The Canadian Space Agency said Thursday thatitsOSIRIS (Optical Spectrograph and InfraRed Imager System) instrument flying onboard Swedish satellite Odin will continue to provide data relating to ozone depletion for an additional year. The satellite and instruments, including a radiometer for microwave radiation, are still functional after having completed their two-year initial mission, the agency said.

The OSIRIS instrument, built by Routes AstroEngineering of Ottawa, Ontario, began transmitting scientific data to Earth in May 2001. These measurements are used in research done by the Canadian atmospheric science team headed by Dr. E.J. Llewellyn of the University of Saskatchewan. Data provided by OSIRIS helps validate the measurements made by other satellites such as the European Space Agency‘s ENVISAT.