scholarly journals Comparison of in-situ FISH measurements of water vapor in the UTLS with ECMWF (re)analysis data

2014 ◽  
Vol 14 (10) ◽  
pp. 14399-14438 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. Kunz ◽  
N. Spelten ◽  
P. Konopka ◽  
R. Müller ◽  
R. M. Forbes ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Water Vapor ◽  
Analysis Data ◽  
High Water ◽  
Reanalysis Data ◽  
Polar Regions ◽  
Large Set ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Mixing Ratios ◽  
Time Periods

Abstract. An evaluation of water vapor in the UTLS in the atmospheric ERA-Interim reanalysis data set is presented by using in-situ measurements from a large set of airborne measurement campaigns from 2001 to 2011 in the tropics, midlatitudes and polar regions. Water vapor measurements are derived from the Fast In-situ Stratospheric Hygrometer (FISH) and cover isentropic layers from 300–400 K (5–18 km). At the same time, the improvement of the ECMWF assimilation scheme representation of water vapor is addressed for time periods representing different cycles of the Integrated Forecast System (IFS). The ratio Δ(H2O) = H2OERA / H2OFISH is used as a simple measure for the difference between observations and the reanalyses. Overall, the reanalysis data reproduce around 87% of all FISH measurements within Δ(H2O) = 0.5–2, and 30% are within Δ(H2O) = 1.0 ± 0.1. Nevertheless, also strong over- and underestimations occur both in the troposphere and in the stratosphere. Δ(H2O) values indicate deviations of factors up to 10, with lower deviations in the stratosphere (Δ(H2O) = 0.5–4) than in the troposphere (Δ(H2O) = 0.5–10). In the tropical stratosphere the ratio is closer to 1 (Δ(H2O) = 0.5–2) than in the extratropical stratosphere where strong deviations occur (Δ(H2O) = 0.1–4). When considering operational analysis data, the agreement with FISH improves over the time, in particular when comparing water vapor fields for time periods before 2004 and after 2010. It appears that influences of tropical tropospheric and extratropical lower stratospheric processes on the water vapor distribution in the UTLS are particularly challenging, resulting in an overestimation of low and underestimation of high water vapor mixing ratios.

scholarly journals Comparison of Fast In situ Stratospheric Hygrometer (FISH) measurements of water vapor in the upper troposphere and lower stratosphere (UTLS) with ECMWF (re)analysis data

2014 ◽  
Vol 14 (19) ◽  
pp. 10803-10822 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. Kunz ◽  
N. Spelten ◽  
P. Konopka ◽  
R. Müller ◽  
R. M. Forbes ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Water Vapor ◽  
Lower Stratosphere ◽  
Analysis Data ◽  
Large Set ◽  
Mixing Ratio ◽  
Perfect Agreement ◽  
Upper Troposphere ◽  
Time Periods ◽  
Water Vapor Mixing Ratio

Abstract. An evaluation of water vapor in the upper troposphere and lower stratosphere (UTLS) of the ERA-Interim, the global atmospheric reanalysis produced by the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF), is presented. Water vapor measurements are derived from the Fast In situ Stratospheric Hygrometer (FISH) during a large set of airborne measurement campaigns from 2001 to 2011 in the tropics, midlatitudes and polar regions, covering isentropic layers from 300 to 400K (5–18km). The comparison shows around 87% of the reanalysis data are within a factor of 2 of the FISH water vapor measurements and around 30% have a nearly perfect agreement with an over- and underestimation lower than 10%. Nevertheless, strong over- and underestimations can occur both in the UT and LS, in particularly in the extratropical LS and in the tropical UT, where severe over- and underestimations up to 10 times can occur. The analysis data from the evolving ECMWF operational system is also evaluated, and the FISH measurements are divided into time periods representing different cycles of the Integrated Forecast System (IFS). The agreement with FISH improves over the time, in particular when comparing water vapor fields for time periods before 2004 and after 2010. It appears that influences of tropical tropospheric and extratropical UTLS processes, e.g., convective and quasi-isentropic exchange processes, are particularly challenging for the simulation of the UTLS water vapor distribution. Both the reanalysis and operational analysis data show the tendency of an overestimation of low water vapor mixing ratio (⪅10ppmv) in the LS and underestimation of high water vapor mixing ratio (⪆300ppmv) in the UT.

