MODIS provides a satellite focus on Operation Iraqi Freedom

Extreme weather conditions over southwest Asia posed significant challenges to military operations conducted during the 2003 Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF) campaign. This paper describes an effort to provide improved environmental characterization by way of a suite of value‐added satellite imagery tools leveraging moderate resolution imaging spectroradiometer (MODIS) data. Available from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Terra and Aqua platforms, these research‐grade data were made available to operational users in 2 to 3 hours turn‐around time via a near real‐time processing effort (NRTPE) interagency collaboration between the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), NASA, and the Department of Defense (DoD). Derived products were packaged into a centralized online graphical user interface, Satellite Focus, which provided a one‐stop resource for satellite information over the southwest Asia domain. A central goal of Satellite Focus was to expedite information ga...