acquired data to Level 1 (spectral) products, whereas NIES undertakes the examination ofrequirements for the sensor specifications, development and operation of the higher-level productprocessing system, development of the data processing algorithms, generation of Level 2 (GHG
concentrations), Level 3 & 4 (global distribution of GHG concentrations, and distribution of carbon
source/sink based on them, etc) products, validation of data quality, and storage and provision of thegenerated data products. Furthermore, the MOE supplements the development of the sensors andbears the responsibility for utilization of the GOSAT data in its environmental administration
through the acquisition of validation data and scientific use of mission data. The Three Parties havebeen and will continue to be vigorously carrying forward the research and development necessary
for fulfilling these tasks with the help and advice from the GOSAT Science Team, which wasestablished and is administered by the Three Parties.
The Research Announcement to be made herein (hereinafter referred to as the “RA”) solicits
proposals for research on the data processing algorithms, calibration, validation, carbon balance
estimation/atmospheric transport models, and scientific use with respect to the GOSAT data from thepublic, on top of the basic research and development topics to be performed by the Three Parties,
with an aim to make the outcomes of the Project more effective. All research teams responding tothis RA whose proposals are selected by the Three Parties based on the results of evaluation by the
RA Selection and Evaluation Committee (hereinafter referred to as the “Committee”) will be granted
a priority in data distribution, the right to make observation requests (within a predetermined scope),
accommodation in obtaining other related data, and so forth. Incidentally, the Committee will consistof the members selected and requested by the Three Parties from among Japanese and non-Japaneseexperts and specialists.
The succeeding chapters in this document describe the contents of the GOSAT Project in detail,including items ranging from the equipment onboard the satellite, overview of data processing
algorithms, calibration and validation plans to data utilization plans. Applicants to this RA are
encouraged to read the contents of this document carefully and make active efforts to write research
proposals.

22. Definitions of the GOSAT/TANSO Research Announcement (RA)
2.1 GOSAT Project
GOSAT carries an observing instrument called Thermal And Near-infrared Sensor for carbon
Observation (TANSO). The GOSAT/TANSO is composed of two sensors called Fourier Transform
Spectrometer (FTS), which measures greenhouse gases (GHGs), and Cloud and Aerosol Imager(CAI), which collects information on cloud and aerosol.
The primary purpose of GOSAT is to measure the global distribution of GHG concentrations and its
temporal variation and to increase the accuracy of the flux estimation of GHGs on the
sub-continental scale, thereby contributing to the sustention and development of systemized
observation in accordance with the Kyoto Protocol, while at the same time facilitating theenvironmental administration efforts, including ascertainment of the flux per region and evaluationof the carbon balance in forests during the first period (2008-2012) as specified by the Protocol. In
the meantime, the Project is intended to develop GHGs-measurement technologies and othertechnologies necessary for future earth-observing satellites, by standing on and further evolving theexisting earth-observing technologies.
2.2 Purpose
The purpose of the RA is to open to public an opportunity for researching on the data processing
algorithms, calibration, validation, carbon balance estimation/atmospheric transport models, andscientific use of the GOSAT data, in addition to the basic research and development topics to be
performed by the Three Parties, with a goal to make more use of the outcomes from the Project. The
research topics selected by the Committee and adopted by the Three Parties will be subject topreferential data distribution, the right to make observation requests (of reasonable amount), andaccommodations in obtaining other related data, etc.
The implementation of the RA is expected to bring about additional researches by other parties than
JAXA and NIES, which will supplement the research to be conducted in accordance with thecalibration and validation plans of the Project, facilitation of studies on the processing algorithms,
carbon balance estimation/atmospheric transport models, and utilization of the GOSAT/TANSO data,
objective evaluation of the research concerning the effectiveness and usefulness of the data,
expansion of opportunities for researchers and scientists inside and outside Japan to access the
GOSAT data, and so on.
2.3 Scope
The GOSAT/TANSO RA is open to all countries across the world, not limited to Japan. All
individual researchers, educational organizations, research institutes, and governmental bodies who
are willing to use the GOSAT data for non-profit and peaceful purposes are entitled to participate in
the RA. In this manner, private companies are also qualified for submitting research proposals aslong as their themes are for non-profit and peaceful purposes.
Investigators involved in carrying out the research themes selected in the RA are called “RA3

