Cloud and moist conserved variables from the A-train and comparisons to ECMWF during YOTC

The simultaneous spatial and temporal vertical profiling of clouds, temperature and water vapor from A-train instruments including the Atmospheric Infrared Sounder (AIRS) and CloudSat radar are used for evaluating climate model reanalyses. Variance scaling spectra of temperature and water vapor, along with estimates of their variance and skewness, are obtained. Furthermore, we derive moist conserved variables including total water, liquid water potential temperature, and equivalent potential temperature with an emphasis on the subtropics and Tropics, regions in which the sounding capabilities of AIRS/AMSU are maximized. These calculations have been applied to ECMWF during YOTC, and comparisons between ECMWF and AIRS are highlighted.