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SeaWiFS Technical Report Series: SeaWiFS Calibration and Validation Quality Control Procedures - Volume 38

This document provides five brief reports that address several quality control procedures under the auspices of the Calibration and Validation Element (CVE) within the Sea-viewing Wide Field-of-view Sensor (SeaWiFS) Project. Chapter 1 describes analyses of the 32 sensor engineering telemetry streams. Anomalies in any of the values may impact sensor performance in direct or indirect ways. The analyses are primarily examinations of parameter time series combined with statistical methods such as auto- and cross-correlation functions. Chapter 2 describes how the various onboard (solar and lunar) and vicarious (in situ) calibration data will be analyzed to quantify sensor degradation, if present. The analyses also include methods for detecting the influence of charged particles on sensor performance such as might be expected in the South Atlantic Anomaly (SAA). Chapter 3 discusses the quality control of the ancillary environmental data that are routinely received from other agencies or projects which are used in the atmospheric correction algorithm (total ozone, surface wind velocity, and surface pressure; surface relative humidity is also obtained, but is not used in the initial operational algorithm). Chapter 4 explains the procedures for screening level-, level-2, and level-3 products. These quality control operations incorporate both automated and interactive procedures which check for file format errors (all levels), navigation offsets (level-1), mask and flag performance (level-2), and product anomalies (all levels). Finally, Chapter 5 discusses the match-up data set development for comparing SeaWiFS level-2 derived products with in situ observations, as well as the subsequent outlier analyses that will be used for evaluating error sources.

Hooker, Stanford B.↗

Analysis of error in TOMS total ozone as a function of orbit and attitude parameters

Computer simulations of orbital scenarios were performed to examine the effects of orbital altitude, equator crossing time, attitude uncertainty, and orbital eccentricity on ozone observations by future satellites. These effects were assessed by determining changes in solar and viewing geometry and earth daytime coverage loss. The importance of these changes on ozone retrieval was determined by simulating uncertainties in the TOMS ozone retrieval algorithm. The major findings are as follows: (1) Drift of equator crossing time from local noon would have the largest effect on the quality of ozone derived from TOMS. The most significant effect of this drift is the loss of earth daytime coverage in the winter hemisphere. The loss in coverage increases from 1 degree latitude for + or - 1 hour from noon, 6 degrees for + or - 3 hours from noon, to 53 degrees for + or - 6 hours from noon. An additional effect is the increase in ozone retrieval errors due to high solar zenith angles. (2) To maintain contiguous earth coverage, the maximum scan angle of the sensor must be increased with decreasing orbital altitude. The maximum scan angle required for full coverage at the equator varies from 60 degrees at 600 km altitude to 45 degrees at 1200 km. This produces an increase in spacecraft zenith angle, theta, which decreases the ozone retrieval accuracy. The range in theta was approximately 72 degrees for 600 km to approximately 57 degrees at 1200 km. (3) The effect of elliptical orbits is to create gaps in coverage along the subsatellite track. An elliptical orbit with a 200 km perigee and 1200 km apogee produced a maximum earth coverage gap of about 45 km at the perigee at nadir. (4) An attitude uncertainty of 0.1 degree in each axis (pitch, roll, yaw) produced a maximum scan angle to view the pole, and maximum solar zenith angle).

Gregg, W. W.↗

Science Accomplishments from a Decade of Aura OMI/MLS Tropospheric Ozone Measurements

Measurements of tropospheric ozone from combined Aura OMI and MLS instruments have yielded a large number of new and important science discoveries over the last decade. These discoveries have generated a much greater understanding of biomass burning, lightning NO, and stratosphere-troposphere exchange sources of tropospheric ozone, ENSO dynamics and photochemistry, intra-seasonal variability-Madden-Julian Oscillation including convective transport, radiative forcing, measuring ozone pollution from space, improvements to ozone retrieval algorithms, and evaluation of chemical-transport and chemistry-climate models. The OMI-MLS measurements have been instrumental in giving us better understanding of the dynamics and chemistry involving tropospheric ozone and the many drivers affecting the troposphere in general. This discussion will provide an overview focusing on our main science results.

