Instrument : Multifilter Rotating Shadowband Radiometer (MFRSR)
Instrument Categories
Aerosols, Radiometric
General Overview
The multifilter rotating shadowband radiometer (MFRSR) takes spectral measurements of direct normal, diffuse horizontal and total horizontal solar irradiances. These measurements are at nominal wavelengths of 415, 500, 615, 673, 870, and 940 nm. The measurements are made at a user-specified time interval, usually about one minute or less. The sampling rate for the Atmospheric Radiation Measurement (ARM) Climate Research Facility MFRSRs is 20 seconds. From such measurements, one may infer the atmosphere's optical depth at the wavelengths mentioned above. In turn, these optical depths may be used to derive information about the column abundances of ozone and water vapor (Michalsky et al. 1995), as well as aerosol (Michalsky et al. 1994) and other atmospheric constituents.
A silicon detector is also part of the MFRSR. This detector provides a measure of the broadband direct normal, diffuse horizontal and total horizontal solar irradiances. A MFRSR head that is mounted to look vertically downward can measure upwelling spectral irradiances. In the ARM system, this instrument is called a "multifilter radiometer (MFR)". At the Southern Great Plains (SGP) there are two MFRs; one mounted at the 10-m height and the other at 25 m. At the North Slope of Alaska (NSA) sites, the MFRs are mounted at 10 m. MFRSR heads are also used to measure "normal incidence" radiation by mounting on a solar tracking device. These are referred to as normal incidence multi-filter radiometers (NIMFRs) and are located at the SGP and NSA sites. Another specialized use for the MFRSR is the narrow field of view (NFOV) instrument located at SGP. The NFOV is a ground-based radiometer (MFRSR head) that looks straight up.
Output Value-Added Products
This instrument is an input to the following value-added products, which provide improved measurements or derived quantities.
- mfrsraod1mich : MFRSR: derived total & aerosol optical depth from 1st Michalsky algorithm
- mfrsrcldod1min : Derived: Cloud Optical Properties from MFRSR, MWR, Langley Analysis
- nimfraod1mich : NIMFR: derived total & aerosol optical depth from 1st Michalsky algorithm
- qcrad1long : Surface Radiation Measurement Quality Control testing, including climatologically configurable limits
- qcradbeflux1long : Surface Radiation Measurement (BEFLUX input) QC testing, incl. climatologically configurable limits
- qcradbrs1long : Surface Radiation Measurement (BRS input) QC testing, incl. climatologically configurable limits
Output Datastreams
- mfrsr : Multi-Filter Rotating Shadowband Radiometer (MFRSR): irradiances
Primary Measurements
The following measurements are those considered scientifically relevant.
- Shortwave narrowband diffuse downwelling irradiance
- Shortwave narrowband direct normal irradiance
- Shortwave narrowband total downwelling irradiance
Locations
- North Slope Alaska (NSA)
- Central Facility, Atqasuk AK (C2)
- Central Facility, Barrow AK (C1)
- Southern Great Plains (SGP)
- Anthony, KS (E31)
- Ashton, KS (E9)
- Byron, OK (E11)
- Central Facility, Lamont, OK (C1)
- Coldwater, KS (E8)
- Cordell, OK (E22)
- Cyril, OK (E24)
- Earlsboro, OK (E27)
- El Reno, OK (E19)
- Elk Falls, KS (E7)
- Halstead, KS (E5)
- Hillsboro, KS (Extended) (E2)
- Lamont, OK (Extended) (E13)
- Larned, KS (E1)
- LeRoy, KS (E3)
- Maple City, KS (E34)
- Marshall, OK (E36)
- Medford, OK (E32)
- Meeker, OK (Extended) (E20)
- Morris, OK (Extended) (E18)
- Newkirk, OK (E33)
- Omega, OK (E38)
- Pawhuska, OK (E12)
- Plevna, KS (E4)
- Ringwood, OK (E15)
- Seminole, OK (E25)
- Towanda, KS (E6)
- Tryon, OK (E35)
- Tyro, KS (E10)
- Vici, OK (Extended) (E16)
- Waukomis, OK (E37)
- Tropical Western Pacific (TWP)
- Central Facility, Darwin, Australia (C3)
- Central Facility, Manus I., PNG (C1)
- Central Facility, Nauru Island (C2)
- ARM Mobile Facility (FKB)
- Black Forest, Germany (M1)
- ARM Mobile Facility (GAN)
- Gan Airport, Gan Island, Maldives (M1)
- ARM Mobile Facility (GRW)
- Graciosa Island, Azores, Portugal (M1)
- ARM Mobile Facility (HFE)
- Shouxian, Anhui, China (M1)
- Tai Hu (lake), Zhejiang/Jiangsu, China; Supplemental (S1)
- ARM Mobile Facility (NIM)
- Niamey, Niger (M1)
- Niamey, Niger-Ancillary (S1)
- ARM Mobile Facility (PGH)
- ARIES Observatory, Nainital, Uttarkhand, India (M1)
- ARM Mobile Facility (PVC)
- Highland Center, Cape Cod MA; AMF 1 (M1)
- ARM Mobile Facility (PYE)
- Point Reyes, CA (M1)
- ARM Mobile Facility (SBS)
- Steamboat Springs CO, Thunderhead Lodge (S1)
- Steamboat Springs CO, Valley Site (M1)
Contact(s)
Gary Hodges
(303) 497-6460
Gary.Hodges@noaa.gov
