Suomi NPP VIIRS sensor data record verification, validation, and long‐term performance monitoring

Abstract

The successful launch of the Suomi National Polar‐orbiting Partnership Satellite on 28 October 2011 with the key instrument Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite signifies a new era of moderate‐resolution imaging capabilities following the legacy of AVHRR and Moderate‐Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS). After a year and half of calibration and validation, the Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) instrument is performing very well. By early 2013, the sensor data records have achieved provisional maturity status and have been used in the routine production of more than 20 environmental data records by users worldwide. Based on comparisons with MODIS, the VIIRS reflective solar band radiometric uncertainties are now comparable in reflectance to that of MODIS Collection 6 equivalent bands (within 2%) although radiance differences could be larger for several bands, while an agreement on the order of 0.1 K has also been achieved for the thermal emissive bands, except for bands with significant spectral differences or certain bands at extreme temperatures (below 200 K or above 343 K). The degradation in the VIIRS rotating telescope assembly mirrors is gradually leveling off after reaching ~30% and thus far has limited impact on instrument performance and products. Environmental data record users are generally satisfied with the VIIRS data quality which meets the product requirements. While the specific technical details are documented in other papers in this special issue and in Cao et al. (2013a), this paper focuses on the major findings of VIIRS calibration and validation since launch, radiometric performance validation, and uncertainties, as well as lessons learned.

Retrieving the height of smoke and dust aerosols by synergistic use of VIIRS, OMPS, and CALIOP observations

“…Brief summaries and updates made to the original algorithms are provided here. The algorithms presently take the NOAA format 86 s VIIRS sensor data records [Cao et al, 2013] as input data and will be updated to take the NASA Level 1B data when they become available to use in the near future. The pixel size of the input VIIRS moderate resolution band (M-band) data is 750 m × 750 m at nadir, and the aerosol products are provided at a nominal spatial resolution of 6 km × 6 km (8 × 8 pixels averaging).…”

Evaluating the Ability of NPP-VIIRS Nighttime Light Data to Estimate the Gross Domestic Product and the Electric Power Consumption of China at Multiple Scales: A Comparison with DMSP-OLS Data

“…VIIRS is one of the five instruments (others are the Advanced Technology Microwave Sounder [32], the Cross-Track Infrared Sounder [33], the Ozone Mapping Profiler Suite [34,35], and the Clouds and the Earth's Radiant Energy System [36,37]) on the satellite, and is configured to collect visible and infrared imagery and radiometric measurements of the land, atmosphere, cryosphere, and oceans [38][39][40].The first global NPP-VIIRS nighttime light data were generated by the Earth Observation Group, NOAA National Geophysical Data Center. VIIRS day/night band data collected on nights with zero moonlight during 18-26 April 2012 and 11-23 October 2012 was composited into a single dataset [31,[41][42][43][44].…”

Spectral Dependent Degradation of the Solar Diffuser on Suomi-NPP VIIRS Due to Surface Roughness-Induced Rayleigh Scattering

“…VIIRS (Visible Infrared Imager Radiometer Suite) is one of five instruments onboard the Suomi-NPP (SNPP) satellite and acquired its first measurements in November 2011 [1][2][3]. The VIIRS is a scanning radiometer and has 22 spectral bands covering the spectrum between 0.412 µm and 11.5 µm, including 14 reflective solar bands (RSB), seven thermal emissive bands (TEB), and one day-night band (DNB).…”