An Approach for Improving Cirrus Cloud-Top Pressure/Height Estimation by Merging High-Spatial-Resolution Infrared-Window Imager Data with High-Spectral-Resolution Sounder Data

Weisz, Elisabeth; Menzel, W. Paul; Smith, Nadia; Frey, R.; Borbás, Éva; Baum, Bryan A.

doi:10.1175/jamc-d-11-0170.1

Cited by 5 publications

(1 citation statement)

References 29 publications

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“…The DR method provides cloud top pressure (CTP) retrievals (in hectopascals) which are converted to cloud top heights (in kilometers) by using NCEP GDAS temperature and moisture profiles. Aqua and CALIPSO are part of the same constellation of satellites, the so‐called A‐Train, with Aqua leading CALIPSO by ~75 s. This arrangement provides a large set of nearly simultaneous cloud observations to assist sounder cloud retrieval evaluation using CALIOP/AIRS comparisons [ Weisz et al ., ; Kahn et al ., ; Weisz et al ., ].…”

Section: Cth Comparison With Caliopmentioning

confidence: 99%

Advances in simultaneous atmospheric profile and cloud parameter regression based retrieval from high‐spectral resolution radiance measurements

Weisz

Smith

2013

JGR Atmospheres

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[1] The dual-regression (DR) method retrieves information about the Earth surface and vertical atmospheric conditions from measurements made by any high-spectral resolution infrared sounder in space. The retrieved information includes temperature and atmospheric gases (such as water vapor, ozone, and carbon species) as well as surface and cloud top parameters. The algorithm was designed to produce a high-quality product with low latency and has been demonstrated to yield accurate results in real-time environments. The speed of the retrieval is achieved through linear regression, while accuracy is achieved through a series of classification schemes and decision-making steps. These steps are necessary to account for the nonlinearity of hyperspectral retrievals. In this work, we detail the key steps that have been developed in the DR method to advance accuracy in the retrieval of nonlinear parameters, specifically cloud top pressure. The steps and their impact on retrieval results are discussed in-depth and illustrated through relevant case studies. In addition to discussing and demonstrating advances made in addressing nonlinearity in a linear geophysical retrieval method, advances toward multi-instrument geophysical analysis by applying the DR to three different operational sounders in polar orbit are also noted. For any area on the globe, the DR method achieves consistent accuracy and precision, making it potentially very valuable to both the meteorological and environmental user communities.Citation: Weisz, E., W. L. Smith Sr., and N. Smith (2013), Advances in simultaneous atmospheric profile and cloud parameter regression based retrieval from high-spectral resolution radiance measurements,

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Section: Cth Comparison With Caliopmentioning

confidence: 99%

Advances in simultaneous atmospheric profile and cloud parameter regression based retrieval from high‐spectral resolution radiance measurements

Weisz

Smith

2013

JGR Atmospheres

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AIRS, IASI, and CrIS Retrieval Records at Climate Scales: An Investigation into the Propagation of Systematic Uncertainty

Smith

Weisz

et al. 2015

Journal of Applied Meteorology and Climatology

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Uncertainty requirements for climate observations are more stringent than for weather observations because of the scale dependency of natural variation. At present there is no space-based climate observing system, so weather observations have to be aggregated for the study of large-scale change. The management and minimization of uncertainty sources in weather observations are, therefore, a high priority. This work is a first attempt at investigating if a single long-term record can be assembled with temperature retrievals from three hyperspectral satellite sounders in polar orbit: the Atmospheric Infrared Sounder (AIRS) on Aqua in afternoon orbit since 2002, the Infrared Atmospheric Sounding Interferometer (IASI) on MetOp-A in morning orbit since 2006, and the Cross-track Infrared Sounder (CrIS) on board the Suomi National Polar-Orbiting Partnership in afternoon orbit since 2011. These instruments measure not only the vertical atmospheric structure but also atmospheric composition, thus providing coincident observations of many essential climate variables. Two main sources of known systematic differences, namely local sampling time (LST) and instrument type (i.e., interferometer vs grating spectrometer), are characterized. For a 5-yr record it is shown that differences among these temperature soundings are height dependent; a multi-instrument data record could be assembled from measurements of the stratosphere but this is not yet possible for the troposphere, where cloud effects are shown to be dominant and dependent on instrument type. Moreover, LST differences are limited to regional systematic effects in the lower troposphere and boundary layer. This research is a step toward the development of transparent and geophysically consistent methods with which to assemble weather measurements into climate observations.

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Using Sounder Data to Improve Cirrus Cloud Height Estimation from Satellite Imagers

Heidinger

Bearson

Foster

et al. 2019

Journal of Atmospheric and Oceanic Technology

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Abstract Modern polar-orbiting meteorological satellites provide both imaging and sounding observations simultaneously. Most imagers, however, do not have H2O and CO2 absorption bands and therefore struggle to accurately estimate the height of optically thin cirrus clouds. Sounders provide these needed observations, but at a spatial resolution that is too coarse to resolve many important cloud structures. This paper presents a technique to merge sounder and imager observations with the goal of maintaining the details offered by the imager’s high spatial resolution and the accuracy offered by the sounder’s spectral information. The technique involves deriving cloud temperatures from the sounder observations, interpolating the sounder temperatures to the imager pixels, and using the sounder temperatures as an additional constraint in the imager cloud height optimal estimation approach. This technique is demonstrated using collocated VIIRS and Cross-track Infrared Sounder (CrIS) observations with the impact of the sounder observations validated using coincident CALIPSO/CALIOP cloud heights These comparisons show significant improvement in the cloud heights for optically thin cirrus. The technique should be generally applicable to other imager/sounder pairs.

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An Approach for Improving Cirrus Cloud-Top Pressure/Height Estimation by Merging High-Spatial-Resolution Infrared-Window Imager Data with High-Spectral-Resolution Sounder Data

Cited by 5 publications

References 29 publications

Advances in simultaneous atmospheric profile and cloud parameter regression based retrieval from high‐spectral resolution radiance measurements

Advances in simultaneous atmospheric profile and cloud parameter regression based retrieval from high‐spectral resolution radiance measurements

AIRS, IASI, and CrIS Retrieval Records at Climate Scales: An Investigation into the Propagation of Systematic Uncertainty

Using Sounder Data to Improve Cirrus Cloud Height Estimation from Satellite Imagers

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