Abstract
Abstract. Satellite measurements enable quantification of atmospheric temperature, humidity, wind fields, and trace gas vertical profiles. The majority of current instruments operate on polar orbiting satellites and either in the thermal and mid-wave or in the shortwave infrared spectral regions. We present a new multispectral instrument concept for improved measurements from geostationary orbit (GEO) with sensitivity to the boundary layer. The JPL GEO-IR Sounder, which is an imaging Fourier transform spectrometer, uses a wide spectral range (1–15.4 µm) encompassing both reflected solar and thermal emission bands to improve sensitivity to the lower troposphere and boundary layer. We perform retrieval simulations for both clean and polluted scenarios that also encompass different temperature and humidity profiles. The results illustrate the benefits of combining shortwave and thermal infrared measurements. In particular, the former adds information in the boundary layer, while the latter helps to separate near-surface and mid-tropospheric variability. The performance of the JPL GEO-IR Sounder is similar to or better than currently operational instruments. The proposed concept is expected to improve weather forecasting as well as severe storm tracking and forecasting and also benefit local and global air quality and climate research.
Highlights
The Program of Record (PoR) of current and planned satellite observations, as described in the 2017 US Earth Science Decadal Survey (National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, 2018), includes a range of spectrally resolved radiance measurements in the thermal and shortwave infrared (TIR and SWIR) wavelength regions that provide key information on atmospheric temperature (TATM), water vapor (H2O), and a range of trace gases
We show that the JPL geostationary orbit (GEO)-IR Sounder would, for the first time, enable high-spatial- and temporal-resolution simultaneous retrievals in the TIR and SWIR, which together provide more vertical profile information and improved sensitivity to the planetary boundary layer (PBL) than either spectral region alone
Using the Weather Research and Forecasting model coupled to Chemistry (WRF-Chem) simulations at 4 km spatial resolution over the continental United States (Mary Barth, personal communication, 2012), we examined about 200 atmospheric profiles at six local times for 2 d in July 2006 over 17 locations that represent a range of diurnal meteorological conditions and a variety of air quality scenarios
Summary
The Program of Record (PoR) of current and planned satellite observations, as described in the 2017 US Earth Science Decadal Survey (National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, 2018), includes a range of spectrally resolved radiance measurements in the thermal and shortwave infrared (TIR and SWIR) wavelength regions that provide key information on atmospheric temperature (TATM), water vapor (H2O), and a range of trace gases (see Table 1 for a definition of spectral range designations). 5, we present results for TATM, H2O, and trace gas retrievals from simulated GEO-IR Sounder measurements for both individual spectral regions and combinations. The relevance of these simulated retrievals for observing system simulation experiments is discussed in Sect. 7. In particular, we show that the JPL GEO-IR Sounder would, for the first time, enable high-spatial- and temporal-resolution simultaneous retrievals in the TIR and SWIR, which together provide more vertical profile information and improved sensitivity to the PBL than either spectral region alone
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