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Monitoring tropospheric chemistry from space is the next frontier for advancing present-day remote sensing capabilities to meet future high-priority atmospheric science measurement needs. The Tropospheric Trace Species Sensing Fabry-Perot Interferometer (TTSS-FPI) is a NASA Instrument Incubator Program (IIP) project for risk mitigation of enabling concepts and technology applicable to future Office of Earth Science (OES) atmospheric chemistry measurements. While the intended implementation for future science missions is a geostationary based measurement of tropospheric ozone and other trace species, a multispectral imaging airborne sensor system is being developed within IIP to demonstrate the instrument concept and enabling technologies that are also applicable to space-based configurations. The concept is centered about an imaging Fabry-Perot interferometer (FPI) observing a narrow spectral interval within the strong 9.6 micron ozone infrared band with a spectral resolution ~ 0.07 cm-1. This concept is also applicable to and could simplify designs associated with atmospheric chemistry sensors targeting other trace species (which typically require spectral resolutions in the range of 0.01 - 0.1 cm-1), since such an FPI approach could be implemented for those spectral bands requiring the highest spectral resolution and thus simplify overall design complexity. An overview of this IIP project addressing the measurement and instrument concepts, enabling technologies, approach for development and demonstration, and a summary of progress-to-date will all be reported. This will include sensor radiometric, spectral, and spatial characterization activities relevant to measurement concept validation. Subsequent manuscripts following in these proceedings will focus on the airborne prototype system under development and a corresponding spaceflight concept study, respectively.
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