Queen Mary 2

The Queen Mary 2 is fitted with a scanning infrared radiometer to validate satellite measurements of sea-surface temperature. This sensor is positioned high on the starboard bridge wind, giving a perfect view of the water below. The mix of transatlantic crossings and tropical round-the-world cruises offer an ideal combination of hot and cold-water measurements and atmospheric conditions measurements for validating satellite data. The instrument, developed by Rutherford Appleton Laboratory, is a compact self-calibrating infrared filter radiometer that uses two internal reference blackbodies to maintain its own calibration. Rather surprisingly, a modified beer cooler houses these reference blackbodies.