Operation Space Brolly - Meet Tara Thompson on the Biomass satellite and monitoring the Earth's lungs

Operation Space Brolly - Meet Tara Thompson on the Biomass satellite and monitoring the Earth's lungs

Author: Gemma Plumb & Aisling Creevey July 16, 2025 Duration: 32:17

Tara Thompson is a communications specialist working with world-leading Earth Observation scientists, ensuring expert facts are at the forefront of the climate conversation in policy making and within the media.

In this episode Tara tells us about a recently launched Biomass satellite fondly called ‘Space Brolly’ because of its incredible 12 metre long antenna.

Tara tells us about how this is the first time precision data will be collected for global forests, with the Biomass satellite making continuous passes of the Earth’s lungs.

Biomass is capable of seeing through the trees canopies, using advanced P-band radar technology. This technology can be used to measure the structure and carbon content of forests providing an understanding like never before on how much carbon is sequestered by forests. This data will be vital in informing better climate policies and how do we best protect the world’s forests.

Tara is optimistic about the future of climate change and how all climate science is helping to shape a better world. In our ‘get to know me round’ we learn Tara’s favourite season as well as reflecting back on a childhood in the west of Ireland, where her first spark of joy for the weather was born.

We really hope you enjoy this episode of the podcast, and leave loving the weather just a little bit more.

If you want to hear a little more weather and climate chat - please hit subscribe, like and share with a friend.

You can follow us on Instagram @fortheloveofweather and on X and BlueSky @4loveofweather. If you would like to follow more about Earth’s satellites check

https://www.nceo.ac.uk/ and https://space4climate.com/

You can subscribe on Youtube -

https://www.youtube.com/@ForTheLoveOfWeather


Ever find yourself actually enjoying a rainy afternoon or wondering why a certain cloud looks the way it does? You're not alone. For the love of weather is the ongoing conversation between meteorologists Gemma Plumb and Aisling Creevey, who have spent over fifteen years forecasting across the UK. This podcast captures the kind of deep-dive chats they've been having for years, moving far beyond simple small talk. They pull back the curtain on what weather really means for our daily lives, drawing on a surprising range of experience. Their professional paths have seen them predicting conditions for everything from major music festivals and national rail networks to agricultural harvests and even ice cream demand, giving them a unique perspective on how the atmosphere connects to the ground beneath our feet. Each episode feels like sitting with two experts who are still genuinely fascinated by their subject, discussing the science behind a storm front, the challenges of a long-range forecast, or how a shift in the wind can change an entire industry's plans. It's a look at the patterns and stories in the sky, grounded in the reality of jobs, life changes, and a shared curiosity that hasn't faded. Tune in for a human take on the forces that shape our days.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 50

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