Geostationary Imaging Fourier Transform Spectrometer Research Articles

Technical Note: Evolution, current capabilities, and future advance in satellite nadir viewing ultra-spectral IR sounding of the lower atmosphere

Abstract. Infrared ultra-spectral spectrometers have brought in a new era in satellite remote atmospheric sounding capability. During the 1970s, after the implementation of the first satellite sounding instruments, it became evident that much higher vertical resolution sounding information was needed to be able to forecast life and property threatening localized severe weather. The demonstration of the ultra-spectral radiance measurement technology required to achieve higher vertical resolution began in 1985, with the aircraft flights of the High resolution Interferometer Sounder (HIS) instrument. The development of satellite instruments designed to have a HIS-like measurement capability was initiated in the late 1980's. Today, after more than a decade of development time, the Atmospheric Infrared Sounder (AIRS) and the Infrared Atmospheric Sounding Interferometer (IASI) are now operating successfully from the Aqua and MetOp polar orbiting satellites. The successful development and ground demonstration of the Geostationary Imaging Fourier Transform Spectrometer (GIFTS), during this decade, is now paving the way toward the implementation of the ultra-spectral sounding capability on the international system of geostationary environmental satellites. This note reviews the evolution of the satellite ultra-spectral sounding systems, shows examples of current polar satellite sounding capability, and discusses future advances planned for geostationary orbit.

Initialisation using high spatial, temporal and spectral resolution satellite observations

Recent advances in numerical weather prediction and data assimilation, combined with the availability of high spatial, temporal and spectral resolution satellite observations and burgeoning computer power are leading to significant improvements in our ability to predict weather phenomena at higher and more appropriate resolutions. Here, we describe recent work, illustrating such improvements. High spatial and temporal (at least hourly) resolution data from sequential geostationary multispectral imagery have been used to initialise a high resolution (15km) 4-D variational assimilation (4-D Var.) system to improve tropical cyclone track prediction. The same wind data, sometimes with the addition of TOVS data from NOAA operational satellites, have also been used at higher resolution (5km) to estimate tropical cyclone intensity, demonstrating the importance of very high resolution modelling and data for this enterprise. Finally, we are using very high resolution (1km) 4-D Var. with very high spatial temporal and spectral resolution observations available from experimental advanced sounder instruments such as the High resolution Interferometer Sounder (HIS) and the NPOESS Aircraft Sounder Testbed - Interferometer (NAST - I) to examine the impact after initialisation of the improved delineation of the thermal and moisture fields by these next-generation sounders. This we believe is the first use of advanced sounder data with 4-D Var. and will assist in exploiting such data from the experimental Advanced Infrared Sounder (AIRS), the operational Infrared Atmospheric Sounding Interferometer (IASI), the Geostationary Imaging Fourier Transform Spectrometer (GIFTS) and Cross-track Interferometer Sounder (CrIS) instruments.