Uncertainties in cloud phase and optical thickness retrievals from the Earth  Polychromatic Imaging Camera (EPIC)

Meyer, Kerry; Yang, Yuekui; Platnick, Steven

doi:https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-9-1785-2016

Articles | Volume 9, issue 4

https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-9-1785-2016

© Author(s) 2016. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.

https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-9-1785-2016

© Author(s) 2016. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.

Articles | Volume 9, issue 4

Research article

|

26 Apr 2016

Research article |

| 26 Apr 2016

Uncertainties in cloud phase and optical thickness retrievals from the Earth Polychromatic Imaging Camera (EPIC)

Kerry Meyer, Yuekui Yang, and Steven Platnick

Data sets

MODIS Atmosphere L2 Cloud Product (06_L2) Steven Platnick, Michael King, Gala Wind, Steve Ackerman, Paul Menzel, and Rich Frey https://doi.org/10.5067/MODIS/MOD06_L2.006

MODIS/Aqua Calibrated Radiances 5-Min L1B Swath 1km MODIS Characterization Support Team (MCST)/MODIS Adaptive Processing System (MODAPS) https://doi.org/10.5067/MODIS/MYD021KM.006

MODIS/Aqua Cloud Mask and Spectral Test Results 5-Min L2 Swath 250 m and 1 km Ackerman, S. and Frey, R. https://doi.org/10.5067/MODIS/MYD35_L2.006

MODIS/Aqua Clouds 5-Min L2 Swath 1 km and 5 km, Dataset Platnick, S., King, M. D., Wind, G., Ackerman, S., Menzel, W. P., and Frey, R. https://doi.org/10.5067/MODIS/MYD06_L2.006

Short summary

This paper presents the expected uncertainties of a single-channel cloud opacity retrieval technique and a temperature-based cloud phase approach in support of the Deep Space Climate Observatory (DSCOVR) mission; DSCOVR cloud products will be derived from Earth Polychromatic Imaging Camera (EPIC) observations. Results show that, for ice clouds, retrieval errors are minimal (< 2 %), while for liquid clouds the error is limited to within 10 %, although for thin clouds the error can be higher.