ENSO↗

The NDSC ozone and temperature lidar alogorithm intercomparison ubutuatuve (A2I): project overview

In September 2003, the Lidar Working Group (LWG) of the Network for Detection of Stratospheric Change (NDSC) initiated an extensive project to compare the ozone and temperature algorithms used within NDSC. This initiative, referred to later as Algorithm Intercomparison Initiative (A2I), uses simulated lidar signals to test and compare various parts of the ozone and temperature lidar algorithms. In addition to the fact that it meets the requirement of the NDSC protocols, this exercise allows the detailed assessment, by all the participants, of some of the sources and magnitudes of various uncertainties associated with the algorithms, and/or with the theoretical assumptions made in these algorithms. The outcome of the A21 is to try to find common grounds in the way ozone and temperature can be retrieved in order to reduce and possibly eradicate discrepancies due to algorithm issues alone. Specific issues such as homogenizing the choice of Rayleigh extinction cross-sections, ozone absorption cross-sections, a priori information, and the definition of the vertical resolutions are among the primary targets of the A21 outcome.

lidar↗

How Certain are We of the Uncertainties in Recent Ozone Profile Trend Assessments of Merged Limbo Ccultation Records? Challenges and Possible Ways Forward

Most recent assessments of long-term changes in the vertical distribution of ozone (by e.g. WMO and SI2N) rely on data sets that integrate observations by multiple instruments. Several merged satellite ozone profile records have been developed over the past few years; each considers a particular set of instruments and adopts a particular merging strategy. Their intercomparison by Tummon et al. revealed that the current merging schemes are not sufficiently refined to correct for all major differences between the limb/occultation records. This shortcoming introduces uncertainties that need to be known to obtain a sound interpretation of the different satellite-based trend studies. In practice however, producing realistic uncertainty estimates is an intricate task which depends on a sufficiently detailed understanding of the characteristics of each contributing data record and on the subsequent interplay and propagation of these through the merging scheme. Our presentation discusses these challenges in the context of limb/occultation ozone profile records, but they are equally relevant for other instruments and atmospheric measurements. We start by showing how the NDACC and GAW-affiliated ground-based networks of ozonesonde and lidar instruments allowed us to characterize fourteen limb/occultation ozone profile records, together providing a global view over the last three decades. Our prime focus will be on techniques to estimate long-term drift since our results suggest this is the main driver of the major trend differences between the merged data sets. The single-instrument drift estimates are then used for a tentative estimate of the systematic uncertainty in the profile trends from merged data records. We conclude by reflecting on possible further steps needed to improve the merging algorithms and to obtain a better characterization of the uncertainties involved.

Merging Algorithms↗

Some Long-Standing Issues Arising From Comparisons Between TOMS and The Ground-Based Ozone Network

Data from the series of Total Ozone Mapping Spectrometers (TOMS) have been compared to column ozone measurements taken by ground-based systems (Dobsons, Brewers and Filtermeters). On average, the comparisons show good agreement, with approximately 80% of the ground stations having less than a 2.5% standard deviation when compared to TOMS on a monthly mean basis. There are, however, differences that imply possible errors either in the TOMS ozone retrieval algorithm or in the basic assumptions used by the ground-based instruments. Some of the issues arising from these differences are: What are the relative calibrations of TOMS instruments? Why do the calibrations of the ground-based stations vary as much as they do with respect to TOMS as a transfer standard? Why are the TOMS data so much larger (approximately 6%) than the ground-based data in Antarctica and other ice-covered locations? Why is there seasonality in the difference between TOMS and ground-based stations in the Southern Hemisphere? Why are the differences a function of total ozone? Where and why are the differences a function of reflectivity? Why do some terrain and land-sea boundary features appear in the TOMS ozone data? The above issues will be highlighted by using data from TOMS and the ground stations. Plots of the individual station differences will be available.

Labow, Gordon J.↗

Observations of Solar Spectral Irradiance Change During Cycle 22 from NOAA-9 SBUV/2

The NOM-9 Solar Backscatter Ultraviolet, model 2 (SBUV/2) instrument is one of a series of instruments providing daily solar spectral irradiance measurements in the middle and near ultraviolet since 1978. The SBUV/2 instruments are primarily designed to measure stratospheric profile and total column ozone, using the directional albedo as the input to the ozone processing algorithm. As a result, the SBUV/2 instrument does not have onboard monitoring of all time-dependent response changes. We have applied internal comparisons and vicarious (external) comparisons to determine the long-term instrument characterization for NOAA-9 SBUV/2 to derive accurate solar spectral irradiances from March 1985 to May 1997 spanning two solar cycle minima with a single instrument. The NOAA-9 data show an amplitude of 9.3(+/- 2.3)% (81-day averaged) at 200-205 nm for solar cycle 22. This is consistent with the result of (Delta)F(sub 200-205) = 8.3(+/- 2.6)% for cycle 21 from Nimbus-7 SBUV and (Delta)F(sub 200-205) = 10(+/- 2)% (daily values) for cycle 23 from UARS SUSIM. NOAA-9 data at 245-250 nm show a solar cycle amplitude of (Delta)F(sub 245-250) = 5.7(+/- 1.8)%. NOAA-9 SBUV/2 data can be combined with other instruments to create a 25-year record of solar UV irradiance.

