A Framework for Estimating Clear-Sky Atmospheric Total Precipitable Water (TPW) from VIIRS/S-NPP

Atmospheric water vapor content or total precipitable water (TPW) is a highly variable atmospheric constituent, yet it remains one of the meteorological parameters that is most difficult to characterize accurately. We develop a framework for estimating atmospheric TPW from Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) data in this study. First, TPW is retrieved from VIIRS top-of-atmosphere (TOA) radiance of channels 15 and 16 using the refined split-window covariance-variance ratio (SWCVR) method. Then, the VIIRS TPW is blended with the microwave integrated retrieval system (MIRS) derived TPW via Bayesian model averaging (BMA) to improve the accuracy of VIIRS TPW. Three years (2014–2017) of ground measurements collected from SuomiNet sites over North America are used to validate the VIIRS TPW and blended TPW. The mean bias error (MBE) and root mean square error (RMSE) of the VIIRS TPW are 0.21 g/cm2 and 0.73 g/cm2, respectively, and the accuracy of the VIIRS TPW in daytime is much better than at night time. The MBE and RMSE of BMA integrated TPW are 0.06 g/cm2 and 0.35 g/cm2, and the accuracy difference between daytime and nighttime is also removed. The global radiosonde measurements are also collected to validate the BMA integrated VIIRS TPW. The MBE and RMSE of the BMA integrated TPW are 0.09 g/cm2 and 0.44 g/cm2 compared to the radiosonde measurements. This accuracy is also superior to the VIIRS TPW. Therefore, it is concluded that the developed framework can be used to derive accurate clear-sky TPW for VIIRS. This is the first time that we can obtain high accuracy TPW from VIIRS. This study will certainly benefit the study of atmospheric processes and climate change.

[1]  Jie Cheng,et al.  Global Estimates for High-Spatial-Resolution Clear-Sky Land Surface Upwelling Longwave Radiation From MODIS Data , 2016, IEEE Transactions on Geoscience and Remote Sensing.

[2]  A. Raftery,et al.  Using Bayesian Model Averaging to Calibrate Forecast Ensembles , 2005 .

[3]  Xi Shao,et al.  Suomi NPP VIIRS sensor data record verification, validation, and long‐term performance monitoring , 2013 .

[4]  Richard A. Frey,et al.  VIIRS Cloud Mask Validation Exercises , 2011 .

[5]  Alan Robock,et al.  Global cooling after the eruption of Mount Pinatubo: a test of climate feedback by water vapor. , 2002, Science.

[6]  H. S. Andersen,et al.  Estimation of precipitable water vapour from NOAA-AVHRR data during the Hapex Sahel experiment , 1996 .

[7]  Yamin Guo,et al.  A Comparative Study of Bulk Parameterization Schemes for Estimating Cloudy-Sky Surface Downward Longwave Radiation , 2019, Remote. Sens..

[8]  Jiancheng Shi,et al.  A total precipitable water retrieval method over land using the combination of passive microwave and optical remote sensing , 2017 .

[9]  K. Moffett,et al.  Remote Sens , 2015 .

[10]  W. Paul Menzel,et al.  Global profile training database for satellite regression retrievals with estimates of skin temperature and emissivity , 2005 .

[11]  Wayne D. Robinson,et al.  Optimized Retrievals of Precipitable Water from the VAS “Split Window” , 1987 .

[12]  Carl A. Mears,et al.  Intercomparison of total precipitable water measurements made by satellite‐borne microwave radiometers and ground‐based GPS instruments , 2015 .

[13]  C. Muth,et al.  Advanced Technology Microwave Sounder on NPOESS and NPP , 2004, IGARSS 2004. 2004 IEEE International Geoscience and Remote Sensing Symposium.

[14]  S. H. Melfi,et al.  Observations of water vapor by ground-based microwave radiometers and Raman lidar , 1994 .

[15]  R. Fisher,et al.  On the Mathematical Foundations of Theoretical Statistics , 1922 .

[16]  S. Hook,et al.  The ASTER spectral library version 2.0 , 2009 .

[17]  David N. Whiteman,et al.  Raman Lidar Measurements of Water Vapor and Cirrus Clouds During the Passage of Hurricane Bonnie , 2013 .

[18]  Adrian E. Raftery,et al.  Bayesian Model Averaging: A Tutorial , 2016 .

[19]  Richard A. Frey,et al.  The VIIRS Cloud Mask: Progress in the first year of S‐NPP toward a common cloud detection scheme , 2014 .

[20]  Michael G. Bosilovich,et al.  Water Vapor Tracers as Diagnostics of the Regional Hydrologic Cycle , 2013 .

[21]  Zhaoming Zhang,et al.  NDVI-based split-window algorithm for precipitable water vapour retrieval from Landsat-8 TIRS data over land area , 2015 .

