Articles | Volume 12, issue 1
https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-12-619-2019
© Author(s) 2019. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-12-619-2019
© Author(s) 2019. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Research article
| 
30 Jan 2019
Research article |
| 30 Jan 2019
| 30 Jan 2019
A Fourier transform spectroradiometer for ground-based remote sensing of the atmospheric downwelling long-wave radiance
Giovanni Bianchini
CORRESPONDING AUTHOR
Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, Istituto Nazionale di
Ottica, Via Madonna del Piano 10, 50019 Sesto Fiorentino, Italy
Francesco Castagnoli
Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, Istituto Nazionale di
Ottica, Via Madonna del Piano 10, 50019 Sesto Fiorentino, Italy
Gianluca Di Natale
Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, Istituto Nazionale di
Ottica, Via Madonna del Piano 10, 50019 Sesto Fiorentino, Italy
Luca Palchetti
Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, Istituto Nazionale di
Ottica, Via Madonna del Piano 10, 50019 Sesto Fiorentino, Italy
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Claudio Belotti, Flavio Barbara, Marco Barucci, Giovanni Bianchini, Francesco D'Amato, Samuele Del Bianco, Gianluca Di Natale, Marco Gai, Alessio Montori, Filippo Pratesi, Markus Rettinger, Christian Rolf, Ralf Sussmann, Thomas Trickl, Silvia Viciani, Hannes Vogelmann, and Luca Palchetti
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 16, 2511–2529, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-2511-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-2511-2023, 2023
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FIRMOS (Far-Infrared Radiation Mobile Observation System) is a spectroradiometer measuring in the far-infrared, developed to support the preparation of the FORUM (Far-infrared Outgoing Radiation Understanding and Monitoring) satellite mission. In this paper, we describe the instrument, its data products, and the results of the comparison with a suite of observations made from a high-altitude site during a field campaign, in winter 2018–2019.
Gianluca Di Natale, David D. Turner, Giovanni Bianchini, Massimo Del Guasta, Luca Palchetti, Alessandro Bracci, Luca Baldini, Tiziano Maestri, William Cossich, Michele Martinazzo, and Luca Facheris
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 15, 7235–7258, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-7235-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-7235-2022, 2022
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In this paper, we describe a new approach to test the consistency of the precipitating ice cloud optical and microphysical properties in Antarctica, Dome C, retrieved from hyperspectral measurements in the far-infrared, with the reflectivity detected by a co-located micro rain radar operating at 24 GHz. The retrieved ice crystal sizes were found in accordance with the direct measurements of an optical imager, also installed at Dome C, which can collect the falling ice particles.
Luca Sgheri, Claudio Belotti, Maya Ben-Yami, Giovanni Bianchini, Bernardo Carnicero Dominguez, Ugo Cortesi, William Cossich, Samuele Del Bianco, Gianluca Di Natale, Tomás Guardabrazo, Dulce Lajas, Tiziano Maestri, Davide Magurno, Hilke Oetjen, Piera Raspollini, and Cristina Sgattoni
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 15, 573–604, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-573-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-573-2022, 2022
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The FORUM instrument will look at the Earth's atmosphere from a satellite, covering a spectral range responsible for about 95 % of the radiation lost by our planet. FORUM helps to measure the imbalance between incoming and outgoing radiation that is responsible for the increasing average temperatures on Earth. The end-to-end simulator is a chain of codes that simulates the FORUM measurement process. The goal of the project is to study how the instrument reacts to different retrieval conditions.
Gianluca Di Natale, Marco Barucci, Claudio Belotti, Giovanni Bianchini, Francesco D'Amato, Samuele Del Bianco, Marco Gai, Alessio Montori, Ralf Sussmann, Silvia Viciani, Hannes Vogelmann, and Luca Palchetti
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The importance of cirrus and mixed-phase clouds in the Earth radiation budget has been proven by many studies. In this paper the properties that characterize these clouds are retrieved from lidar and far-infrared spectral measurements performed in winter 2018/19 on the Zugspitze (Germany). The synergy of lidar and spectrometer measurements allowed us to assess the exponent k of the power-law relationship between the backscattering and the extinction coefficients.
William Cossich, Tiziano Maestri, Davide Magurno, Michele Martinazzo, Gianluca Di Natale, Luca Palchetti, Giovanni Bianchini, and Massimo Del Guasta
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 21, 13811–13833, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-13811-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-13811-2021, 2021
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The presence of clouds over Concordia, in the Antarctic Plateau, is investigated. Results are obtained by applying a machine learning algorithm to measurements of the infrared radiation emitted by the atmosphere toward the surface. The clear-sky, ice cloud, and mixed-phase cloud occurrence at different timescales is studied. A comparison with satellite measurements highlights the ability of the algorithm to identify multiple cloud conditions and study their variability at different timescales.