Investigators” for the purpose of the RA. A team of RA Investigators working on a research theme
will elect one principal investigator (hereinafter referred to as “PI”) who will represent the team.
The PI will act as the contact person with the Three Parties in carrying out the research on theselected theme, such as communication, data transfer, submission of necessary documents, etc. In
principle the research organization (hereinafter referred to as “RO”) to which the PI belongs shallalso be responsible for signing the joint research contract with the Three Parties, as provided inAppendix E hereto, when selected for the RA. The signer may be the PI himself/herself only in caseif the PI does not belong to any organization.
Incidentally, the research teams selected for the RA may be requested to conclude a separate contract
in order to strengthen the cooperative relationship between the team and the Three Parties.
2.4 Basic Policies
The GOSAT/TANSO RA will be conducted based on the following policies:
1) The Three Parties will establish a committee to select the research proposals and to follow theirresults. This committee will be referred to as “the Committee” hereinafter. Research proposals
submitted in response to the RA will be evaluated by the Committee, and they will be selected by
the Three Parties based on the evaluation results by the Committee. The Committee shall be
responsible for not only evaluating the submitted proposals but also, as shown in Chapter 8.2.1
hereof, evaluating the progress and adequacy of the adopted researches.
2) The research period shall be the operational period of GOSAT/TANSO plus the operational periodof its ground system — five years after the launch, in principle (until January 22, 2014) —. Any
long-term research to be conducted, which goes beyond one year, will be subject to interim
reporting to the Three Parties, basically once a year.
3) The GOSAT/TANSO RA took place in April to August 2008 for the first time, in April to August
2009 for the second time, and in August 2010 to February 2011 for the third time. Taking into
account the success of the past RAs, applicants are invited to submit their research proposals
anytime from August 2012 aiming to improve convenience of the candidates and to giveopportunities to become new GOSAT RA Investigators.
4) PI of a research team may make multiple research proposals on different themes during themission period. (In other words, a single person may submit proposals on more than one research
themes to be carried out under this RA scheme.)
5) The PI may submit observational requests to the extent determined by the Committee per research
theme.
6) The PI may request for distribution of GOSAT data free of charge to the extent designated by theCommittee per research theme.
7) Applications for the GOSAT/TANSO RA and research plans shall be submitted via the Websites
run by the RA Office or by e-mail, in principle; those documents sent by conventional mail orother means may also be accepted according to the situation.
8) Research themes to be conducted under the RA scheme were selected in August 2008 for the firstRA, in July and August 2009 for the second RA, and in January 2011 for the third RA. From the
RA starting from August 2012, the selection will be administered at each time the Committee
meeting is held semiannually in principle.
9) Proposal titles and names of PIs and their ROs will be disclosed on the websites run by the NIESGOSAT Project office when their research themes are selected for the RA.
410) Outcomes of the GOSAT/TANSO RA must, in general, be disclosed to the public in the form of
papers published on academic journals and other media and at the same time be reported at the
research result reporting meetings held by the Three Parties.
11) The Three Parties do not provide any financial assistance to PIs, in principle, under the RA
scheme.
12) RO (or PI in case he/she does not belong to any organization) must conclude the joint
research contract, as provided in Appendix E, with the Three Parties prior to the start of research
activities on the selected research theme.
2.5 Implementing Organization of the GOSAT/TANSO RA
The Three Parties have set up an office in charge of the RA within the NIES GOSAT Project office,for firm and efficient implementation of the GOSAT/TANSO RA. The RA Office carries out thefollowing tasks in accordance with the basic policies set forth by the Three Parties.
1) Prepares the RA procedures and release them to the world.
2) Carries out administrative works as the secretariat of the Committee.
3) Accepts proposals submitted in response to the RA and requests the Committee for due evaluation
for selecting research themes.
4) Notifies the selection results to all PIs who submitted research proposals and assists those selected
PIs in signing the joint research contract (see Appendix E) necessary for carrying out the
research.
5) Receives the outputs of the research from the PIs by the deadline designated in the contract anddistributes them among the Three Parties.
6) Assists in organizing the research result report meetings to be held by the Three Parties.
7) Notifies the completion of the joint research agreement to the RO (or the PI in case if he/she does
not belong to any organization) in writing when the Committee confirms and accepts the Final
Report of Research Result submitted by the PI in accordance with section 8.2.2 of this Research
Announcement.
See Chapter 14 hereof for the contact information of the RA Office.

5

3. Outline of GOSAT and TANSO Sensors
3.1 Outline of GOSAT
An outline of GOSAT is provided in Chapter A.1 of Appendix A hereto.
3.2 Outline of GOSAT/TANSO-FTS
GOSAT/TANSO-FTS is one of the two sensors onboard GOSAT and is a Fourier interferometer
which observes GHGs such as CO2 and CH4. An outline of TANSO-FTS is provided in Chapter A.2of Appendix A hereto.
3.3 Outline of GOSAT/TANSO-CAIGOSAT/TANSO-CAI is one of the two sensors onboard GOSAT and is an imager which collects
cloud and aerosol information. An outline of TANSO-CAI is provided in Chapter A.3 of Appendix A
hereto.

