Radiative Transfer and Surface Property Modelling

Survey on Use of Surface Sensitive Radiances

The Radiative Transfer and Surface Property Modeling Group at the 14th International TOVS meeting called for a focus on surface emissivity. The group set actions to enlighten the community on the methods and state of the problem in this area. One of the immediate tasks was to take a survey of operational weather centers and ascertain what surface sensitive channels are now being assimilated. The following table was created from this survey, with the blue “x” (ballot x) where only atmospheric sounding channels are assimilated, and the green “checkmark” (green check) denoting where surface sensitive channels are assimilated. The most prevalent surface sensitive channels are from AMSU/A over ocean; often however centers will only assimilate channel four (52.8 GHz on the wing of oxygen absorption) and higher. Active research over land with IR and microwave window channels is underway and this group would like to facilitate the dissemination of workable knowledge which will allow the use surface sensitive radiances.

Key
checksounding channels onlychecksurface sensitive channelsPpreviously operationalToperational testing

This survey began Jun2005 and was posted Aug2005 (update upcoming Jan2007)
Also available: NWP centers and use of ATOVS

Skin TemperatureLandOcean
SingleSpectralHIRSAIRSAMSUAAMSUBHIRSAIRSAMSUAAMSUB
BMRC (Australia)checkballotx Tcheck
CMC (Canada)checkTballotxTcheckballotx
DWD (Germany)checkballotxballotx
ECMWF (Europe)checkballotxballotxballotx Tballotxcheckcheckcheckcheck
KMA (Korea)checkballotxcheck
KNMI (Netherlands)checkTballotxTballotx
JMA (Japan)checkballotxcheck
Météo FrancecheckTcheck TTTcheckT
NRL (USA)checkTballotx TTTcheckT
NCEP (USA)checkcheckcheckcheckcheckcheckcheckcheckcheck
UK-Met OfficecheckTballotx TPTcheckT

Emissivity References

Infrared Emissivity
Garand, L., M. Buehner, and N. Wagneur, 2004. Background Error Correlation between Surface Skin and Air Temperatures: Estimation and Impact on the Assimilation of Infrared Window Radiances. Journal of Applied Meteorology43, No. 12, 1853-1863.

Sherlock, V., 1999. ISEM-6: Infrared Surface Emissivity Modle for RTTOV-6EUMETSAT NWP SAF , 17pp.

Snyder, W. C., Z. Wan, Y. Zhang, and Y. Z. Feng, 1998. Classification-based emissivtiy for land surface temperature measurement from space. Int. J. Remote Sens.42, pp. 83-106.

Microwave Emissivity
Deblonde, G., 2000. Evaluation of FASTEM and FASTEM2.Meteorological Service of Canada , 33pp.

Jones, A., and T. H. Vonder Haar, 1997. Retrieval of microwvae surface emittance over land using coincident microwave and infrared satellite measurements. J. Geophys. Res. , 102, pp. 13609-13626.

Karbou, F., C. Prigent, L. Eymard, and J. Pardo, 2005. Microwave Land Emissivity Calculations Using AMSU Measurements IEEE Trans on Geosci and Rem Sens43, no. 5, 948-959.

Prigent, C, F. Chevallier, F. Karbou, P. Bauer, and G. Kelly, 2005. AMSU-A Land Surface Emissivity Estimation for Numerical Weather Prediction Assimilation Schemes. Journal of Applied Meteorology44, no. 4, 416-426.

Weng, F., B. Yan, and N. Grody, 2001. A microwave emissivity model. J. Geophys. Res.106, no. D17, pp. 20115-20123.

ISCCP Surface Climatology Data Sets:
including mean monthly and seasonal surface infrared and microwave emissivities


POCs: Benjamin Ruston and Sid Boukabara