Usage of the VIIRS Day Night Band As an Operational Tool

The Day/Night Band (DNB), part of the Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) carried on the Suomi National Polar-orbiting Partnership (S-NPP) satellite and future members of the Joint Polar Satellite System (JPSS) series, continues to expand our range possibilities for characterizing the nocturnal environment. The DNB allows for both daytime visible imagery as well as the unique ability to detect low-levels of visible and near-infrared light at night. In this presentation we will demonstrate the unique uses the DNB has to offer for both the operational and research community during all phases of the moon. These uses include the operational use of ship light detection for rescue operations and fishery monitoring; public awareness of natural and man-made disasters; quantitative applications that utilize moonlight reflectance, such as nighttime cloud optical depth retrievals. In addition, we will provide an update on the DNB's unique sensitivity to atmospheric nightglow, and specifically perturbations thereof that are linked to atmospheric gravity waves launched by a variety of mechanisms. This novel and unforeseen capability offers a looking-glass into key energy transfer processes heretofore unobserved at sub-kilometer spatial resolution.