An on-orbit infrared intercalibration reference standard for decadal climate trending of the Earth

Taylor, Joe K.; Revercomb, Henry E.; Best, Fred A.; Knuteson, Robert O.; Tobin, David C.; Gero, P. Jonathan; Adler, Doug; Mulligan, Mark

doi:10.1117/12.2533206

Cited by 2 publications

(2 citation statements)

References 14 publications

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“…Primarily, the use of a silver scan mirror to achieve high reflectance in the visible and near infrared (Vis/NIR) channels introduced polarization in the infrared, whereas a gold mirror would have made this error smaller (at the cost of lower reflectance in the Vis/NIR). Finally, while the OBC blackbody was an exceptionally stable standard, an in-orbit SI-traceable blackbody that operates at two widely separated temperatures with phase transition thermistors, and in-orbit reflectance measurements would have reduced many of the errors associated with transferring the calibration from the LABB to the OBC blackbody [45].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

SI-Traceability and Measurement Uncertainty of the Atmospheric Infrared Sounder Version 5 Level 1B Radiances

et al. 2020

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The Atmospheric Infrared Sounder (AIRS) on the EOS Aqua Spacecraft was launched on 4 May 2002. The AIRS is designed to measure atmospheric temperature and water vapor profiles and has demonstrated exceptional radiometric and spectral accuracy and stability in orbit. The International System of Units (SI)-traceability of the derived radiances is achieved by transferring the calibration from the Large Area Blackbody (LABB) with SI traceable temperature sensors, to the On-Board Calibrator (OBC) blackbody during preflight testing. The AIRS views the OBC blackbody and four full aperture space views every scan. A recent analysis of pre-flight and on-board data has improved our understanding of the measurement uncertainty of the Version 5 AIRS L1B radiance product. For temperatures greater than 260 K, the measurement uncertainty is better than 250 mK 1-sigma for most channels. SI-traceability and quantification of the radiometric measurement uncertainty is critical to reducing biases in reanalysis products and radiative transfer models (RTMs) that use AIRS data, as well as establishing the suitability of AIRS as a benchmark for radiances established in the early 2000s.Remote Sens. 2020, 12, 1338 2 of 25 measure surface temperature and emissivity, cloud top height, cloud liquid water and cloud fraction. The data from the IR sounders assimilated into Numerical Weather Prediction (NWP) models have demonstrated amongst the highest forecast improvement in NWP models of all data types. The data are regularly used in studies of processes affecting weather [7] and climate as well as the validation of weather and climate models [8]. The data are also used in applications including volcano alerts [9], drought prediction [10], and air quality and pollution transport [11]. The AIRS instrument has shown exceptional radiometric stability to date, making it a valuable tool for climate trending and model validation [12]. Remote Sens. 2019, 11, x FOR PEER REVIEW 2 of 25 models have demonstrated amongst the highest forecast improvement in NWP models of all data types. The data are regularly used in studies of processes affecting weather [7] and climate as well as the validation of weather and climate models [8]. The data are also used in applications including volcano alerts [9], drought prediction [10], and air quality and pollution transport [11]. The AIRS instrument has shown exceptional radiometric stability to date, making it a valuable tool for climate trending and model validation [12]. Remote Sens. 2020, 12, 1338 3 of 25The AIRS is a reference sensor in the Global Space-Based Intercalibration of Sensors (GSICS) [17,18]. AIRS is used operationally by the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) for comparison to Himawari 8/9 AHI JM [19], the Korean Meteorological Administration (KMA) for comparison to COMS [20], and NOAA for comparison to CrIS [21] and GOES [22], and EUMETSAT for comparison to IASI [23]. The results show that the AIRS compares with IASI and CrIS to better than 0.2 K (1-sigma) in most cases. The long record of AIRS, com...

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

SI-Traceability and Measurement Uncertainty of the Atmospheric Infrared Sounder Version 5 Level 1B Radiances

et al. 2020

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“…However, several programs are underway worldwide to place an SI traceable hyperspectral radiometer in space that will essentially provide the type of accuracies available only in laboratories today. These include the TRUTHS program spearheaded in Great Britain and the CLARREO-Pathfinder program in the United States [65,66]. Design of these instruments suggest calibration accuracies on the order of 0.3% (k = 2) for the visible portion of the spectrum [67].…”

Section: Si Traceable Hyperspectral Sensor Missionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Calibrating Geosynchronous and Polar Orbiting Satellites: Sharing Best Practices

et al. 2020

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Earth remote sensing optical satellite systems are often divided into two categories—geosynchronous and sun-synchronous. Geosynchronous systems essentially rotate with the Earth and continuously observe the same region of the Earth. Sun-synchronous systems are generally in a polar orbit and view differing regions of the Earth at the same local time. Although similar in instrument design, there are enough differences in these two types of missions that often the calibration of the instruments can be substantially different. Thus, respective calibration teams develop independent methods and do not interact regularly or often. Yet, there are numerous areas of overlap and much to learn from one another. To address this issue, a panel of experts from both types of systems was convened to discover common areas of concern, areas where improvements can be made, and recommendations for the future. As a result of the panelist’s efforts, a set of eight recommendations were developed. Those that are related to improvements of current technologies include maintaining sun-synchronous orbits (not allowing orbital decay), standardization of spectral bandpasses, and expanded use of well-developed calibration techniques such as deep convective clouds, pseudo invariant calibration sites, and lunar methodologies. New techniques for expanded calibration capability include using geosynchronous instruments as transfer radiometers, continued development of ground-based prelaunch calibration technologies, expansion of RadCalNet, and development of space-based calibration radiometer systems.

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An on-orbit infrared intercalibration reference standard for decadal climate trending of the Earth

Cited by 2 publications

References 14 publications

SI-Traceability and Measurement Uncertainty of the Atmospheric Infrared Sounder Version 5 Level 1B Radiances

SI-Traceability and Measurement Uncertainty of the Atmospheric Infrared Sounder Version 5 Level 1B Radiances

Calibrating Geosynchronous and Polar Orbiting Satellites: Sharing Best Practices

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