6

4. GOSAT/TANSO Data Policies
Each PI is entitled to obtain the GOSAT data necessary for his/her respective research activities (upto a limited number) without any cost, from the Three Parties on the condition that he or she agrees
to the following provisions:
1)
2)
3)
4)
5)

The use of the data for any purpose in opposition to peaceful use is prohibited.
The use of the data for any other purpose than his/her research purpose is prohibited.
Redistribution of the data to any third party is prohibited.
The data obtained can only be distributed among the PI and RA Investigators.
Any publication of the outcomes obtained in consequence of the use of the data must be
accompanied by an indication of the data source.
6) The use of the data under the mechanisms of the Kyoto Protocol, namely the Joint
Implementation (Article 6 thereof), Clean Development Mechanism (Article 12 thereof), and theInternational Emission Trading (Article 17 thereof), without consent of the Three Parties is
prohibited, provided that any use for such a purpose may be allowed if the PI obtains anapproval of and concludes a contract with the Three Parties in advance.
The data to be distributed will be subject to the operational status of the satellite and the physicalrestrictions of the sensors. The invisible areas by FTS and CAI are explained in Chapters A.2 andA.3 of Appendix A hereto, respectively.
The Three Parties shall not be liable for any missing data, degradation of data quality, delay in datadelivery, or any other situation in which the data cannot be provided, as a result of problems that
occurs to the spacecraft or the ground facilities.
The ownership of the original data acquired with GOSAT/TANSO belongs to the Three Parties.
The “original data” here means the products provided by JAXA or NIES and should be distinguishedfrom the data obtained by RA Investigators as an outcome from their research activities.
RA Investigators are entitled to access the GOSAT data prior to the release of the data to the public.
They are also entitled to use the data planned to be acquired in accordance with the Basic
Observation Plan of the TANSO sensor attached hereto as Appendix C.
Although the RA Investigators and the Three Parties shall confer with respect to the content of new
observation requests after the selection, the RA Investigators drawing up research plans in responseto the RA should carefully examine the “Operation Policies of GOSAT and Basic Observation Planof the TANSO Sensor”, as provided in Appendix C, and plan acquisition and distribution requests for
the GOSAT data, with due consideration given to the constraints of each sensor in its observation(more concretely, invisible areas, observation mode switching, etc.)
RA Investigators are entitled to access the following data products:
1) L1 and L2 Standard products (See Table 1)
The “standard” products mean the calibrated Level 1B products, and all Level 2 or higher levelproducts generated from the validated L1B products and are released to general users. There are four7

calibration stages for L1 and four validation stages for L2 products, and they are explained in Table
2 and 3, respectively. All L1 and L2 products are released to general users at the “Confirmed” stage.
2) L2 Research products (See Table 1 as well as Table 6 described in Chapter 8)
The “research” products are the data products intended to be used in the research fields of calibration,
validation, data processing algorithms, data application, and other scientific researches. Theirvalidation stage goes up until (V) “Validated” and no further. They are available to RA Investigators,
to an extent necessary for their respective researches, at suitable timing. However, it should be notedthat because the research products are basically not the subjects for the validation activity, theresearch products at the “Validated” stage are the comparable quality to the “Preliminarily checked”
stage with feedback from RA* Investigators as supplementary explanation.
3) L3 Products (See Table 1)
L3 products are the global-scale products calculated from L1 and L2 products. L3 products are not“validated”, but they are released to RA Investigators prior to the public for preliminary evaluation.
4) L4 Products (See Table 1)
L4 Products consist of L4A (global CO2 flux) and L4B (global CO2 distribution) data products as thestandard products and L4A (global CH4 flux) and L4B (global CH4 distribution) data products as theresearch products. As for the standard products, at first, they are disclosed to the RA Investigators in
the research field of “carbon balance estimation, atmospheric transport models” explained in section
12.1, in order to obtain the investigators’ feedback and reflect them on the products’ release notes
and other documents. Then, prior to their release to the public, the products are distributed to allother RA Investigators for a purpose of quality confirmation.
5) JAXA’s satellite data other than the GOSAT data
Those selected PIs who are willing to use the satellite data owned by JAXA, other than the GOSAT
data, may so request to JAXA. When the request is made to JAXA, it shall also be informed to the
RA office.

