Extended Abstract (380K)5A.3
Comparison of NASA-Langley satellite derived cloud top microphysical properties with research aircraft data
Jennifer L. Black, NCAR, Boulder, CO; and F. McDonough, J. A. Haggerty, S. D. Landolt, B. C. Bernstein, and C. A. Wolff
It is well documented that in-flight icing is a hazard for aircraft; hence, knowledge of the microphysical properties at cloud top can be a valuable aid in the identification of possible in-flight icing conditions. The NASA-Langley Research Center (NASA-LaRC) has developed a suite of satellite-derived cloud top products that can aid in the process of assessing these conditions.
The goal of this study is to determine the accuracy of NASA-LaRC's satellite-derived cloud product values by comparing them to the same properties measured from research aircraft. The availability of extensive research aircraft datasets from AIRS II and the NASA-LaRC Twin Otter provided direct measurements used to calculate cloud top properties for comparison against the satellite-derived cloud top properties. Cloud phase, water effective radius (r-eff), ice effective diameter (i-eff), liquid water path (LWP), and ice water path (IWP) are all evaluated. Due to the inability of satellites to see through the depth of a cloud, aircraft data from different cloud depths are compared to derived satellite values at cloud top to determine how deep into the cloud those properties are valid.
Session 5A, Satellite IIPS and Applications
Wednesday, 17 January 2007, 8:30 AM-10:00 AM, 216AB
Previous paper Next paper