Deep Space Climate Observatory: The DSCOVR mission

Abstract

In 1998, then-Vice President Al Gore proposed a mission to the Earth-Sun first Lagrange point (L1) to observe the Earth as a planet. This mission was named Triana, after the lookout on Christopher Columbus's fleet who is reputedly the first of the European explorers to see the new world. Triana mission development proceeded for 21 months and cost an estimated $249M (in FY07$) before it was de-manifested from the Space Shuttle. The spacecraft has been in a state of “Stable Suspension” since November 2001. After the mission was placed into suspension, it was renamed the Deep Space Climate Observatory (DSCOVR). This paper will cover an overview of the original mission and highlights of refurbishing this mission to launch 16 years after it started, plus an update on its currently planned mission architecture.