Luca Palchetti, Marco Barucci, Claudio Belotti, Giovanni Bianchini, Bertrand Cluzet, Francesco D'Amato, Samuele Del Bianco, Gianluca Di Natale, Marco Gai, Dina Khordakova, Alessio Montori, Hilke Oetjen, Markus Rettinger, Christian Rolf, Dirk Schuettemeyer, Ralf Sussmann, Silvia Viciani, Hannes Vogelmann, and Frank Gunther Wienhold
Earth Syst. Sci. Data, 13, 4303–4312, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-13-4303-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-13-4303-2021, 2021
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The FIRMOS far-infrared (IR) prototype, developed for the preparation of the ESA FORUM mission, was deployed for the first time at Mt. Zugspitze at 3000 m altitude to measure the far-IR spectrum of atmospheric emissions. The measurements, including co-located radiometers, lidars, radio soundings, weather, and surface properties, provide a unique dataset to study radiative properties of water vapour, cirrus clouds, and snow emissivity over the IR emissions, including the under-explored far-IR.
Christophe Bellisario, Helen E. Brindley, Simon F. B. Tett, Rolando Rizzi, Gianluca Di Natale, Luca Palchetti, and Giovanni Bianchini
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 19, 7927–7937, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-19-7927-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-19-7927-2019, 2019
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We explore the possibility of inferring far-infrared downwelling radiances from mid-infrared observations to better constrain radiation schemes in climate models. Our results imply that while it is feasible to use this type of approach, the quality of the extension will be strongly dependent on the noise characteristics of the observations and on the accurate characterisation of the atmospheric state.
Gianluca Di Natale, Luca Palchetti, Giovanni Bianchini, and Massimo Del Guasta
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 10, 825–837, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-10-825-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-10-825-2017, 2017
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We evaluate the simultaneous remote sensing of atmospheric vertical profiles of water vapour and temperature along with some micro-physical parameters, such as ice-particle effective diameter and ice water content of cirrus clouds, using far infrared spectral measurements of the downwelling longwave radiation. The developed methodology allows to retrieve the atmospheric state with good accuracy and high repetition rate, about 12 min, opening the capability to identify fast atmospheric events.
Gianluca Di Natale, Marco Ridolfi, and Luca Palchetti
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 17, 3171–3186, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-17-3171-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-17-3171-2024, 2024
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This work aims to define a new approach to retrieve the distribution of the main ice crystal shapes occurring inside ice and cirrus clouds from infrared spectral measurements. The capability of retrieving these shapes of the ice crystals from satellites will allow us to extend the currently available climatologies to be used as physical constraints in general circulation models. This could could allow us to improve their accuracy and prediction performance.
Claudio Belotti, Flavio Barbara, Marco Barucci, Giovanni Bianchini, Francesco D'Amato, Samuele Del Bianco, Gianluca Di Natale, Marco Gai, Alessio Montori, Filippo Pratesi, Markus Rettinger, Christian Rolf, Ralf Sussmann, Thomas Trickl, Silvia Viciani, Hannes Vogelmann, and Luca Palchetti
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 16, 2511–2529, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-2511-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-2511-2023, 2023
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FIRMOS (Far-Infrared Radiation Mobile Observation System) is a spectroradiometer measuring in the far-infrared, developed to support the preparation of the FORUM (Far-infrared Outgoing Radiation Understanding and Monitoring) satellite mission. In this paper, we describe the instrument, its data products, and the results of the comparison with a suite of observations made from a high-altitude site during a field campaign, in winter 2018–2019.
Gianluca Di Natale, David D. Turner, Giovanni Bianchini, Massimo Del Guasta, Luca Palchetti, Alessandro Bracci, Luca Baldini, Tiziano Maestri, William Cossich, Michele Martinazzo, and Luca Facheris
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 15, 7235–7258, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-7235-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-7235-2022, 2022
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In this paper, we describe a new approach to test the consistency of the precipitating ice cloud optical and microphysical properties in Antarctica, Dome C, retrieved from hyperspectral measurements in the far-infrared, with the reflectivity detected by a co-located micro rain radar operating at 24 GHz. The retrieved ice crystal sizes were found in accordance with the direct measurements of an optical imager, also installed at Dome C, which can collect the falling ice particles.
Marco Ridolfi, Cecilia Tirelli, Simone Ceccherini, Claudio Belotti, Ugo Cortesi, and Luca Palchetti
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 15, 6723–6737, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-6723-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-6723-2022, 2022
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Synergistic retrieval (SR) and complete data fusion (CDF) methods exploit the complementarity of coinciding remote-sensing measurements. We assess the performance of the SR and CDF methods on the basis of synthetic measurements of the FORUM and IASI-NG missions. In the case of perfectly matching measurements, SR and CDF results differ by less than 1 / 10 of the error due to measurement noise. In the case of a realistic mismatch, the two methods show differences in the order of their error bars.
