Observation of atmospheric ammonia with a compact hyperspectral imager in the thermal infrared

Anthropogenic emissions of reactive nitrogen species have significantly increased, largely because of discharges from livestock, agricultural intensification and fertilizer use. Reactive nitrogen affects air quality, sensitive natural ecosystems, and the carbon balance. The proposed mission aims at providing high spatial resolution measurements (<1 km) of NH3. These data will complement future hyperspectral sounding missions, monitoring emissions over industrial, domestic, and agricultural hotspots. The mission is based on a compact hyperspectral imager in the Thermal Infrared spectral range, deployed on a small satellite platform. We report on the mission design and objectives and address the technical feasibility of retrieving NH3 with a small satellite.