 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Importance of Water Vapor Measurements
-- Water vapor is a critical variable for climate studies. The
absorption of infrared (IR) radiation by atmospheric water vapor
and its subsequent emission at lower temperatures greatly influences
the radiative energy balance of the planet. Importance of Wind Measurements -- Winds, for our purposes, are important because they serve to transport energy (latent heat) in the form of moisture from one region to another. Latent heat is the source of energy for the atmosphere and plays an important role in the development of such phenomena as thunderstorms, tornadoes, and hurricanes. Importance of Surface Processes -- It is vital to understand the complexities involved in studies of surface characteristics (in particular, remote sensing studies). The land surface can be made up of sand, mud, swamp, grass, rock, etc. Each of these substances have different radiometric properties and affect remotely sensed data in different ways. Therefore, it is necessary to identify each of these substances and account for their impact on the process or quantity being measured. Definitions -- Some useful definitions of keywords and acronyms used in our research || Personnel || || Publications || || What's New |||| Retrievals Algorithms || || Precipitable Water || || Water Vapor Transport |||| Land Surface Temperature || || Aircraft Measurement || || Real Time Data ||Technical Contact: Dr. Gary J. Jedlovec (gary.jedlovec@msfc.nasa.gov) Responsible Official: Dr. James L. Smoot (James.L.Smoot@nasa.gov) Page Curator: Diane Samuelson (diane.samuelson@msfc.nasa.gov) Last updated on: January 25, 2002 |
The mission of the Infrared Measurements Group
is to examine climate variability using data from satellite,
airborne, and ground-based systems. In particular the group is
focused on studying the atmospheric component of the hydrologic
cycle using infrared measurements. The utility of multispectral
measurements from geostationary, polar orbiting, and aircraft
platforms to monitor water vapor variability and transport as
well as land surface processes over regions with high spatial
and temporal resolution is unsurpassed. The research group at
the Global Hydrology and Climate Center (GHCC) within the
National Space Science and Technology Center (NSSTC) has
been involved in the development of retrieval algorithms and
in studying atmospheric water vapor variability for a number
of years, and research includes both aircraft,
satellite (METEOSAT, GOES and MODIS), and modeled datasets.