8

Table 1
Processing
Level
L1A
L1B
L1B+

Sensor/ BandUnit

FTS L1A

data

Internal (*1)

FTS scene

CAI L1A

data

Internal (*1)

CAI sceneFTS

FTS L1B

data

Standard

FTS sceneCAI

CAI L1B data

Standard

CAI

CAI L1B+ data (*3)

Standard

L2 CO2 column amount (SWIR)

Standard

FTS TIRFTS SWIRFTS TIR

L3

CAI

L4B

Category

CAI

CAI

L4A

Product NameFTS

FTS SWIR

L2

List of GOSAT/TANSO data products (as of 31 August 2012)--

L2 CH4 column amount (SWIR)

Standard

L2 H2O column amount (SWIR)

Research

L2 CO2 profile (TIR)Standard

L2 CH4 profile (TIR)Standard

L2 CO2 column amount (TIR)

Research

L2 CH4 column amount (TIR)

Research

L2 temperature profile(TIR)

Research

L2 H2O profile (TIR)

Research

L2 H2O column amount (TIR)

Research

L2 cloud flag

Standard

L2 cloud property

Research

L2 aerosol property

Research

L3 global CO2 distribution (SWIR)

Standard

L3 global CH4 distribution (SWIR)

Standard

L3 global CO2 distribution (TIR)Standard

L3 global CH4 distribution (TIR)Standard

L3 global radiance distribution

Standard

L3 global reflectance distribution (clear sky)Standard

L3 global cloud property

Research

L3 global aerosol property

Research

L3 NDVI

Standard

L4A global CO2 flux (*2)

Standard

L4A global CH4 flux

Research

FormatCAI flame

Scan

HDF5

CAI flame

Global(monthly)

Global(per 3 days)
Global (monthly)
Rectangle(30°x 60° (lat. x lon.))(per 15 days)
Global(64 regions & 1 degree)(annually)

L4A global CO2 flux (*2)

Standard

L4A global CH4 flux

Research

L4A global CO2 flux

Research

L4A global CH4 flux

Research

Global (1 degree)(monthly)

L4B global CO2 distribution (*2)

Standard

Global 2.5 degree

L4B global CH4 distribution

Research(monthly)

Text

Global (1 degree)(annually)
NetCDF(*1) Internal products are available only to the investigators and organizations working with the
GOSAT Project in the field of calibration.
(*2) Browse images are also attached with these products at release.
Products colored yellow are those having been released to the public; products colored green arethose having been distributed only to RA Investigators; and products colored blue are those having
been distributed only to the RA Investigators specializing in the field of carbon balance estimation
and atmospheric transport models (as of 31 August 2012.)

9

Table 2

Definitions of the calibration stages for L1 standard products

Calibration Stage

Definition

Unchecked (U)Data products generated by simply processing the observation data.

Preliminarily
checked (P)Data products visually checked and judged as reliable.

Calibrated (Ca)Preliminarily checked data products having been verified by the initial
sensor calibration activity.

Confirmed (C)Calibrated data products which have been used by a limited communityof users for a certain period of time and for which no problem has beenreported by the users.

Table 3

Definitions of the validation stages for L2 standard products

Validation Stage

Definition

Unchecked (U)Products generated by simply processing the observation data.

Preliminarily
validated (P)Products visually checked and judged as reliable.

Validated (V)Preliminarily validated products which were compared with otherobservation data having higher-accuracy (e.g., ground-based observation)and judged as sufficiently accurate accordingly.

Confirmed (C)Validated products which have been used by a limited community ofusers for a certain period of time and for which no problem has beenreported by the users.

These validation stages apply when major changes in the processing algorithms are implemented andversion of the product is changed.
Table 4

Definitions of the evaluation stages for L3 standard products

Evaluation Stage
Unchecked (U)Evaluated (E)Confirmed (C)Definition
Products generated by simply processing L1 or L2 products.
Products generated by processing L1 or L2 products and visually checked
and judged as reliable.
Evaluated products which have been used by a limited community ofusers for a certain period of time and for which no problem has beenreported by the users, and for which their comments are reflected on
documents like product release notes.

10Table 5

Definitions of the check stages for L4 standard products

Validation Stage
Unchecked (U)Preliminarily
checked (P)Checked (Ch)

Confirmed (C)Definition
Products simply generated based on the carbon balance analysis using
both L2 products and the data of the ground-based observation stations.
The above unchecked products which have been visually checked andjudged as reliable.
Preliminarily checked products which have been checked by the expert
users for a certain period of time and for which no problem has beenreported by the users, and for which their comments are reflected on
documents like product release notes, if any.
Checked products which have been used by a limited community of users
for a certain period of time and for which no problem has been reportedby the users, and for which their comments are reflected on documents
like product release notes, if any.

