the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.
Space-borne observation of methane from atmospheric infrared sounder version 6: validation and implications for data analysis
Abstract. Atmospheric Methane (CH4) is generated as a standard product in recent version of the hyperspectral Atmospheric Infrared Sounder (AIRS-V6) aboard NASA's Aqua satellite at the NASA Goddard Earth Sciences Data and Information Services Center (NASA/GES/DISC). Significant improvements in AIRS-V6 was expected but without a thorough validation. This paper first introduced the improvements of CH4 retrieval in AIRS-V6 and some characterizations, then presented the results of validation using ~ 1000 aircraft profiles from several campaigns spread over a couple of years and in different regions. It was found the mean biases of AIRS CH4 at layers 343–441 and 441–575 hPa are −0.76 and −0.05 % and the RMS errors are 1.56 and 1.16 %, respectively. Further analysis demonstrates that the errors in the spring and in the high northern latitudes are larger than in other seasons or regions. The error is correlated with Degree of Freedoms (DOFs), particularly in the tropics or in the summer, and cloud amount, suggesting that the "observed" spatiotemporal variation of CH4 by AIRS is imbedded with some artificial impact from the retrieval sensitivity in addition to its variation in reality, so the variation of information content in the retrievals needs to be taken into account in data analysis of the retrieval products. Some additional filtering (i.e. rejection of profiles with obvious oscillation as well as those deviating greatly from the norm) for quality control is recommended for the users to better utilize AIRS-V6 CH4, and their implementation in the future versions of the AIRS retrieval algorithm is under consideration.
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RC C2838: 'Interactive comment on Space-borne Observation of Methane from Atmospheric Infrared Sounder Version 6: Validation and Implications for Data Analysis', Omaira Garciar, 04 Sep 2015
- AC C3862: 'Author response to Dr. O. Garciar', Xiaozhen Xiong, 13 Nov 2015
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RC C3429: 'Comments and recommendations for minor revisions', Anonymous Referee #1, 20 Oct 2015
- AC C3863: 'Author response', Xiaozhen Xiong, 13 Nov 2015
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RC C2838: 'Interactive comment on Space-borne Observation of Methane from Atmospheric Infrared Sounder Version 6: Validation and Implications for Data Analysis', Omaira Garciar, 04 Sep 2015
- AC C3862: 'Author response to Dr. O. Garciar', Xiaozhen Xiong, 13 Nov 2015
-
RC C3429: 'Comments and recommendations for minor revisions', Anonymous Referee #1, 20 Oct 2015
- AC C3863: 'Author response', Xiaozhen Xiong, 13 Nov 2015
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Cited
12 citations as recorded by crossref.
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- Analysis of long-term (2003–2015) spatial-temporal distribution of atmospheric methane in the troposphere over the Qinghai-Xizang Plateau based on AIRS data D. Feng et al. 10.1007/s00704-018-2651-x
- The MUSICA IASI CH<sub>4</sub> and N<sub>2</sub>O products and their comparison to HIPPO, GAW and NDACC FTIR references O. García et al. 10.5194/amt-11-4171-2018
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- Modulation of midtropospheric methane by El Niño A. Corbett et al. 10.1002/2017EA000281
- Evaluation of single-footprint AIRS CH<sub>4</sub> profile retrieval uncertainties using aircraft profile measurements S. Kulawik et al. 10.5194/amt-14-335-2021
- Comparison analysis of global methane concentration derived from SCIAMACHY, AIRS, and GOSAT with surface station measurements L. Zhang et al. 10.1080/01431161.2020.1846221
- Satellite observation of atmospheric methane: intercomparison between AIRS and GOSAT TANSO-FTS retrievals M. Zou et al. 10.5194/amt-9-3567-2016
- New evidence for CH4 enhancement in the upper troposphere associated with the Asian summer monsoon M. Tao et al. 10.1088/1748-9326/ad2738
- Increase of Atmospheric Methane Observed from Space-Borne and Ground-Based Measurements M. Zou et al. 10.3390/rs11080964
- Satellite-retrieved vertical profiles of methane over the Indian region: impact of synopticscale meteorology M. Kavitha & P. Nair 10.1080/01431161.2019.1580791