Fast transmittance model for satellite sounding.

Through the use of new line-by-line spectral calculations in both the infrared and microwave regions, coefficients have been generated for the transmittance stage of the fast radiative transfer model used by the United Kingdom Meteorological Office. These permit the fast model to calculate the transmittance for the high-resolution infrared sounder and the microwave sounding unit instruments aboard the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration polar-orbiting satellite for a given atmospheric profile, simply by taking these coefficients in linear combination with a set of predictors. These are expressed in terms of the deviation of the profile from a reference. However, the method can be applied to any instrument within the range of the spectral calculations, thereby permitting new coefficients to be calculated as soon as the spectral response details for the instrument become available. It also permits effective consideration to be given in the longer term to new line data or improvements in line-shape theory. The process by which these coefficients have been obtained is described, along with a discussion of some of the tests carried out on their installation into the fast model; these tests show that they are suitable for operational use. The predictors employed by the fast model are discussed, and changes are proposed for those that relate to the water-vapor transmittance. In this respect it was found that the inclusion of predictors that depend primarily on the zenith angle of the radiation path leads to improvements in the transmittance calculation.

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