11

5. Data Distribution of GOSAT/TANSO Products and Standards for theirUse
5.1 List of Products
Table 1 shown in Chapter 4 outlines the GOSAT/TANSO products, by product type, for which RA
Investigators can submit data distribution requests.
5.2 Data Format and Distribution Media
1) Data format
Of the GOSAT data, L1 to L3 products will be provided in the following format, which is commonlyused for distributing earth-observing sensor data.
- HDF 5 (Hierarchical Data Format 5)Higher-level data (L4 products) will be provided in the following format, considering that it is usedby TRANSCOM.
- NetCDF- Text2) Distribution media
The GOSAT data will be distributed online via the Internet, in general.

126. Funding
The Three Parties do not provide any kind of financial assistance to PIs, in principle.

13

7. Qualifications
As long as the research proposals are designed for peaceful and non-profit purposes, any research
institute, educational organization, governmental body, private company or individual researcher
who belongs or does not belong to any sort of organization, in any country, can apply for the RA,
regardless of nationality, group or individual.

148. Rights and Obligations of the Principal Investigator (PI)As explained in Chapter 2.3 above, the PI (one person) shall be responsible for communicating with
the Three Parties when applying for the RA and also researching on the research theme, if adopted.
Furthermore, as described in 12) of Chapter 2.4 above, the RO to which the PI belongs shallconclude the joint research contracts, attached hereto as Appendix E, with the Three Parties, withrespect to the implementation of the research on the theme selected in the RA. The signer may be thePI himself/herself only in case the PI does not belong to any organization.
8.1 Rights
The PI shall be entitled to the following rights:
1) Submitting observation requests necessary for the implementation of the research on theselected theme.
2) Requesting a delivery of standard products without any cost, before the release to the public.
(This applies when major changes in the processing algorithms are implemented and version of
the product is changed.)
3) Requesting a delivery of research products without any cost. However, note that the number ofsuch requests will be determined in consideration of the conformity to the research purpose.
4) Requesting a “forced” processing of FTS L2 data and a distribution of its results if the L2 data
are not generated by any reasons. The “forced” means the processing condition applying neither
filtering nor screening to the data in its processing. For making such request, browse images
including the targeted observation point shall be visually confirmed beforehand so that there isno cloud over the point. The request will be accepted only in case if those data are necessary forthe progress of the adopted RA research.
5) In addition to the FTS L2 data products (column abundances of CO 2, CH4, and H2O (SWIR)),
PIs can obtain additional information so-called “sub-datasets” of these products.
6) Accessing the NIES “large-volume data distribution system” server to download the GOSAT
data collectively. This privilege, however, is only granted to those PIs whose specificapplications for its use are approved.
7) Requesting a delivery of the FTS L2 data products which are applied less strict criteria ofscreening than usual to the public.
8) PIs are entitled to participate in the “PI Meeting” being held by the Three Parties.
Note: PIs’ rights over the products which will be distributed after the release of this document will
be announced via appropriate means such as the NIES GOSAT Project webpage or e-mail.
In addition, Table 6, 7, 8 and 9 below summarize the timing of product distribution by user
categories which mainly consist of two categories; RA users and general users. As far as the RA
users, those RA Investigators who study on calibration, validation, or data processing algorithm aregrouped as RA* users, while those who study on carbon balance estimation and atmospherictransport models or data application are grouped as RA+ users. Further, those particularly
specializing in the field of carbon balance estimation and atmospheric transport models are
categorized as RA-Mo users.

15

Table 6
User Category
RA* Investigator
RA+ Investigator
General user

L1 data distribution conditions for standard/research productsStandard productResearch product (*1)
To be distributed from the P(preliminarily checked) stage
To be distributed from the Ca(calibrated) stage
To be released at the C (confirmed)
stage

Table 7User Category
RA* Investigator
RA+ Investigator
General user

L2 data distribution conditions for standard/research productsStandard productResearch product (*1)
To be distributed from the P
To be distributed from the P(preliminarily checked) stage(preliminarily checked) stage
To be distributed from the V
To be distributed from the V(validated) stage(validated nominally) stage (*2)
To be released at the C (confirmed)
Not available
stage

Table 8User Category
RA Investigator
General user

L3 data distribution conditions for standard/research productsStandard productResearch product (*1)
To be distributed from the E
To be distributed from the E(evaluated) stage(evaluated) stage
To be released at the C (confirmed)
Not available
stage

Table 9 L4 data distribution conditions for standard/research products
User Category
Standard productResearch product (*1)
RA-Mo
To be distributed from the P
To be distributed from the P
Investigator(preliminarily checked) stage(preliminarily checked) stage
RA InvestigatorTo be distributed from the Ch
To be distributed from the Ch
other than RA-Mo (checked) stage(checked) stage
To be released at the C (confirmed)
General user
Not available
stage(*1) The research products are made available to RA Investigators, to an extent necessary for theirrespective researches, at suitable timing. The Three Parties do not guarantee their product quality.
At this moment, invention of the L1 research product is not planned (See Table 1).
(*2) Because the research products are not the subjects for the validation activity, as far as L2
research products are concerned, the V (validated) stage shall be stated as the V (validated
nominally) (See Chapter 4, 2. L2 research products).

