McCarthy, S. | Search NASA

NASA NTRS1997

Vertical ozone profile comparisons between ozonesondes and remote instrumentation

The ozone profiles measured with the halogen occultation experiment (HALOE) instrument and the microwave limb sounder (MLS) instrument, on NASA's upper atmosphere research satellite (UARS), are compared to those obtained with the electrochemical concentration cell (ECC) ozone sonde. The process used to assure the quality of the ozone sonde measurements, the comparisons between the ozone sonde and other measuring instruments, and the reliability of measurements in space are discussed.

Schmidlin, F. J.↗

NASA NTRS1997

Vertical Ozone Profile Comparisons Between Ozonesondes and Remote Instrumentation

Ozonesonde measurement quality is a critical factor for insuring measurement accuracy and is fundamentally indispensable for validating remotely measured ozone. Reasonable results from such ozone profile comparisons are best obtained by maintaining the smallest possible spatial and time differences between ozonesonde and remote measurement observations. Ozone profiles measured with the Halogen Occultation Experiment (HALOE) instrument and the Microwave Limb Sounder (MLS) instrument on NASA's Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite (UARS) are compared with ECC profiles. Comparisons with the GSFC ozone lidar also demonstrate good agreement. In this paper we show: (1) the process used by NASA to secure quality ozonesonde measurements, (2) comparisons of ozonesondes with various remote sensing instruments and, (3) the reliability obtained when both measurement types are obtained close in time and, when possible, in space.

Schmidlin, F. J.↗