[22]  Yamin Guo,et al.  Comprehensive assessment of parameterization methods for estimating clear-sky surface downward longwave radiation , 2019, Theoretical and Applied Climatology.

[23]  Gary J. Jedlovec,et al.  Precipitable water estimation from high-resolution split window radiance measurements , 1990 .

[24]  Bo-Cai Gao,et al.  Possible near-IR channels for remote sensing precipitable water vapor from geostationary satellite platforms , 1993 .

[25]  S. A. Snyder,et al.  Determination of oceanic total precipitable water from the SSM/I , 1990 .

[26]  Guangjian Yan,et al.  Atmospheric water vapor retrieval from Landsat 8 thermal infrared images , 2015 .

[27]  W. Elliott,et al.  On the Utility of Radiosonde Humidity Archives for climate studies , 1991 .

[28]  Donatella Guzzi,et al.  Algorithm for the retrieval of columnar water vapor from hyperspectral remotely sensed data. , 2004, Applied optics.

[29]  Yoram J. Kaufman,et al.  Remote sensing of total precipitable water vapor in the near‐IR over ocean glint , 2000 .

[30]  John S. Kimball,et al.  Satellite Microwave Retrieval of Total Precipitable Water Vapor and Surface Air Temperature Over Land From AMSR2 , 2015, IEEE Transactions on Geoscience and Remote Sensing.

[31]  Nils Lid Hjort,et al.  Model Selection and Model Averaging , 2001 .

[32]  Shunlin Liang,et al.  An efficient hybrid method for estimating clear‐sky surface downward longwave radiation from MODIS data , 2017 .

[33]  Larry M. McMillin,et al.  Retrieval of Precipitable Water from Observations in the Split Window over Varying Surface Temperatures , 1990 .

[34]  Soroosh Sorooshian,et al.  SuomiNet: A Real-Time National GPS Network for Atmospheric Research and Education. , 2000 .

[35]  Jie Cheng,et al.  Estimation of High Spatial-Resolution Clear-Sky Land Surface-Upwelling Longwave Radiation from VIIRS/S-NPP Data , 2018, Remote. Sens..

[36]  Zhao-Liang Li,et al.  A new approach for retrieving precipitable water from ATSR2 split-window channel data over land area , 2003 .

[37]  Yamin Guo,et al.  Feasibility of Estimating Cloudy-Sky Surface Longwave Net Radiation Using Satellite-Derived Surface Shortwave Net Radiation , 2018, Remote. Sens..

[38]  Yoram J. Kaufman,et al.  Water vapor retrievals using Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) near‐infrared channels , 2003 .

[39]  Shunlin Liang,et al.  Validating MODIS land surface temperature products using long-term nighttime ground measurements , 2008 .

[40]  H. Mooney,et al.  Modeling the Exchanges of Energy, Water, and Carbon Between Continents and the Atmosphere , 1997, Science.

[41]  W. Paul Menzel,et al.  Operational retrieval of atmospheric temperature, moisture, and ozone from MODIS infrared radiances , 2003 .

[42]  Adrian E. Raftery,et al.  Bayesian model averaging: a tutorial (with comments by M. Clyde, David Draper and E. I. George, and a rejoinder by the authors , 1999 .

[43]  Filipe Aires,et al.  Atmospheric water‐vapour profiling from passive microwave sounders over ocean and land. Part I: Methodology for the Megha‐Tropiques mission , 2013 .

[44]  Rene Preusker,et al.  A global climatology of total columnar water vapour from SSM/I and MERIS , 2014 .

[45]  Charles Elkan,et al.  Expectation Maximization Algorithm , 2010, Encyclopedia of Machine Learning.

[46]  Lance E. Christensen,et al.  Validating AIRS upper atmosphere water vapor retrievals using aircraft and balloon in situ measurements , 2004 .

[47]  Wanchun Chen,et al.  MiRS: An All-Weather 1DVAR Satellite Data Assimilation and Retrieval System , 2011, IEEE Transactions on Geoscience and Remote Sensing.

[48]  Zhao-Liang Li,et al.  Improvements in the split-window technique for land surface temperature determination , 1994, IEEE Trans. Geosci. Remote. Sens..

[49]  J. R. Wang,et al.  Retrieval of total precipitable water using radiometric measurements near 92 and 183 GHz , 1989 .

[50]  Steven Businger,et al.  Sensing atmospheric water vapor with the global positioning system , 1993 .

[51]  Fuzhong Weng,et al.  Determination of precipitable water and cloud liquid water over oceans from the NOAA 15 advanced microwave sounding unit , 2001 .

[52]  Christian Rocken,et al.  GPS/STORM—GPS Sensing of Atmospheric Water Vapor for Meteorology , 1995 .

[53]  Douglas Hunt,et al.  REAL-TIME WATER VAPOR SENSING WITH SUOMINET -- TODAY AND TOMORROW , 2003 .