Assessment of Aircraft Icing Potential Using Satellite Data

Abstract

Abstract This paper explores the potential of using satellite data to develop a climatology of aircraft icing probability in oceanic regions. The datasets employed in this analysis are: the Nimbus-7 Scanning Multichannel Microwave Radiometer (SMMR) microwave radiances; the U.S. Air Force Three-Dimensional Nephanalysis (3DNEPH); the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF) initialized analyses; and the High-Resolution Infrared Sounder 2-Microwave Sounding Unit (HIRS2-MSU) satellite radiances. This analysis focuses on the midlatitude regions of the North Atlantic Ocean, encompassing the paths of most transatlantic flights between the United States and Europe. Estimates of cloud temperature, cloud horizontal extent, liquid water path, cloud depth, cloud liquid water content, drop-size characteristics, and precipitation characteristics are obtained from these datasets. A total of 14% of low-level clouds are found to have average temperatures between −2° and −36°C, while 99% of midlevel cloud...