An overview of CERES with TRMM and Terra

Abstract

Data for the investigation of Clouds and the Earth's Radiant Energy System (CERES) began with the launch of the CERES instrument on the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) and continues with two CERES instrument on the EOS Terra satellite. The new instruments will sample regions poleward of the surface viewable from TRMM, and will thus place CERES in a position to contribute global observations of reflected sunlight and emitted terrestrial fluxes, beyond what could be observed from the TRMM equatorial orbit. During the initial observations from Terra, the new CERES instruments have undergone the same kind of initial checkout as the instruments on TRMM, as well as more detailed intercomparisons between the three CERES instruments now in orbit. Beyond the classic measurements of fluxes at the top of the Earth's atmosphere, CERES will also produce new observations that combine radiances from sister instruments on TRMM and Terra, namely VIRS and MODIS, to produce much more reliable retrievals of cloud properties that will provide new insights into the cloud-radiative feedback that remains one of the largest uncertainties in our understanding of the Earth's climate.