Assimilation of AIRS hyperspectral radiances at MSC

Progress toward the operational assimilation of AIRS hyperspectral radiances at MSC is described. The 281 channel subset made available by NESDIS is used. A simple radiance bias correction scheme is implemented. Cloud height and cloud fraction are inferred using the CO2 slicing technique. Channels which are not affected by clouds are selected for assimilation. A maximum of 123 channels are assimilated. The poster focuses on the impact of the assimilation on analyses and subsequent forecasts.