Evaluation Of The LOWTRAN 6 Navy Maritime Aerosol Model Using 8 To 12 ÃÂõm Sky Radiances

Infrared (8 to 12 µm) sky radiance measurements over the ocean near San Diego are compared with those calculated by LOWTRAN 6 using the Navy maritime aerosol model with simultaneously measured (radiosonde) meteorological parameters and atmospheric radon concentrations. For a low wind speed condition, the measured and calculated radiances agreed within 2% at the optical horizon. However, during moderate wind speed conditions, the current wind speed component of the aerosol model had to be lowered by factors near 0.05 for the calculated and measured radiances to agree. The adjusted model is then found to agree closely with published results of large particle size distribution measurements in the North Atlantic.