Luca Sgheri, Claudio Belotti, Maya Ben-Yami, Giovanni Bianchini, Bernardo Carnicero Dominguez, Ugo Cortesi, William Cossich, Samuele Del Bianco, Gianluca Di Natale, Tomás Guardabrazo, Dulce Lajas, Tiziano Maestri, Davide Magurno, Hilke Oetjen, Piera Raspollini, and Cristina Sgattoni
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 15, 573–604, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-573-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-573-2022, 2022
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The FORUM instrument will look at the Earth's atmosphere from a satellite, covering a spectral range responsible for about 95 % of the radiation lost by our planet. FORUM helps to measure the imbalance between incoming and outgoing radiation that is responsible for the increasing average temperatures on Earth. The end-to-end simulator is a chain of codes that simulates the FORUM measurement process. The goal of the project is to study how the instrument reacts to different retrieval conditions.
Gianluca Di Natale, Marco Barucci, Claudio Belotti, Giovanni Bianchini, Francesco D'Amato, Samuele Del Bianco, Marco Gai, Alessio Montori, Ralf Sussmann, Silvia Viciani, Hannes Vogelmann, and Luca Palchetti
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 14, 6749–6758, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-6749-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-6749-2021, 2021
Short summary
Short summary
The importance of cirrus and mixed-phase clouds in the Earth radiation budget has been proven by many studies. In this paper the properties that characterize these clouds are retrieved from lidar and far-infrared spectral measurements performed in winter 2018/19 on the Zugspitze (Germany). The synergy of lidar and spectrometer measurements allowed us to assess the exponent k of the power-law relationship between the backscattering and the extinction coefficients.
William Cossich, Tiziano Maestri, Davide Magurno, Michele Martinazzo, Gianluca Di Natale, Luca Palchetti, Giovanni Bianchini, and Massimo Del Guasta
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 21, 13811–13833, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-13811-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-13811-2021, 2021
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The presence of clouds over Concordia, in the Antarctic Plateau, is investigated. Results are obtained by applying a machine learning algorithm to measurements of the infrared radiation emitted by the atmosphere toward the surface. The clear-sky, ice cloud, and mixed-phase cloud occurrence at different timescales is studied. A comparison with satellite measurements highlights the ability of the algorithm to identify multiple cloud conditions and study their variability at different timescales.
Luca Palchetti, Marco Barucci, Claudio Belotti, Giovanni Bianchini, Bertrand Cluzet, Francesco D'Amato, Samuele Del Bianco, Gianluca Di Natale, Marco Gai, Dina Khordakova, Alessio Montori, Hilke Oetjen, Markus Rettinger, Christian Rolf, Dirk Schuettemeyer, Ralf Sussmann, Silvia Viciani, Hannes Vogelmann, and Frank Gunther Wienhold
Earth Syst. Sci. Data, 13, 4303–4312, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-13-4303-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-13-4303-2021, 2021
Short summary
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The FIRMOS far-infrared (IR) prototype, developed for the preparation of the ESA FORUM mission, was deployed for the first time at Mt. Zugspitze at 3000 m altitude to measure the far-IR spectrum of atmospheric emissions. The measurements, including co-located radiometers, lidars, radio soundings, weather, and surface properties, provide a unique dataset to study radiative properties of water vapour, cirrus clouds, and snow emissivity over the IR emissions, including the under-explored far-IR.
Christophe Bellisario, Helen E. Brindley, Simon F. B. Tett, Rolando Rizzi, Gianluca Di Natale, Luca Palchetti, and Giovanni Bianchini
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 19, 7927–7937, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-19-7927-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-19-7927-2019, 2019
Short summary
Short summary
We explore the possibility of inferring far-infrared downwelling radiances from mid-infrared observations to better constrain radiation schemes in climate models. Our results imply that while it is feasible to use this type of approach, the quality of the extension will be strongly dependent on the noise characteristics of the observations and on the accurate characterisation of the atmospheric state.
Gianluca Di Natale, Luca Palchetti, Giovanni Bianchini, and Massimo Del Guasta
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 10, 825–837, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-10-825-2017, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-10-825-2017, 2017
Short summary
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We evaluate the simultaneous remote sensing of atmospheric vertical profiles of water vapour and temperature along with some micro-physical parameters, such as ice-particle effective diameter and ice water content of cirrus clouds, using far infrared spectral measurements of the downwelling longwave radiation. The developed methodology allows to retrieve the atmospheric state with good accuracy and high repetition rate, about 12 min, opening the capability to identify fast atmospheric events.
Massimo Carlotti, Bianca Maria Dinelli, Giada Innocenti, and Luca Palchetti
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 9, 5853–5867, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-9-5853-2016, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-9-5853-2016, 2016
Short summary
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We introduce a strategy for the measurement of CO2 in the stratosphere. We use an orbiting limb sounder to measure both the thermal infrared (TIR) and far-infrared (FIR) atmospheric emissions. The rotational transitions of O2 in the FIR are exploited to derive the temperature and pressure fields that are needed to retrieve the CO2 from its spectrum in the TIR. The proposed experiment can determine two-dimensional distributions of the CO2 with precision of 1 ppm at altitudes between 10 and 50 km.
