Surface Irradiances of Edition 4.0 Clouds and the Earth’s Radiant Energy System (CERES) Energy Balanced and Filled (EBAF) Data Product

Abstract

Abstract The algorithm to produce the Clouds and the Earth’s Radiant Energy System (CERES) Edition 4.0 (Ed4) Energy Balanced and Filled (EBAF)-surface data product is explained. The algorithm forces computed top-of-atmosphere (TOA) irradiances to match with Ed4 EBAF-TOA irradiances by adjusting surface, cloud, and atmospheric properties. Surface irradiances are subsequently adjusted using radiative kernels. The adjustment process is composed of two parts: bias correction and Lagrange multiplier. The bias in temperature and specific humidity between 200 and 500 hPa used for the irradiance computation is corrected based on observations by Atmospheric Infrared Sounder (AIRS). Similarly, the bias in the cloud fraction is corrected based on observations by Cloud–Aerosol Lidar and Infrared Pathfinder Satellite Observations (CALIPSO) and CloudSat. Remaining errors in surface, cloud, and atmospheric properties are corrected in the Lagrange multiplier process. Ed4 global annual mean (January 2005 through December 2014) surface net shortwave (SW) and longwave (LW) irradiances increase by 1.3 W m−2 and decrease by 0.2 W m−2, respectively, compared to EBAF Edition 2.8 (Ed2.8) counterparts (the previous version), resulting in an increase in net SW + LW surface irradiance of 1.1 W m−2. The uncertainty in surface irradiances over ocean, land, and polar regions at various spatial scales are estimated. The uncertainties in all-sky global annual mean upward and downward shortwave irradiance are 3 and 4 W m−2, respectively, and the uncertainties in upward and downward longwave irradiance are 3 and 6 W m−2, respectively. With an assumption of all errors being independent, the uncertainty in the global annual mean surface LW + SW net irradiance is 8 W m−2.