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Uncertainties in radiometer intercalibration associated with variability in geophysical parameters
Author(s) -
Yang John Xun,
McKague Darren S.,
Ruf Christopher S.
Publication year - 2016
Publication title -
journal of geophysical research: atmospheres
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 2169-8996
pISSN - 2169-897X
DOI - 10.1002/2016jd024937
Subject(s) - global precipitation measurement , radiometer , radiance , remote sensing , calibration , environmental science , radiometry , brightness temperature , meteorology , precipitation , brightness , geology , physics , quantum mechanics , optics
Spaceborne radiometry plays a major role in weather and climate science and applications. Intercalibrating different radiometers has become an indispensable task for diagnosing instrument performance and integrating constellation data to extend the observational record. Because intercalibration affects both base radiance data and downstream science products, it is critical to examine intercalibration performance. In this study, we use constellation radiometer data from the Global Precipitation Measurement mission to detect and characterize a pronounced variability in intercalibration stability with a ~40 day periodicity. A regional dependence of the calibration is also found. The variability is related to geophysical parameters including water vapor, surface wind speed, and sea surface temperature. It is found that the variability is caused by periodic variations in the local times and locations of the overlap regions between spacecraft. An analytical orbit model is developed for calculating the period of oscillation and agrees well with observation. Calibration errors show nonlinear and nonmonotonic dependences on geophysical parameters and brightness temperature, which cannot be removed by simple linear regression. The variability affects both base radiance calibration accuracy and retrieved science data products.