Related subject area
Subject: Others (Wind, Precipitation, Temperature, etc.) | Technique: Remote Sensing | Topic: Instruments and Platforms
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Atmos. Meas. Tech. Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-2024-60, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-2024-60, 2024
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Revised manuscript accepted for AMT
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Jinhong Xian, Chao Lu, Xiaoling Lin, Honglong Yang, Ning Zhang, and Li Zhang
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 17, 1837–1850, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-17-1837-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-17-1837-2024, 2024
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Atmos. Meas. Tech., 17, 1665–1677, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-17-1665-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-17-1665-2024, 2024
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A novel lidar system with five beams measured horizontal and vertical winds together, reaching altitudes up to 25 km. Developed in Germany, it revealed accurate horizontal wind data compared to forecasts, but vertical wind estimates differed. The lidar's capability to detect small-scale wind patterns was highlighted, advancing atmospheric research.
Peter Dalin, Urban Brändström, Johan Kero, Peter Voelger, Takanori Nishiyama, Trond Trondsen, Devin Wyatt, Craig Unick, Vladimir Perminov, Nikolay Pertsev, and Jonas Hedin
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 17, 1561–1576, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-17-1561-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-17-1561-2024, 2024
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A novel infrared imaging instrument (OH imager) was put into operation in November 2022 at the Swedish Institute of Space Physics in Kiruna (Sweden). The OH imager is dedicated to the study of nightglow emissions coming from the hydroxyl (OH) and molecular oxygen (O2) layers in the mesopause (80–100 km). Based on a brightness ratio of two OH emission lines, the neutral temperature is estimated at around 87 km. The average daily winter temperature for the period January–April 2023 is 203±10 K.
Thomas Wagner and Jānis Puķīte
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 17, 277–297, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-17-277-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-17-277-2024, 2024
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We present a radiance calibration method based on the comparison of measurements and radiative transfer simulations of the zenith-scattered sun radiance during twilight. Cloud-free conditions are required. The method can be applied to measurements in the filed, and no laboratory measurements are required. The accuracy is estimated to range from about 4 % at 340 nm to about 10 % at 700 nm.
Tobias Böck, Bernhard Pospichal, and Ulrich Löhnert
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 17, 219–233, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-17-219-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-17-219-2024, 2024
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In this study, measurement uncertainties from microwave radiometers and their impact on temperature profiling are analyzed. These measurement uncertainties include horizontal inhomogeneities of the atmosphere, pointing errors or tilts of the instrument, physical obstacles which are in the line of sight of the radiometer, and radio frequency interferences. Impacts on temperature profiles from these uncertainties are usually small in real-life scenarios and when obstacles are far enough away.
Philipp Gasch, James Kasic, Oliver Maas, and Zhien Wang
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 16, 5495–5523, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-5495-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-5495-2023, 2023
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This paper rethinks airborne wind measurements and investigates a new design for airborne Doppler lidar systems. Recent advances in lidar technology allow the use of multiple lidar systems with fixed viewing directions instead of a single lidar attached to a scanner. Our simulation results show that the proposed new design offers great potential for both higher accuracy and higher-resolution airborne wind measurements.
Christiane Duscha, Juraj Pálenik, Thomas Spengler, and Joachim Reuder
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 16, 5103–5123, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-5103-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-5103-2023, 2023
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We combine observations from two scanning Doppler lidars to obtain new and unique insights into the dynamic processes inherent to atmospheric convection. The approach complements and enhances conventional methods to probe convection and has the potential to substantially deepen our understanding of this complex process, which is crucial to improving our weather and climate models.
Anna Špačková, Martin Fencl, and Vojtěch Bareš
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 16, 3865–3879, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-3865-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-3865-2023, 2023
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Commercial microwave links as rainfall sensors have been investigated and evaluated in numerous studies with gauge-adjusted radar used for reference for rainfall observations. We evaluate collocated commercial microwave links, which are thus exposed to identical atmospheric conditions. This set-up enables the exploration of inconsistencies in observations of independent sensors using data from a real telecommunication network. The sensors are in agreement and are homogeneous in their behaviour.
Alessandro Battaglia, Filippo Emilio Scarsi, Kamil Mroz, and Anthony Illingworth
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 16, 3283–3297, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-3283-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-3283-2023, 2023
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Some of the new generation of cloud and precipitation spaceborne radars will adopt conical scanning. This will make some of the standard calibration techniques impractical. This work presents a methodology to cross-calibrate radars in orbits by matching the reflectivity probability density function of ice clouds observed by the to-be-calibrated and by the reference radar in quasi-coincident locations. Results show that cross-calibration within 1 dB (26 %) is feasible.
Claudio Belotti, Flavio Barbara, Marco Barucci, Giovanni Bianchini, Francesco D'Amato, Samuele Del Bianco, Gianluca Di Natale, Marco Gai, Alessio Montori, Filippo Pratesi, Markus Rettinger, Christian Rolf, Ralf Sussmann, Thomas Trickl, Silvia Viciani, Hannes Vogelmann, and Luca Palchetti
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 16, 2511–2529, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-2511-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-2511-2023, 2023
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FIRMOS (Far-Infrared Radiation Mobile Observation System) is a spectroradiometer measuring in the far-infrared, developed to support the preparation of the FORUM (Far-infrared Outgoing Radiation Understanding and Monitoring) satellite mission. In this paper, we describe the instrument, its data products, and the results of the comparison with a suite of observations made from a high-altitude site during a field campaign, in winter 2018–2019.