scholarly journals Diurnal variations in middle-atmospheric water vapor by ground-based microwave radiometry

2013 ◽  
Vol 13 (14) ◽  
pp. 6877-6886 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. Scheiben ◽  
A. Schanz ◽  
B. Tschanz ◽  
N. Kämpfer
Keyword(s):  
Water Vapor ◽  
Observational Data ◽  
Climate Model ◽  
Correlation Coefficients ◽  
Diurnal Variations ◽  
Atmospheric Water Vapor ◽  
Atmospheric Water ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Diurnal Variability ◽  
Time Periods

Abstract. In this paper, we compare the diurnal variations in middle-atmospheric water vapor as measured by two ground-based microwave radiometers in the Alpine region near Bern, Switzerland. The observational data set is also compared to data from the chemistry–climate model WACCM. Due to the small diurnal variations of usually less than 1%, averages over extended time periods are required. Therefore, two time periods of five months each, December to April and June to October, were taken for the comparison. The diurnal variations from the observational data agree well with each other in amplitude and phase. The linear correlation coefficients range from 0.8 in the upper stratosphere to 0.5 in the upper mesosphere. The observed diurnal variability is significant at all pressure levels within the sensitivity of the instruments. Comparing our observations with WACCM, we find that the agreement of the phase of the diurnal cycle between observations and model is better from December to April than from June to October. The amplitudes of the diurnal variations for both time periods increase with altitude in WACCM, but remain approximately constant at 0.05 ppm in the observations. The WACCM data are used to separate the processes that lead to diurnal variations in middle-atmospheric water vapor above Bern. The dominating processes were found to be meridional advection below 0.1 hPa, vertical advection between 0.1 and 0.02 hPa and (photo-)chemistry above 0.02 hPa. The contribution of zonal advection is small. The highest diurnal variations in water vapor as seen in the WACCM data are found in the mesopause region during the time period from June to October with diurnal amplitudes of 0.2 ppm (approximately 5% in relative units).

scholarly journals Diurnal variations in middle atmospheric water vapor by ground-based microwave radiometry

2013 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 3859-3880 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. Scheiben ◽  
A. Schanz ◽  
B. Tschanz ◽  
N. Kämpfer
Keyword(s):  
Water Vapor ◽  
Observational Data ◽  
Climate Model ◽  
Correlation Coefficients ◽  
Diurnal Variations ◽  
Atmospheric Water Vapor ◽  
Atmospheric Water ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Diurnal Variability ◽  
Time Periods

Abstract. In this paper, we compare the diurnal variations in middle atmospheric water vapor as measured by two ground-based microwave radiometers in the Alpine region near Bern, Switzerland. The observational data set is also compared to data from the chemistry-climate model WACCM. Due to the small diurnal variations of usually less than 1%, averages over extended time periods are required. Therefore, two time periods of five months each, December to April and June to October, were taken for the comparison. The diurnal variations from the observational data agree well with each other in amplitude and phase. The linear correlation coefficients range from 0.8 in the upper stratosphere to 0.5 in the upper mesosphere. The observed diurnal variability is significant at all pressure levels within the sensitivity of the instruments. Comparing our observations with WACCM, we find that the agreement of the phase of the diurnal cycle between observations and model is better from December to April than from June to October. The amplitudes of the diurnal variations for both time periods increase with altitude in WACCM, but remain approximately constant at 0.05 parts per million in the observations. The WACCM data is used to separate the processes that lead to diurnal variations in middle atmospheric water vapor above Bern. The dominating processes were found to be meridional advection below 0.1 hPa, vertical advection between 0.1 and 0.02 hPa and (photo-)chemistry above 0.02 hPa. The contribution of zonal advection is small. The highest diurnal variations in water vapor are found in the mesopause region during the time period from June to October with diurnal amplitudes of 0.2 ppm (approximately 5% in relative units).

scholarly journals Intercomparison of midlatitude tropospheric and lower-stratospheric water vapor measurements and comparison to ECMWF humidity data