DeLand, Matthew T.↗

Direct Retrieval of Sulfur Dioxide Amount and Altitude from Spaceborne Hyperspectral UV Measurements: Theory and Application

We describe the physical processes by which a vertically localized absorber perturbs the top-of-atmosphere solar backscattered ultraviolet (UV) radiance. The distinct spectral responses to perturbations of an absorber in its column amount and layer altitude provide the basis for a practical satellite retrieval technique, the Extended Iterative Spectral Fitting (EISF) algorithm, for the simultaneous retrieval of these quantities of a SO2 plume. In addition, the EISF retrieval provides an improved UV aerosol index for quantifying the spectral contrast of apparent scene reflectance at the bottom of atmosphere bounded by the surface and/or cloud; hence it can be used for detection of the presence or absence of UV absorbing aerosols. We study the performance and characterize the uncertainties of the EISF algorithm using synthetic backscattered UV radiances, retrievals from which can be compared with those used in the simulation. Our findings indicate that the presence of aerosols (both absorbing and nonabsorbing) does not cause large errors in EISF retrievals under most observing conditions when they are located below the SO2 plume. The EISF retrievals assuming a homogeneous field of view can provide accurate column amounts for inhomogeneous scenes, but they always underestimate the plume altitudes. The EISF algorithm reduces systematic errors present in existing linear retrieval algorithms that use prescribed SO2 plume heights. Applying the EISF algorithm to Ozone Monitoring Instrument satellite observations of the recent Kasatochi volcanic eruption, we demonstrate the successful retrieval of effective plume altitude of volcanic SO2, and we also show the improvement in accuracy in the corresponding SO2 columns.

Yang, Kau↗

A Fast and Sensitive New Satellite SO2 Retrieval Algorithm based on Principal Component Analysis: Application to the Ozone Monitoring Instrument

We describe a new algorithm to retrieve SO2 from satellite-measured hyperspectral radiances. We employ the principal component analysis technique in regions with no significant SO2 to capture radiance variability caused by both physical processes (e.g., Rayleigh and Raman scattering and ozone absorption) and measurement artifacts. We use the resulting principal components and SO2 Jacobians calculated with a radiative transfer model to directly estimate SO2 vertical column density in one step. Application to the Ozone Monitoring Instrument (OMI) radiance spectra in 310.5-340 nm demonstrates that this approach can greatly reduce biases in the operational OMI product and decrease the noise by a factor of 2, providing greater sensitivity to anthropogenic emissions. The new algorithm is fast, eliminates the need for instrument-specific radiance correction schemes, and can be easily adapted to other sensors. These attributes make it a promising technique for producing longterm, consistent SO2 records for air quality and climate research.

Principal component analysis↗

Determination of water vapor profiles and total ozone burden from HIRS2/MSU sounding data

Algorithms for determining total ozone content and humidity from HIRS2/MSU data are examined. The methods are based on the ability to accurately model the response of a given channel to changes in a given atmospheric component. The steps of the iterative relaxation method for determining atmospheric water vapor and ozone content are described. Examples of retrieved fields of total ozone and precipitable water are presented.

Reuter, D.↗

Highlights from the 11-Year Record of Tropospheric Ozone from OMI/MLS and Continuation of that Long Record Using OMPS Measurements

Since October 2004 the Ozone Monitoring Instrument (OMI) and Microwave Limb Sounder (MLS) onboard the Aura satellite have provided over 11 years of continuous tropospheric ozone measurements. These OMI/MLS measurements have been used in many studies to evaluate dynamical and photochemical effects caused by ENSO, the Madden-Julian Oscillation (MJO) and shorter timescales, as well as long-term trends and the effects of deep convection on tropospheric ozone. Given that the OMI and MLS instruments have now extended well beyond their expected lifetimes, our goal is to continue their long record of tropospheric ozone using recent Ozone Mapping Profiler Suite (OMPS) measurements. The OMPS onboard the Suomi National Polar-orbiting Partnership NPP satellite was launched on October 28, 2011 and is comprised of three instruments: the nadir mapper, the nadir profiler, and the limb profiler. Our study combines total column ozone from the OMPS nadir mapper with stratospheric column ozone from the OMPS limb profiler to measure tropospheric ozone residual. The time period for the OMPS measurements is March 2012 present. For the OMPS limb profiler retrievals, the OMPS v2 algorithm from Goddard is tested against the University of Saskatchewan (USask) Algorithm. The retrieved ozone profiles from each of these algorithms are evaluated with ozone profiles from both ozonesondes and the Aura Microwave Limb Sounder (MLS). Effects on derived OMPS tropospheric ozone caused by the 2015-2016 El Nino event are highlighted. This recent El Nino produced anomalies in tropospheric ozone throughout the tropical Pacific involving increases of approximately 10 DU over Indonesia and decreases approximately 5-10 DU in the eastern Pacific. These changes in ozone due to El Nino were predominantly dynamically-induced, caused by the eastward shift in sea-surface temperature and convection from the western to the eastern Pacific.