Christopher R. Williams, Joshua Barrio, Paul E. Johnston, Paytsar Muradyan, and Scott E. Giangrande
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 16, 2381–2398, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-2381-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-2381-2023, 2023
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This study uses surface disdrometer observations to calibrate 8 years of 915 MHz radar wind profiler deployed in the central United States in northern Oklahoma. This study had two key findings. First, the radar wind profiler sensitivity decreased approximately 3 to 4 dB/year as the hardware aged. Second, this drift was slow enough that calibration can be performed using 3-month intervals. Calibrated radar wind profiler observations and Python processing code are available on public repositories.
Xin Fang, Feng Li, Lei-lei Sun, and Tao Li
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 16, 2263–2272, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-2263-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-2263-2023, 2023
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We successfully developed the first pseudorandom modulation continuous-wave narrowband sodium lidar (PMCW-NSL) system for simultaneous measurements of the mesopause region's temperature and wind. Based on the innovative decoded technique and algorithm for CW lidar, both the main and residual lights modulated by M-code are used and directed to the atmosphere in the vertical and eastward directions, tilted 20° from the zenith. The PMCW-NSL system can applied to airborne and space-borne purposes.
Dana L. McGuffin, Philip J. Cameron-Smith, Matthew A. Horsley, Brian J. Bauman, Wim De Vries, Denis Healy, Alex Pertica, Chris Shaffer, and Lance M. Simms
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 16, 2129–2144, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-2129-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-2129-2023, 2023
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This work demonstrates the viability of a remote sensing technique using nanosatellites to measure stratospheric temperature. This measurement technique can probe the stratosphere and mesosphere at a fine vertical scale around the globe unlike other high-altitude measurement techniques, which would provide an opportunity to observe atmospheric gravity waves and turbulence. We analyze observations from two satellite platforms to provide a proof of concept and characterize measurement uncertainty.
Benjamin Witschas, Sonja Gisinger, Stephan Rahm, Andreas Dörnbrack, David C. Fritts, and Markus Rapp
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 16, 1087–1101, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-1087-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-1087-2023, 2023
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In this paper, a novel scan technique is applied to an airborne coherent Doppler wind lidar, enabling us to measure the vertical wind speed and the horizontal wind speed along flight direction simultaneously with a horizontal resolution of about 800 m and a vertical resolution of 100 m. The performed observations are valuable for gravity wave characterization as they allow us to calculate the leg-averaged momentum flux profile and, with that, the propagation direction of excited gravity waves.
Kevin J. Nelson, Feiqin Xie, Bryan C. Chan, Ashish Goel, Jonathan Kosh, Tyler G. R. Reid, Corey R. Snyder, and Paul M. Tarantino
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 16, 941–954, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-941-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-941-2023, 2023
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Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) radio occultation (RO) remote sensing is effective for atmospheric profiling. The capability of a low-cost and scalable commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) GNSS receiver on board high-altitude balloons is tested in two campaigns. Preliminary results demonstrate high-quality refractivity observations from the COTS RO receiver, which is worth further improvement for dense atmospheric observations over a targeted region.
Jenna Ritvanen, Ewan O'Connor, Dmitri Moisseev, Raisa Lehtinen, Jani Tyynelä, and Ludovic Thobois
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 15, 6507–6519, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-6507-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-6507-2022, 2022
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Doppler lidars and weather radars provide accurate wind measurements, with Doppler lidar usually performing better in dry weather conditions and weather radar performing better when there is precipitation. Operating both instruments together should therefore improve the overall performance. We investigate how well a co-located Doppler lidar and X-band radar perform with respect to various weather conditions, including changes in horizontal visibility, cloud altitude, and precipitation.
Bhupal Shrestha, Jerald A. Brotzge, and Junhong Wang
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 15, 6011–6033, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-6011-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-6011-2022, 2022
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The NYS Mesonet Profiler Network is comprised of 17 profiler sites, each equipped with a Doppler lidar, microwave radiometer, and sun photometer. This study presents a multi-year, multi-station evaluation based on well-defined reference measurements. Results demonstrate robust technologies that can aid real-time weather operations and a network test bed that can be used for further expansion, evaluation, and integration of such technologies at a large scale.
Felix Kelberlau and Jakob Mann
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 15, 5323–5341, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-5323-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-5323-2022, 2022
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Floating lidar systems are used for measuring wind speeds offshore, and their motion influences the measurements. This study describes the motion-induced bias on mean wind speed estimates by simulating the lidar sampling pattern of a moving lidar. An analytic model is used to validate the simulations. The bias is low and depends on amplitude and frequency of motion as well as on wind shear. It has been estimated for the example of the Fugro SEAWATCH wind lidar buoy carrying a ZX 300M lidar.