168.2 Obligations
8.2.1 Interim reporting
PI shall report the progress of his/her RA research, once a year in principle, in the way
designated by the Three Parties, such as submitting the report in writing or presenting thereport at GOSAT-related workshops, symposiums, interim report meetings, andconferences to be held by the Three Parties. The Three Parties shall evaluate the interim
research result report and the progress report in the Interim Evaluation based on the
results of deliberation by the Committee and notify the evaluation results to the RO (orthe PI if the PI does not belong to any organization) in accordance with Article 2 of theGeneral Contractual Conditions for the Joint Research on the GOSAT data.
Moreover, if the Committee deems the research purpose or data application of the RA
Investigators as deviant from the initial research plan or in breach of the joint researchcontract, as a result of the examination of the progress reported, the Three Parties may
terminate the said agreement.
8.2.2 Final reporting and termination of the contract
When the research period scheduled and stated in the research proposal comes to the end,
all PIs are required to submit the Final Report of Research Result to the Three Parties inaccordance with the instructions provided in the contract. Timing of the submission is
generally within one year from the last interim research result report. When the RA Officereceives the Final Report of Research Result from the PI and the Committee confirms andaccepts the report, the RO will be informed (or the PI if the PI does not belong to any
organization) about the completion of the joint research agreement in writing. The reportshall be prepared in English.

179. Preparation and Submission of Research Proposals
9.1 Notes to the preparation of research proposals
The documents to be submitted in response to the RA must be prepared in accordance with thefollowing procedures. Those proposals that are prepared in disregard of these conditions may be
excluded from the succeeding evaluation process. In addition, none of the submitted documents will
be returned to the proposers for any reason whatsoever.
---Prepare a research proposal in accordance with the procedure for submission defined in this
Chapter and the “Contents of Research Proposals and Application Forms” provided as Appendix
D hereto. The application forms in Appendix D will be selected and used as necessary, except
Forms 1a, 1b and 2 that are mandatory for all applicants.
Submit your research proposal in the PDF format, in the way that it is ready for printing in A4 or
letter size, together with necessary references, such as relevant theses, via e-mail to the
GOSAT/TANSO RA Office’s e-mail address (gosat-prj1@nies.go.jp). Note that the size of thesubmission e-mail should not exceed 10 MB, including the main text. Should your proposal
exceed this limit, prepare six copies of the proposal documents as well as the references, record
the proposal in the PDF format on an electric medium, such as CD-R, and send the whole
package to the RA Office by conventional mail.
Letters on the documents should all be typed in 10- to 12-point size.
Indicate the page number at the bottom center and the name of applicant in the upper rightcorner on each page of the documents.

9.2 Language
The research proposal and accompanying reference documents must all be prepared in either English
or Japanese. Those who are native speakers of Japanese shall prepare and submit Forms 1a and 1b of
Appendix D, which are cover sheets of the proposal, in both English and Japanese.
9.3 Volume
The research proposal must be compiled in the most simplified way, focusing on the minimallynecessary contents. The total volume of the proposal, excluding appendices, must be 20 pages or less.
See Appendix D for further specific rules.
9.4 Contents to be included in research proposals and the preparation procedure
See Appendix D
9.5 Submission of research proposals
As mentioned in Chapter 9.1 above, the applicants for the RA should submit the proposal and othernecessary documents basically via e-mail. However, in a case that the applicant is unable to use
e-mail, insert all documents necessary for the application in an envelope, and send it to the following
address by conventional mail.
18

GOSAT RA Office
Center for Global Environmental Research (CGER)
National Institute for Environmental Studies (NIES)
16-2 Onogawa, Tsukuba-shi, Ibaraki
305-8506 Japan
TEL: 81-29-850-2966 (Japanese)
TEL: 81-29-850-2035 (English)
FAX: 81-29-850-2219
E-mail: gosat-prj1@nies.go.jp

