Our Mission
The Carnegie Airborne Observatory combines advanced spectroscopic imaging and waveform laser remote sensing technologies to study ecosystems anywhere in the world. The CAO mission is to understand how changes in land use, climate, and natural disturbances affect the structure, composition and functioning of ecosystems, and how these changes alter the services provided by ecosystems to people.
Our Sponsors
The Carnegie Airborne Observatory is made possible by the generous support of the W. M. Keck Foundation, the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, and William R. Hearst III. CAO research applications are supported by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, NASA's Terrestrial Ecology Program, and the Carnegie Institution.
CAO Status
The CAO is operating in Hawaii, South Africa and the Amazon Basin in 2009-2010.