MJO↗

SAGE II inversion algorithm

The operational Stratospheric Aerosol and Gas Experiment II multichannel data inversion algorithm is described. Aerosol and ozone retrievals obtained with the algorithm are discussed. The algorithm is compared to an independently developed algorithm (Lenoble, 1989), showing that the inverted aerosol and ozone profiles from the two algorithms are similar within their respective uncertainties.

Chu, W. P.↗

Simultaneous Retrieval of Temperature, Water Vapor and Ozone Atmospheric Profiles from IASI: Compression, De-noising, First Guess Retrieval and Inversion Algorithms

A fast temperature water vapor and ozone atmospheric profile retrieval algorithm is developed for the high spectral resolution Infrared Atmospheric Sounding Interferometer (IASI) space-borne instrument. Compression and de-noising of IASI observations are performed using Principal Component Analysis. This preprocessing methodology also allows, for a fast pattern recognition in a climatological data set to obtain a first guess. Then, a neural network using first guess information is developed to retrieve simultaneously temperature, water vapor and ozone atmospheric profiles. The performance of the resulting fast and accurate inverse model is evaluated with a large diversified data set of radiosondes atmospheres including rare events.

Aires, F.↗

Creating a Satellite-Based Record of Tropospheric Ozone

The TES retrieval algorithm has been applied to IASI radiances. We compare the retrieved ozone profiles with ozone sonde profiles for mid-latitudes for the year 2008. We find a positive bias in the IASI ozone profiles in the UTLS region of up to 22 %. The spatial coverage of the IASI instrument allows sampling of effectively the same air mass with several IASI scenes simultaneously. Comparisons of the root-mean-square of an ensemble of IASI profiles to theoretical errors indicate that the measurement noise and the interference of temperature and water vapour on the retrieval together mostly explain the empirically derived random errors. The total degrees of freedom for signal of the retrieval for ozone are 3.1 +/- 0.2 and the tropospheric degrees of freedom are 1.0 +/- 0.2 for the described cases. IASI ozone profiles agree within the error bars with coincident ozone profiles derived from a TES stare sequence for the ozone sonde station at Bratt's Lake (50.2 deg N, 104.7 deg W).

pollutant↗

Impacts of the Convective Transport Algorithm on Atmospheric Composition and Ozone-Climate Feedbacks in GEOS-CCM

Convective transport is one of the dominant factors in determining the composition of the troposphere. It is the main mechanism for lofting constituents from near-surface source regions to the middle and upper troposphere, where they can subsequently be advected over large distances. Gases reaching the upper troposphere can also be injected through the tropopause and play a subsequent role in the lower stratospheric ozone balance. Convection codes in climate models remain a great source of uncertainty for both the energy balance of the general circulation and the transport of constituents. This study uses the Goddard Earth Observing System Chemistry-Climate Model (GEOS CCM) to perform a controlled experiment that isolates the impact of convective transport of constituents from the direct changes on the atmospheric energy balance. Two multi-year simulations are conducted. In the first, the thermodynamic variable, moisture, and all trace gases are transported using the multi-plume Relaxed-Arakawa-Schubert (RAS) convective parameterization. In the second simulation, RAS impacts the thermodynamic energy and moisture in this standard manner, but all other constituents are transported differently. The accumulated convective mass fluxes (including entrainment and detrainment) computed at each time step of the GCM are used with a diffusive (bulk) algorithm for the vertical transport, which above all is less efficient at transporting constituents from the lower to the upper troposphere. Initial results show the expected differences in vertical structure of trace gases such as carbon monoxide, but also show differences in lower stratospheric ozone, in a region where it can potentially impact the climate state of the model. This work will investigate in more detail the impact of convective transport changes by comparing the two simulations over many years (1996-2010), focusing on comparisons with observed constituent distributions and similarities and differences of patterns of inter-annual variability caused by the convective transport algorithm. In particular, the impact on lower stratospheric composition will be isolated and the subsequent feedbacks of ozone on the climate forcing and tropopause structure will be assessed.