1910. Selection of Research Proposals
10.1 Evaluation and Selection Procedure
The research proposals submitted in response to the RA will be evaluated by the Committee. The
Three Parties will make a final decision on the selection of research themes, based on the evaluation
results of the Committee. The applicants may be requested to modify or rectify the contents of the
proposed research plan, in the course of the selection by the Committee, with a view to enriching the
expected scientific results from the proposed research. In addition, the Committee may solicit adviceof the GOSAT Science Team in the process of evaluation. All applicants will be notified of theselection results by the scheduled date announced; the schedule of the fourth RA is given in Chapter
13.4 of this document while the schedules for the following RAs will be publicized via the NIESGOSAT Project website in an appropriate timing.
10.2 Evaluation Criteria
The submitted research proposals will be examined and selected based on the following evaluation
criteria.
1) The contents of the proposed research conform to the purpose of the RA.
2) The methods and approaches adopted in the proposed research are appropriate and the underlying
concept is original and/or innovative.
3) The RA Investigators are qualified in terms of research capability, experience, facility/equipment,
and skills necessary for accomplishing the purpose of the proposed research.
4) The proposed research is consistent and relevant with the purpose of the GOSAT Project.
5) The purpose of the proposed research can be accomplished within the research period.
10.3 Post-selection Procedure
The RO of the selected PI shall sign the joint research contract with the Three Parties, in principle,
based on the “General Contractual Conditions for the Joint Research on the GOSAT data”, attached
as Appendix E hereto. The RO and the PI shall observe all the clauses, in connection with theperformance of the research, as stipulated in the General Contractual Conditions.
The RA Office shall carry out the administrative work necessary for concluding such a contract, inline with the intentions of the Three Parties.

2011. Cancellation and Postponement of RA
The Three Parties reserve the right to cancel the RA and joint research projects based on the RA by
notifying in writing, and shall not be liable for any delay in the RA schedule or cancellation of the
RA program itself or to those who did not receive any notice regarding such delay or cancellation.

21

12. Expected Research Topics
The Three Parties have been and will be continually promoting the GOSAT Project by playing therespective roles in the research and development deemed as necessary for achieving its purpose withthe advice and help from the GOSAT Science Team. The specific research and development
activities within the Project include; the calibration of the GOSAT/TANSO equipment, validation ofhigher-level products (observation and analysis for validation), development and improvement of thedata processing algorithms, development of atmospheric transport models and land ecosystemmodels, generation of source inventories, and development of carbon flux estimation models, etc.
Also, the analysis methods for such basic phenomena that have influence on evaluation of thecharacteristics and quality of data such as temporal variation of concentrations and carbon balance
distributions are studied. Furthermore, with the GOSAT Project, research on advanced application of
the GOSAT/TANSO data, for example, detection of CH 4 leakage from natural gas pipelines or local
forest fires, and so forth, is conducted. More details are provided in the succeeding section.
Through the implementation of the RA, the GOSAT Project expects to benefit from the RA researchoutcomes for developing higher level data products. At the same time, the Project wants to see theresearch field of data application being further facilitated, and the data acquired by the GOSAT willcontribute to resolve the global-warming issues through the effective utilization. Therefore, the
GOSAT Project is open and willing to accept new research proposals from all parts of the world.
In this Chapter hereunder is provided a summary of research topics to be or to have been carried out
in the GOSAT Project. It is anticipated that a large number of research themes, that will supplement
the research topics of the GOSAT Project, that will utilize the applicant’s own validation data, or thatare based on very original and unprecedented perspectives, will be proposed.
12.1 Research Topics conducted or targeted by the GOSAT Project1) Calibration
The calibration-related research topics conducted or targeted by the GOSAT Project include
calibration (including wavelength calibration) when interferogram is transformed into spectra,
calibration in relation to correction of the variation of the observation sensors’ field of view,
instrument function calibration, radiance calibration, etc. as for TANSO-FTS, and radiometriccalibration, geometric correction, calibration of the sensor sensitivity, etc. as for TANSO-CAI.
2) Data processing algorithms
The processing algorithm-related research topics conducted or targeted by the Project include
development of fast data processing algorithms, sunglint observation data processing methods,
processing algorithms using polarized data, and algorithms to extract parameters fromthermal-infrared data, evaluation of spectral parameters of gaseous molecules and sunlight
spectra, combined use of short wavelength infrared and thermal infrared data, etc.
3) Carbon flux estimation, atmospheric transport models
The model-development-related research topics conducted or targeted by the Project include
development and refining of source inventory databases, refining of atmospheric transport andland ecosystem models, etc., development of carbon flux estimation models with hightemporal/spatial resolution, etc.