Alessandro Battaglia, Paolo Martire, Eric Caubet, Laurent Phalippou, Fabrizio Stesina, Pavlos Kollias, and Anthony Illingworth
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 15, 3011–3030, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-3011-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-3011-2022, 2022
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We present an instrument simulator for a new sensor, WIVERN (WInd VElocity Radar Nephoscope), a conically scanning radar payload with Doppler capabilities, recently down-selected as one of the four candidates for the European Space Agency Earth Explorer 11 program. The mission aims at measuring horizontal winds in cloudy areas. The simulator is instrumental in the definition and consolidation of the mission requirements and the evaluation of mission performances.
James B. Duncan Jr., Laura Bianco, Bianca Adler, Tyler Bell, Irina V. Djalalova, Laura Riihimaki, Joseph Sedlar, Elizabeth N. Smith, David D. Turner, Timothy J. Wagner, and James M. Wilczak
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 15, 2479–2502, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-2479-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-2479-2022, 2022
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In this study, several ground-based remote sensing instruments are used to estimate the height of the convective planetary boundary layer, and their performance is compared against independent boundary layer depth estimates obtained from radiosondes launched as part of the CHEESEHEAD19 field campaign. The impact of clouds (particularly boundary layer clouds) on the estimation of the boundary layer depth is also investigated.
Vicki Kelsey, Spencer Riley, and Kenneth Minschwaner
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 15, 1563–1576, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-1563-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-1563-2022, 2022
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In the interior western USA there are distances of hundreds of kilometers between weather balloon launch sites for weather forecasting. Satellite coverage can also be sparse or with poor resolution. Using infrared thermometers, clear-sky temperatures were collected and compared with data from weather balloons. A correlation between clear-sky temperatures and precipitable water measurements from weather balloons was found. This means that citizen scientists can collect data.
Benjamin Witschas, Christian Lemmerz, Oliver Lux, Uwe Marksteiner, Oliver Reitebuch, Fabian Weiler, Frederic Fabre, Alain Dabas, Thomas Flament, Dorit Huber, and Michael Vaughan
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 15, 1465–1489, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-1465-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-1465-2022, 2022
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In August 2018, the ESA launched the first Doppler wind lidar into space. In order to calibrate the instrument and to monitor the overall instrument conditions, instrument spectral registration measurements have been performed with Aeolus on a weekly basis. Based on these measurements, the alignment drift of the Aeolus satellite instrument is estimated by applying tools and mathematical model functions to analyze the spectrometer transmission curves.
Joseph J. Michalsky and Peter W. Kiedron
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 15, 353–364, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-353-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-353-2022, 2022
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This paper describes an instrument that measures spectrally from 360 nm (ultraviolet) to 1070 nm (near-infrared) at 1002 separate wavelengths. The measurements were made every minute from the late summer of 2009 to the winter of 2014 at a site in northern Oklahoma (USA; 36.605° N, 97.486° W). Methods are described that enable the normalized transmission across the spectrum to be measured and, subsequently, used to calculate the aerosol optical depth and spectra irradiance.
Julien Totems, Patrick Chazette, and Alexandre Baron
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 14, 7525–7544, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-7525-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-7525-2021, 2021
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We describe in detail the design and calibration of the new Raman channels for the WALI system, going over the important sources of bias and uncertainty on retrieved temperature profiles. For the first time, their impact is investigated using horizontal shots in a homogenous atmosphere: the magnitude of the highlighted biases can be much larger than the targeted absolute accuracy of 1° C. Actual measurement errors are quantified using radiosoundings launched close to the lidar site.
René Sedlak, Patrick Hannawald, Carsten Schmidt, Sabine Wüst, Michael Bittner, and Samo Stanič
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 14, 6821–6833, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-6821-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-6821-2021, 2021
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High-resolution images of the OH* airglow layer (ca. 87 km height) acquired at Otlica Observatory, Slovenia, have been analysed. A statistical analysis of small-scale wave structures with horizontal wavelengths up to 4.5 km suggests strong presence of instability features in the upper mesosphere or lower thermosphere. The dissipated energy of breaking gravity waves is derived from observations of turbulent vortices. It is concluded that dynamical heating plays a vital role in the atmosphere.
Oliver Lux, Christian Lemmerz, Fabian Weiler, Thomas Kanitz, Denny Wernham, Gonçalo Rodrigues, Andrew Hyslop, Olivier Lecrenier, Phil McGoldrick, Frédéric Fabre, Paolo Bravetti, Tommaso Parrinello, and Oliver Reitebuch
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 14, 6305–6333, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-6305-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-6305-2021, 2021
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The work assesses the frequency stability of the laser transmitters on board Aeolus and discusses its influence on the quality of the global wind data. Excellent frequency stability of the space lasers is evident, although enhanced frequency noise occurs at certain locations along the orbit due to micro-vibrations that are introduced by the satellite’s reaction wheels. The study elaborates on this finding and investigates the extent to which the enhanced frequency noise increases the wind error.
