Total solar irradiance monitors, space instruments for measuring total solar irradiance on FY-3 satellites

Total Solar Irradiance (TSI) has been recorded daily by Total Solar Irradiance Monitors (TSIM) with overlapping measurements on FY-3 (Feng Yun-3) series satellites since 2008. Instrument descriptions, operation in space and flight performance of three TSIMs are presented in this paper. TSI is measured by electrical substitution radiometers integrated in TSIM, with traceability to SI. TSIM/FY-3A and TSIM/FY-3B share nearly the same design. Since TSIM/FY-3A and TSIM/FY-3B have no pointing system, the Sun is only observed when the Sunlight sweeps TSIM's field-of-view and TSI measurements are influenced inevitably by solar pointing errors. TSIM/FY-3C, a radiometer package was constructed with a pointing system for solar tracking in order to achieve accurate solar pointing. TSIM/FY-3C was sent into orbit in September 2013 onboard FY-3C satellite. Daily TSI measurements have been performed by TSIM/FY-3C with autonomous accurate solar tracking for 1 year. TSIM/FY-3C is in a good instrument health according to its on-orbit data. 2014 SPIE.