224) Validation*Before the launch
The research topics targeted by the GOSAT Project included validation by ground-based
high-resolution and by small-sized FTSs with airborne in-situ instruments, evaluation of sunglint
observation algorithms using airborne or ground-based FTSs, development of validation
methods based on data taken by LIDAR, sky radiometers or other equipment for validating
aerosol, etc.
*After the launch
The research topics conducted or targeted by the GOSAT Project include acquisition andanalytical validation of data taken at validation sites on land and on ocean (including island andcape), analytical validation of data taken by instruments on board private aircraft, comparison
with data taken by other satellites or computed by models, etc., for the purpose of validating thequality of data on the CO2 and CH 4 column abundances, as well as validating the quality of dataon vertical distributions of CO2 and CH4 concentrations to be derived from the thermal-infrared
data. Validation of CAI data products is also included.
5) Data application
FTS: The research topics conducted or targeted by the Project include analysis of basic
phenomena that have influence on evaluation of the characteristics and quality of data such as
temporal/spatial variation of concentration distributions and carbon balance distributions,
possible advanced applications, such as detection of CH4 leak from pipelines, local high-volume
exhaust due to forest fires and detection of the fluorescence from vegetation, possibility ofobserving atmospheric trace components, such as N2O, CFC, etc., and so on.
CAI: Generation and utilization of the global vegetation index map based on the CAI data, andothers.
12.2 Expected Research Topics to be proposed in the RA
1)
2)
3)
4)
5)

Calibration
Data processing algorithm
Carbon balance estimation, atmospheric transport models
Validation
Data application

23

13. Schedule
13.1 1st Announcement
Release of RA
Deadline for submission of proposals
Notification of the selection results
Sign up of the agreement
PI meeting/workshop
Launch of GOSAT
Submission of interim reports
13.2 2nd Announcement
Release of RA
Deadline for submission of proposals
Notification of the selection result
Sign up of the agreement
2nd PI meeting/workshop
Submission of interim reports
13.3 3rd Announcement
Release of RA
Deadline for submission of proposals
Notification of the selection result
Sign up of the agreement
3rd PI meeting/workshop
Submission of interim reports

April 7, 2008
July 7, 2008
August 29, 2008
August 30, 2008 and later
November 5-7, 2008
January 23, 2009
December 28, 2009

April 7, 2009
June 1, 2009 for RA* users
June 23, 2009 for RA+ users
July 31, 2009 for RA* users
August 28, 2009 for RA+ users
August 3, 2009 or later for RA* users
August 31, 2009 or later for RA+ users
January 28-29, 2010
September 30, 2010

August 20, 2010
October 29, 2010
January 31, 2011
February 1, 2011 and laterMay 19-20, 2011
March 1, 201213.4 4th Announcement (Current Announcement)(Memos bracketed are the principle for RAs following the 4th RA)
Release of RA
August 31, 2012
[See * for the 5th and following RAs.]
Period for proposal acceptanceAugust 31, 2012 ~ October 26, 2012*[More than 50 days shall be secured for this period in principle.]
Evaluation Period
August 31 ~ November 11, 2012
[Evaluation is, in principle, completed within the period between the release of RA anduntil two weeks after proposal submission due.
Date of the selection board
November 16, 2012
[After the evaluation, the selection board is held in the RA committee meeting.]
Notification of the selection result
November 30, 2012
[Notification is made in a prompt manner.]
Sign up of the agreement
December 3, 2012 and later24

[The Three Parties and the RO of the PI whose research proposal was accepted shall
execute the contract. If the PI does not belong to any organization, the PI shall executethe contract instead.]
Submission of interim reports
December 28, 2013
[In principle, the first interim report shall be submitted within one year after theacceptance of the proposal.]* Applications and research proposals are always invited - even after October 26, 2012. Schedules
for the fifth RA and all of following RAs will be posted on the NIES GOSAT Project website in an
appropriate timing.
In case no proposal is submitted or no proposal is selected during the above period, the Three
Parties will continue to invite research proposals under the ongoing RA instead of making a new
announcement. For example, if no research proposal is submitted in response to the fourth RA, theThree Parties will carry the selection board over to the next RA committee meeting and continue toinvite research proposals under the fourth RA. The schedule revised by adjustment will be
publicized via the NIES GOSAT Project website or other appropriate means.

2514. Contact Information
GOSAT RA Office
Center for Global Environmental Research (CGER)
National Institute for Environmental Studies (NIES)
16-2 Onogawa, Tsukuba-shi, Ibaraki
305-8506 Japan
TEL: 81-29-850-2966 (Japanese)
TEL: 81-29-850-2035 (English)
FAX: 81-29-850-2219
E-mail: gosat-prj1@nies.go.jp

26