Tingyu Yan, Jeffery A. Langille, William E. Ward, William A. Gault, Alan Scott, Andrew Bell, Driss Touahiri, Sheng-Hai Zheng, and Chunmin Zhang
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 14, 6213–6232, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-6213-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-6213-2021, 2021
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High-resolution interferometers are routinely used to measure upper atmospheric motions by measuring small Doppler shifts in spectrally isolated airglow emissions. The birefringent interferometer presented in this paper has similar capabilities as several existing state-of-the-art instruments but is smaller and less complex to construct and operate. This paper presents the measurement technique and characterization of a lab prototype and examines the performance of the instrument.
Etienne Cheynet, Martin Flügge, Joachim Reuder, Jasna B. Jakobsen, Yngve Heggelund, Benny Svardal, Pablo Saavedra Garfias, Charlotte Obhrai, Nicolò Daniotti, Jarle Berge, Christiane Duscha, Norman Wildmann, Ingrid H. Onarheim, and Marte Godvik
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 14, 6137–6157, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-6137-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-6137-2021, 2021
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The COTUR campaign explored the structure of wind turbulence above the ocean to improve the design of future multi-megawatt offshore wind turbines. Deploying scientific instruments offshore is both a financial and technological challenge. Therefore, lidar technology was used to remotely measure the wind above the ocean from instruments located on the seaside. The experimental setup is tailored to the study of the spatial correlation of wind gusts, which governs the wind loading on structures.
Fabian Weiler, Thomas Kanitz, Denny Wernham, Michael Rennie, Dorit Huber, Marc Schillinger, Olivier Saint-Pe, Ray Bell, Tommaso Parrinello, and Oliver Reitebuch
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 14, 5153–5177, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-5153-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-5153-2021, 2021
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This paper reports on dark current signal anomalies of the detectors used on board the ESA's Earth Explorer satellite Aeolus during the first 1.5 years in orbit. After introducing sophisticated algorithms to classify dark current anomalies according to their characteristics, the impact of the different kinds of anomalies on wind measurements is discussed. In addition, mitigation approaches for the wind retrieval are presented and potential root causes are discussed.
Chuanliang Zhang, Xuejin Sun, Wen Lu, Yingni Shi, Naiying Dou, and Shaohui Li
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 14, 4787–4803, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-4787-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-4787-2021, 2021
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The first spaceborne doppler wind lidar (DWL) Aeolus operates on sun-synchronous dawn–dusk orbit to lower the impact of solar background radiation (SBR) on wind observation accuracy. Increased SBR leads to an increment of averaged wind observation uncertainties from 0.19 to 0.27 m s-1 comparing Aeolus and two added spaceborne DWLs operating on orbits with local ascending times of 15:00 and 12:00 LT. A quantitative design of laser pulse energy according to accuracy requirements is also proposed.
Didier Bruneau and Jacques Pelon
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 14, 4375–4402, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-4375-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-4375-2021, 2021
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Taking advantage of Aeolus success and of our airborne lidar system expertise, we present a new spaceborne wind lidar design for operational Aeolus follow-on missions, keeping most of the initial lidar system but relying on a single Mach–Zehnder interferometer to relax operational constraints and reduce measurement bias. System parameters are optimized. Random and systematic errors are shown to be compliant with the initial mission requirements. In addition, the system allows unbiased retrieval.
Franz-Josef Lübken and Josef Höffner
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 14, 3815–3836, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-3815-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-3815-2021, 2021
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We present a new concept for a cluster of lidars that allows us to measure time-resolved profiles of temperatures, winds, and aerosols in the entire middle atmosphere for the first time, also covering regional horizontal scales (
four-dimensional coverage). Measurements are performed during day and night. The essential component is a newly developed laser with unprecedented performance. We present the first measurements. New observational capabilities in atmospheric physics are established.
Bernd Kaifler and Natalie Kaifler
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 14, 1715–1732, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-1715-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-1715-2021, 2021
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This paper describes the Compact Rayleigh Autonomous Lidar (CORAL), which is the first lidar instrument to make fully automatic high-resolution measurements of atmospheric density and temperature between 15 and 90 km altitude. CORAL achieves a much larger measurement cadence than conventional lidars and thus facilitates studies of rare atmospheric phenomena.
Mareike Heckl, Andreas Fix, Matthias Jirousek, Franz Schreier, Jian Xu, and Markus Rapp
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 14, 1689–1713, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-1689-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-1689-2021, 2021
William Thielicke, Waldemar Hübert, Ulrich Müller, Michael Eggert, and Paul Wilhelm
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 14, 1303–1318, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-1303-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-1303-2021, 2021
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We developed a wind-measuring drone with exceptional measuring accuracy and a very long flight time. Measurements are extensively validated at different levels. A comparison with a bistatic lidar reveals very small bias and RMSEs. We also present a demonstration measurement in the wake of a wind turbine. We think that our solution is a significant enhancement to existing designs, and other researchers can benefit from the details that we are giving in the paper.
