Task 210

AURA Validation Using Ground-Based Remote Sensing

Principal Investigator(s):

A. Cede

Sponsor(s):

J. Herman

Last Updated:

October 26, 2012 15:25:46

Description of Problem

Many atmospheric parameters measured by the instruments on the NASA AURA satellite platform need improved validation from independent measurements, e.g. ground-based and aircraft remote sensing or balloon measurements. Aerosols and some of the trace gases retrieved by AURA are highly variable in time and space (e.g. tropospheric O3, NO2, SO2, HCHO). Therefore regional and global monitoring networks are needed for statistically meaningful validation results.

Scientific Objectives and Approach

A rather inexpensive, small spectrometer system Pandora has been and is being developed at Goddard Space Flight Center to address the need for improved satellite validation. Pandora-instruments are capable of deriving accurate total columns of NO2, O3, SO2, HCHO, and water vapor from direct sun measurements and vertical profiles of some trace gases (at least O3 and NO2) from sky radiance measurements.

Accomplishments

• The standardized laboratory and field calibration procedures of Pandora have been tested on several instruments. A new calibration test (radiometric temperature sensitivity) has been developed and tested.

• The instrument control software PanOS change form version 1.1. to 1.2 was done in December 2010.

• A scripted version of the processing software PanPS has been made. This allows the instrument’s operator to produce trace gas columns without sending the data to me for processing.

• A paper about the NO2 intercomparison campaign in June-July 2009 in the Netherlands including Pandora has been published. Comparison of HCHO data during the same campaign is in progress.

Refereed Journal Publications

Roscoe, H.K., et al: Intercomparison of slant column measurements of NO2 and O4 by MaxD0AS and zenith-sky UV and visible spectrometers, Atm. Meas. Tech. 3, 1629-1646, 2010.

Wang, S., T. J. Pongetti, S. P. Sander, E. Spinei, G. H. Mount, A. Cede, and J. Herman, Direct Sun measurements of NO2 column abundances from Table Mountain, California: Intercomparison of low- and high-resolution spectrometers, J. Geophys. Res., 115, D13305, doi:10.1029/2009JD013503, 2010.

Other Publications and Conferences

Cede A., N. Abuhassan and J. Herman, Pandora Direct Sun Data during CINDI, CINDI Workshop, BIRA, Brussels, Belgium, March 10, 2010.