Pawson, S.↗

A Cloud Algorithm Based on the O2-O2 477 nm Absorption Band Featuring an Advanced Spectral Fitting Method and the Use of Surface Geometry-Dependent Lambertian-Equivalent Reflectivity

We discuss a new cloud algorithm that retrieves an effective cloud pressure, also known as cloud optical centroid pressure (OCP), from oxygen dimer (O2-O2) absorption at 477nm after determining an effective cloud fraction (ECF) at 466nm, a wavelength not significantly affected by trace-gas absorption and rotational Raman scattering. The retrieved cloud products are intended for use as inputs to the operational nitrogen dioxide (NO2) retrieval algorithm for the Ozone Monitoring Instrument (OMI) flying on the Aura satellite. The cloud algorithm uses temperature-dependent O2-O2 cross sections and incorporates flexible spectral fitting techniques that account for specifics of the surface reflectivity. The fitting procedure derives O2-O2 slant column densities (SCDs) from radiances after O3, NO2, and H2O absorption features have been removed based on estimates of the amounts of these species from independent OMI algorithms. The cloud algorithm is based on the frequently used mixed Lambertian-equivalent reflectivity (MLER) concept. A geometry-dependent Lambertian-equivalent reflectivity (GLER), which is a proxy of surface bidirectional reflectance, is used for the ground reflectivity in our implementation of the MLER approach. The OCP is derived from a match of the measured O2-O2 SCD to that calculated with the MLER method. Temperature profiles needed for computation of vertical column densities are taken from the Global Modeling Initiative (GMI) model. We investigate the effect of using GLER instead of climatological LER on the retrieved ECF and OCP. For evaluation purposes, the retrieved ECFs and OCPs are compared with those from the operational OMI cloud product, which is also based on the same O2-O2 absorption band. Impacts of the application of the newly developed cloud algorithm to the OMI NO2 retrieval are discussed.

cloud fraction and pressure↗

Validation of Ozone Profile Retrievals Derived from the OMPS LP Version 2.5 Algorithm Against Correlative Satellite Measurements

The Limb Profiler (LP) is a part of the Ozone Mapping and Profiler Suite launched on board of the Suomi NPP satellite in October 2011. The LP measures solar radiation scattered from the atmospheric limb in ultraviolet and visible spectral ranges between the surface and 80 km. These measurements of scattered solar radiances allow for the retrieval of ozone profiles from cloud tops up to 55 km. The LP started operational observations in April 2012. In this study we evaluate more than 5.5 years of ozone profile measurements from the OMPS LP processed with the new NASA GSFC version 2.5 retrieval algorithm. We provide a brief description of the key changes that had been implemented in this new algorithm, including a pointing correction, new cloud height detection, explicit aerosol correction and a reduction of the number of wavelengths used in the retrievals. The OMPS LP ozone retrievals have been compared with independent satellite profile measurements obtained from the Aura Microwave Limb Sounder (MLS), Atmospheric Chemistry Experiment Fourier Transform Spectrometer (ACE-FTS) and Odin Optical Spectrograph and InfraRed Imaging System (OSIRIS). We document observed biases and seasonal differences and evaluate the stability of the version 2.5 ozone record over 5.5 years. Our analysis indicates that the mean differences between LP and correlative measurements are well within required +/- 10% between 18 and 42 km. In the upper stratosphere and lower mesosphere (>43 km) LP tends to have a negative bias. We find larger biases in the lower stratosphere and upper troposphere, but LP ozone retrievals have significantly improved in version 2.5 compared to version 2 due to the implemented aerosol correction. In the northern high latitudes we observe larger biases between 20 and 32 km due to the remaining thermal sensitivity issue. Our analysis shows that LP ozone retrievals agree well with the correlative satellite observations in characterizing vertical, spatial and temporal ozone distribution associated with natural processes, like the seasonal cycle and quasi-biennial oscillations. We found a small positive drift approx. 0.5%/yr in the LP ozone record against MLS and OSIRIS that is more pronounced at altitudes above 35 km. This pattern in the relative drift is consistent with a possible 100m drift in the LP sensor pointing detected by one of our altitude-resolving methods.

Ozone Mapping↗