NASA Outlines CRAVE Surface Radiation Measurement and Satellite Validation Effort

The CERES Radiation Validation Experiment (CRAVE) supports NASA's Earth Observing System by providing continuous surface radiation measurements and validating satellite products, according to NASA documentation.

Overview of CRAVE Sites

CRAVE comprises three sites in total, divided into active locations and a legacy station:

• Granite Island, Lake Superior: Established in the summer of 2018, located 19 km north of Marquette, Michigan, and 10 km from the closest land point.
• NASA Langley, Hampton, Virginia: Established in December 2014.
• Chesapeake Light Station (COVE): A legacy site active from 2000 to 2016, located 25 km from the closest land point in Virginia Beach. After 17 continuous years of operation, it was indefinitely suspended due to structural concerns.

Network Membership and Standards

All three CRAVE sites belong to the Baseline Surface Radiation Network (BSRN), which is recognized as a standard for surface radiation measurements. The two currently active CRAVE sites represent two of only 43 operational BSRN sites worldwide.

Broader Context and Verification

Data collected through the overarching Clouds and the Earth's Radiant Energy System (CERES) experiment contribute to measuring the Earth's total radiant energy. The project operates under the science initiatives at NASA's Langley Research Center, with broader agency goals focused on accelerating the use of Earth observation data for decision-making.

Readers can verify official project updates and technical announcements by visiting the official NASA Science website at science.nasa.gov.