Application of SNPP VIIRS Green Vegetation Fraction in the NCEP Global Forecast System

The weekly real-time global green vegetation fraction (GVF) derived from the Visible Infrared Imager Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) sensor onboard the Suomi National Polar-orbiting Partnership (SNPP) satellite has been developed at NOAA-NESDIS. This new product uses VIIRS red (I1), near-infrared (I2) and blue (M3) bands centered at 0.640 μm, 0.865 μm and 0.490 μm, respectively, to calculate the Enhanced Vegetation Index (EVI) and derive GVF from EVI. Compared to the multi-year GVF monthly climatology currently used in the operational National Centers for Environmental Prediction (NCEP) Global Forecast System (GFS), the new product provides quality‐improved and real‐time surface vegetation information. To examine its impact on numerical weather prediction, the full cycle runs of the NCEP GFS and Gridpoint Statistical Interpolation (GSI) analysis system were performed. The results indicate that the new data sets reduce errors of temperature, humidity and wind speed forecasts, and improve precipitation scores.