Martin Fencl, Michal Dohnal, Pavel Valtr, Martin Grabner, and Vojtěch Bareš
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 13, 6559–6578, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-13-6559-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-13-6559-2020, 2020
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Commercial microwave links operating at E-band frequencies are increasingly being updated and are frequently replacing older infrastructure. We show that E-band microwave links are able to observe even light rainfalls, a feat practically impossible to achieve by older 15–40 GHz devices. Furthermore, water vapor retrieval may be possible from long E-band microwave links, although the efficient separation of gaseous attenuation from other signal losses will be challenging in practice.
Yuan An, Jinji Ma, Yibo Gao, Wei Xiong, and Xianhua Wang
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 13, 6521–6542, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-13-6521-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-13-6521-2020, 2020
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The hydroxyl radical (OH) plays a significant role in atmospheric chemical and physical reactions. The superiority and feasibility of a new satellite sensor, which consists of two spatial heterodyne spectrometers in the orthogonal layout to monitor OH in the middle and upper atmosphere, is proved by the forward model. An inversion algorithm to obtain OH concentrations based on the simulated observation data of sensors and the errors in results are also given.
Lei Qiao, Gang Chen, Shaodong Zhang, Qi Yao, Wanlin Gong, Mingkun Su, Feilong Chen, Erxiao Liu, Weifan Zhang, Huangyuan Zeng, Xuesi Cai, Huina Song, Huan Zhang, and Liangliang Zhang
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 13, 5697–5713, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-13-5697-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-13-5697-2020, 2020
F. Joseph Turk, Svetla Hristova-Veleva, Stephen L. Durden, Simone Tanelli, Ousmane Sy, G. David Emmitt, Steve Greco, and Sara Q. Zhang
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 13, 4521–4537, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-13-4521-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-13-4521-2020, 2020
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The mechanisms linking convection and air motion are major factors in much of the uncertainty in weather prediction, but complementary measurements of these quantities are rarely taken in close proximity. These quantities are shown from the 2017 Convective Processes Experiment (CPEX), wherein cloud and vertical air motion winds derived from the APR-2 airborne Doppler radar are combined with joint Doppler wind lidar (DAWN) measurements in the aerosol-rich regions surrounding the convection.
Alex T. Chartier, Juha Vierinen, and Geonhwa Jee
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 13, 3023–3031, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-13-3023-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-13-3023-2020, 2020
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A novel oblique ionospheric radio sounder has been developed and demonstrated in Antarctica. The transmitter was located at McMurdo and the receiver at the South Pole (1356 km great-circle path). The system cycled through 12 frequencies each minute and recorded signal time of flight, intensity, and Doppler. This allowed for the estimation of peak ionospheric electron density, which validated well against independent data from the nearby Jang Bogo ionosonde and GPS TEC.
Alexander V. Rodin, Dmitry V. Churbanov, Sergei G. Zenevich, Artem Y. Klimchuk, Vladimir M. Semenov, Maxim V. Spiridonov, and Iskander S. Gazizov
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 13, 2299–2308, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-13-2299-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-13-2299-2020, 2020
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The paper presents a new technique in remote wind measurements that may potentially complement conventional aerological observations and eventually greatly improve our knowledge about our climate system, especially concerning processes related to troposphere–stratosphere coupling. The technique may be implemented at relatively low cost in various applications from meteorological observation posts to remote sensing spacecraft.
Kuijun Wu, Weiwei He, Yutao Feng, Yuanhui Xiong, and Faquan Li
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 13, 1817–1824, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-13-1817-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-13-1817-2020, 2020
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The 1.27 μm O2 dayglow is well-suited for remote sensing in near-space. The main goal of this paper is to discuss the effect of OH radiance on the wind and temperature measurements derived from limb-viewing observations of the O2 dayglow. It is apparent from the simulations that the presence of OH radiance as an interfering species decreases the wind and temperature accuracy at all altitudes, but this effect can be reduced considerably by improving OH radiance knowledge.
Sergey M. Khaykin, Alain Hauchecorne, Robin Wing, Philippe Keckhut, Sophie Godin-Beekmann, Jacques Porteneuve, Jean-Francois Mariscal, and Jerome Schmitt
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 13, 1501–1516, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-13-1501-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-13-1501-2020, 2020
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The article presents a powerful atmospheric instrument based on a laser radar (lidar), capable of measuring horizontal wind velocity at a wide range of altitudes. In this study, we evaluate the performance of the wind lidar at Observatoire de Haute-Provence and demonstrate the application of its measurements for studies of atmospheric dynamical processes. Finally, we present an example of early validation of the ESA Aeolus space-borne wind lidar using its ground-based predecessor.
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Short summary
The characterization of infrared radiation emitted by the atmosphere is a crucial task in the study of the Earth's climate. The Radiation Explorer in the Far Infrared (REFIR) spectroradiometer allows us to perform this task adding the capability of resolving, through spectroscopy, the atmospheric components responsible for the measured radiative effects. The analysis of the measurements also allows us to retrieve the atmospheric structure, making REFIR a complete tool for atmospheric studies.
The characterization of infrared radiation emitted by the atmosphere is a crucial task in the...
