The CALIPSO satellite provides new insight into the role that clouds and atmospheric aerosols play in regulating Earth's weather, climate, and air quality.
CALIPSO combines an active lidar instrument with passive infrared and visible imagers to probe the vertical structure and properties of thin clouds and aerosols over the globe. CALIPSO was launched on April 28, 2006, with the CloudSat satellite.
CALIPSO and CloudSat are highly complementary and together provide new, never-before-seen 3D perspectives of how clouds and aerosols form, evolve, and affect weather and climate. CALIPSO and CloudSat fly in formation with three other satellites in the A-train constellation to enable an even greater understanding of our climate system.