Overview of Satellite-Derived Cirrus Properties During SPARTICUS and

MACPEX

P. Minnis, L. NguyenNASA Langley Research Center, Hampton, VA

R. Palikonda, K. Bedka, T. Chee, D. A. Spangenberg, J. K. Ayers SSAI, Hampton, VA

SEAC4RS Leadership MeetingPalmdale, CA, 31 January – 1 February 2012

OBJECTIVES

• Provide satellite complement to in situ, ground, and modeling studies• Provide high temporal resolution imagery for experiments• Provide consistent retrievals of cloud properties for experiments

• Provide real-time support in field

• Real-time imagery and interactive analysis- mission planning & execution

• Near-real time cloud retrievals

• MTSAT 30 min (on the half hour), 4-km resolution - 0.65, 3.9, 6.7, 10.8, 12.0 µm

• FY-2E 1 hr (on the hour), 4-km resolution (calib?)- 0.65, 3.9, 6.7, 10.8, 12.0 µm

• Meteosat-7 30 min, 4-km resolution- GOES-13 (east): 0.73, 6.9, 11.5, µm

• MODIS, twice daily (Terra & Aqua), 1-km, multispectral

• NPP VIIRS, 1-km multispectral 1330 LT

• NOAA-15/16/18/19 AVHRR, later

• TRMM VIRS, TMI later

Data

High-Cloud Statistics, SEAC4RS Domain0.25°, MTSAT, Aug-Sept 2008-2011

Frequency of Occurrence Fractional Coverage

• Good location for studying ice clouds• Greatest amounts & frequencies over

- Thailand, Cambodia, Bangladesh, & NE India- Gulf of Thailand, Bay of Bengal, Andaman Sea, E. South China Sea

High-Cloud Diurnal Cycle, SEAC4RS Domain0.25°, MTSAT, Aug-Sept 2008-2011

0000 UTC = 0700 LT 1200 UTC = 1900 UTC

Overshooting Tops, ExampleIR channel used to detect OT, Bedka method

1-km VIS MTSAT IR

• Detections correspond to turrets in 1-km VIS imagery

Overshooting Tops, SEAC4RS Domain0.25°, MTSAT, Aug-Sept 2005-2011

Total Occurrences Diurnal Behavior

• Most common over Thailand & Cambodia, S. China Sea, NE Indian coast• Daytime peak over land• Night peaks over coastal waters• Mixed times over open waters

Overshooting Tops, SEAC4RS Domain0.25°, MTSAT, Aug-Sept 2005-2011

Occurrences, 9 AM – 9 PM Occurrences, 9 PM – 9AM

• 9 AM - 9 PM: most over land, W. Bay of Bengal, S. China Sea• 9 PM – 9 AM: most over coastal water, S. China Sea

Overshooting Tops, SEAC4RS Domain0.25°, MTSAT, Aug-Sept 2005-2011

Convective Cycle Summary

• Over land- Peak convection occurs at ~0900 UTC (~4 PM) near coasts- Peak convection an hour or two later deep inland- Peak convection at ~ 2 AM over eastern Thai lowlands

& Nan River Basin- Minimal deep convection before 0730 UTC (~2:30 PM)

• Over water- Peak convection occurs at ~1400 UTC (~9 PM) near coasts- Peak convection moves seaward at later times- Peak convection during morning (6-10 AM) over N Bay of Bengal

Langley SEAC4RS Web Page

http://www-angler.larc.nasa.gov

Click on “SEAC4RS” on sidebar

or from main SEAC4RS page

Under construction, will add climatological info

soon+

MODIS, AVHRR, VIRS

Near-real time imagery from 3 GEOSats, 26 Jan 2012FY-2, 0801 UTC MTSAT, 0832 UTC

Met-7 IR, 1900 U Met-7 WV, 1900 U

MTSAT-2 Retrieval Domains, SEAC4RS0832 UTC, 26 Jan 2012

Domain (4-km) Large Domain (8-km)

New Satellite Prediction Tool

http://www-angler.larc.nasa.gov

/gsp

Will complement the old system

Example of Convective Object Tracking http://angler.larc.nasa.gov/site/people/data/kbedka/seacrs_objects_anim.gif

FY2-E, 28-29 Sept, 2010

IR age

Tmin OTvectors strong conv

Summary

• Capabilities on site will be much enhanced compared to online data- change resolution and domain as desired- provide exact locations of objects as needed- variety of loops and model overlays as needed- flight tracks in near real time (given the nav data)

• Add additional satellites to web page- MODIS, NPP, AVHRR, CALIPSO, CloudSat, TRMM

• Matching of data with flights and ground sites as it comes in- cloud products & radiances

• New algorithms to retrieve thin cirrus and ML clouds will be employed

• Add features as requested, if possible

August 2006-2009 September 2006-2009

Cloud Cover: 88% Multi-layer: 52%Above 15 km all cirrus are tenuous – IWC < 0.005 g/m313-15 Km Most Cirrus are tenuous - IWC < 0.01 g/m3At 10 km, most cirrus volumes have IWC > 0.05 g/m3

SEAC4RS A-Train Cloud Climatology (2006-2009) 20 degree box centered on Bangkok.

August 2006-9

September 2006-9

0 0.25 0.5 1 3 6 10

0 0.25 0.5 1 3 6 10

14

10

6

3

21

0.5

Base Height-Layer Thickness Histograms

15% TTL all < 3 km thick35% Cirrus 6-14 km > 3 km10% Cirrus 6-10 km > 6 km

Deep Echoes ~ 5% cover

20% Boundary Layer Cloudmore or less evenly distributed in thickness

Tendency for Cirrus to be lower and thicker in September.

14

10

6

3

21

0.5