Validation of Satellite-Derived Liquid Water Paths Using ARM SGP Microwave Radiometers

Satellites are useful for monitoring climatological parameters over large domains. They are especially useful for measuring various cloud microphysical and radiative parameters where ground-based instruments are not available. The geostationary operational environmental satellite (GOES) has been used to retrieve cloud and radiative properties over an extended domain centered on the Atmospheric Radiation Measurement (ARM) Southern Great Plains (SGP) Central Facility (CF). One of the microphysical parameters available from the GOES-8 dataset is cloud liquid water path (LWP), which is crucial for linking the atmospheric hydrological and radiative budgets. Preliminary validation of this parameter has been limited to a very few cases of thick stratus during March 2000. To better understand and validate the GOES-derived LWP more completely, this paper compares it with LWP retrievals based on ARM’s ground-based microwave radiometers (MWR) at the SGP central and boundary facilities. The comparisons utilize data taken in a variety of cloud conditions during March 2000 to examine the relationships between the GOES-8 and microwave LWP retrievals as related to cloud temperature, cloud type, and viewing angle.