Satellite Instrument Calibration
TIROS-N, TIROS-ATN Calibration
NOAA-17
AVHRR Channels 1, 2 and 3 calibration coefficients will be updated
monthly beginning 10 August 2004. These updates will
continue until further notice. Information and
latest update.
NOAA-16
AVHRR Channels 1 and 2 calibration coefficients will be updated
monthly beginning 13 May 2003. AVHRR Channel 3A
calibration coefficients have been updated monthly since 11 February
2003. These updates will continue until further notice. Information and latest update.
NOAA-K,-L,-M (NOAA-15, -16, -17) Calibration
coefficients. Beginning with NOAA-15, calibration coefficients are
issued as amendments to the "NOAA-KLM User's Guide" rather than
amendments to the now obsolete Technical Memorandum 107 (see note at
the bottom of this
page). Calibration coefficients will be included in Appendix D
of the "User's Guide". Also see Section 7,
"Calibration of NOAA KLM Instruments." For satellites prior to NOAA-15,
see below. Additional steps are required for calibration of NOAA-15
AMSU
instrument data, and are contained in the paragraphs below.
NOAA-15 AMSU-A, AMSU-B
Calibration.
Before attempting to calibrate NOAA-15 AMSU instrument data, users
should refer to the general discussion of calibration of these
instruments contained in Section
7.3 of the "NOAA-KLM User's Guide."
Since the launch of NOAA-15, the AMSU-B
instrument
has been subject to varying biases produced by radio frequency
interference
from defective L-band HRPT transmission antennas. The varying biases
were
stabilized when use of the interfering antennas was discontinued on 28
September
1999. To determine the effect these biases have on AMSU-B data before
and
after this date, it is absolutely essential to consult Appendix-M
of the "User's Guide" before attempting to calibrate the data.
As a result of the radio frequency interference,
AMSU calibration coefficients have changed over time. Only a limited,
incomplete set of these coefficients is contained in Appendix-D of the "User's
Guide." Appendix-M advises users of the direct readout AMSU data
to
get small AMSU-A and -B Level 1b data sets, as the calibration
information
is contained within the Header Record of these data sets. NOAA is not
providing
these calibration coefficients to direct readout users in any other
manner,
at this time. Calibration parameters are contained in the Calibration
Parameter
Input Data Set (CIPIDS) that NOAA uses to process the Level 1b AMSU
data.
The date of the last CIPIDS update is contained in the Header Record.
The
location of all parameters within the Level 1b data sets can be found
in
Chapter
8,
particularly Section 3 of the "User's Guide." Examination
of
the Header Records will show that calibration information begins at
octet
209 for AMSU-A data, and octet 193 for AMSU-B data.
Level 1b AMSU data sets can be ordered at the NOAA Comprehensive Large Array-data Stewardship System.
There is no charge for small data sets. Once your ordered data set is processed,
you retrieve it from the SAA ftp download site. (Note: Users may also want to
refer to the products web site, AMSU Retrievals
for Climate Applications)
NOAA-14 Calibration Coefficients (Amendments to NOAA
Technical Memorandum 107 Appendix-B) for AVHRR
or MSU/HIRS/SSU instruments
NOAA-14 visible channels 1 and 2
monthly updated coefficients were
available November 1996 through August 2002. NOTE:
Visible channel updates are only available for NOAA-14 and NOAA-17
(channel 3A).
NOAA-12 Calibration Coefficients (Amendments
to NOAA Technical Memorandum 107 Appendix-B)
NOAA-12 correction to Appendix-B calibration Correction
to original printed version of coefficients.
NOAA-12 daily
clock drift error corrections.
Amendments to NOAA Technical Memorandum 107
Appendix-B for NOAA-11
(Calibration coefficients)
NOAA-9,11 correction to Appendix-B calibration
GOES-8, GOES-10, GOES-12 Calibration
Complete information on GOES
calibration including spectral response functions can be found at
the Office of Satellite Operations web site.
GOES-10 Imager
Radiance-Temperature conversion and calibration.
Graphs showing the square-root relationship
between digital brightness counts and albedo in the visible
channel, and the bilinear relationship between counts and brightness
temperature in the infrared
channel 4. (Provided by NESDIS/ORA Forecast Products Development Team
1)
Additional Information
--
Pre-Product Processing Branch file of NOAA level
1b processing changes and updates. Direct readout users
processing data to level 1b may wish to consider changes NOAA
implements in its processing routine.
--
Normalized spectral
response tables and plots for NOAA TIROS, GOES, METEOSAT, GMS
and INSAT from the International Satellite Cloud Climatology Project
(ISCCP). ISCCP calibration coefficient tables and documentation are
also available at this site.
--
CSIRO in Australia has a paper on calibration
techniques and applications of AVHRR data.
--
Sensitivity
of the GOES Imager Infrared Channels. A short discussion of the
relationship between GOES IR channel counts and temperature by Stan
Kidder.
--
Discussion and examples of POES
Calibration Control Monitoring for the AVHRR, HIRS, MSU and SSU
instruments, from the Ingest Systems Branch.
--
NOAA Technical Memorandum NESS 107: Data Extraction and Calibration
of TIROS-N/NOAA Radiometers (Revised October 1988) is no longer in
general distribution since its printing in 1988. Multiple copies were
distributed to most government weather bureaus and their satellite
operations divisions, associated libraries, government and private
remote sensing organizations, and university atmospheric science
departments engaged in satellite data utilization. NESS 107 has not
been updated since 1988, except for the periodic issuance of Amendments
to Appendix-B which contain the calibration coefficients for NOAA polar
orbiting satellites launched since 1988. Persons needing
access to NESS 107 should contact any of the above mentioned
organizations
that have received this publication. A portion of Chapter 5 and
Appendix
A of NESS 107 (related to AVHRR calibration) has been reproduced as an Adobe Acrobat PDF file. The calibration
technique described is only applicable up to and including NOAA-12. For
later satellites, see the "NOAA KLM User's Guide". NESS 107 is now
obsolete and has been superseded by the "NOAA KLM User's Guide"
which contains a
complete revision of the discussion of calibration of instruments flown
on NOAA spacecraft. This guide is available electronically. Most of the
calibration information is contained in Section 7
and Appendix
K of the User's Guide.
Revised/Reviewed: Monthly
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