Brassboard tests of a high-resolution interferometer (GHIS) installed in a GOES sounder

Examination of future NOAA Geostationary Operational Environment Satellite (GOES) IR sounder requirement suggested replacing the present GOES I-M series filter wheel instrument with a high-resolution FTIR interferometer. NOAA and MIT Lincoln Laboratory initiated a design and test program replacement feasibility. In collaboration with NASA and ITT Aerospace, a brassboard-version GOES High-Resolution Interferometer Sounder (GHIS) developed under this pathfinder program was installed inside an earlier generation sounder at ITT Aerospace. This paper describes the suite of tests performed while operating the GHIS brassboard at room temperature inside the sounder. Results from the tests effort highlight key issues involved in characterizing FTIR interferometer performance for GOES sounder applications.