2018 ◽  
Vol 18 (22) ◽  
pp. 16729-16745 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stefan Kaufmann ◽  
Christiane Voigt ◽  
Romy Heller ◽  
Tina Jurkat-Witschas ◽  
Martina Krämer ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Water Vapor ◽  
Climate Impact ◽  
Cloud Formation ◽  
Mean Values ◽  
Stratospheric Water Vapor ◽  
Mixing Ratios ◽  
Quality Of Water ◽  
Research Aircraft ◽  
German Aerospace

Abstract. Accurate measurement of water vapor in the climate-sensitive region near the tropopause is very challenging. Unexplained systematic discrepancies between measurements at low water vapor mixing ratios made by different instruments on airborne platforms have limited our ability to adequately address a number of relevant scientific questions on the humidity distribution, cloud formation and climate impact in that region. Therefore, during the past decade, the scientific community has undertaken substantial efforts to understand these discrepancies and improve the quality of water vapor measurements. This study presents a comprehensive intercomparison of airborne state-of-the-art in situ hygrometers deployed on board the DLR (German Aerospace Center) research aircraft HALO (High Altitude and LOng Range Research Aircraft) during the Midlatitude CIRRUS (ML-CIRRUS) campaign conducted in 2014 over central Europe. The instrument intercomparison shows that the hygrometer measurements agree within their combined accuracy (±10 % to 15 %, depending on the humidity regime); total mean values agree within 2.5 %. However, systematic differences on the order of 10 % and up to a maximum of 15 % are found for mixing ratios below 10 parts per million (ppm) H2O. A comparison of relative humidity within cirrus clouds does not indicate a systematic instrument bias in either water vapor or temperature measurements in the upper troposphere. Furthermore, in situ measurements are compared to model data from the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF) which are interpolated along the ML-CIRRUS flight tracks. We find a mean agreement within ±10 % throughout the troposphere and a significant wet bias in the model on the order of 100 % to 150 % in the stratosphere close to the tropopause. Consistent with previous studies, this analysis indicates that the model deficit is mainly caused by too weak of a humidity gradient at the tropopause.

scholarly journals Aircraft validation of Aura Tropospheric Emission Spectrometer retrievals of HDO / H<sub>2</sub>O

2014 ◽  
Vol 7 (9) ◽  
pp. 3127-3138 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. L. Herman ◽  
J. E. Cherry ◽  
J. Young ◽  
J. M. Welker ◽  
D. Noone ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Boundary Layer ◽  
Water Vapor ◽  
Standard Deviation ◽  
Lower Troposphere ◽  
Temporal Variations ◽  
Observation Error ◽  
Free Troposphere ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Airborne Measurements

Abstract. The EOS (Earth Observing System) Aura Tropospheric Emission Spectrometer (TES) retrieves the atmospheric HDO / H2O ratio in the mid-to-lower troposphere as well as the planetary boundary layer. TES observations of water vapor and the HDO isotopologue have been compared with nearly coincident in situ airborne measurements for direct validation of the TES products. The field measurements were made with a commercially available Picarro L1115-i isotopic water analyzer on aircraft over the Alaskan interior boreal forest during the three summers of 2011 to 2013. TES special observations were utilized in these comparisons. The TES averaging kernels and a priori constraints have been applied to the in situ data, using version 5 (V005) of the TES data. TES calculated errors are compared with the standard deviation (1σ) of scan-to-scan variability to check consistency with the TES observation error. Spatial and temporal variations are assessed from the in situ aircraft measurements. It is found that the standard deviation of scan-to-scan variability of TES δD is ±34.1‰ in the boundary layer and ± 26.5‰ in the free troposphere. This scan-to-scan variability is consistent with the TES estimated error (observation error) of 10–18‰ after accounting for the atmospheric variations along the TES track of ±16‰ in the boundary layer, increasing to ±30‰ in the free troposphere observed by the aircraft in situ measurements. We estimate that TES V005 δD is biased high by an amount that decreases with pressure: approximately +123‰ at 1000 hPa, +98‰ in the boundary layer and +37‰ in the free troposphere. The uncertainty in this bias estimate is ±20‰. A correction for this bias has been applied to the TES HDO Lite Product data set. After bias correction, we show that TES has accurate sensitivity to water vapor isotopologues in the boundary layer.

scholarly journals LASE Measurements of Water Vapor, Aerosol, and Cloud Distributions in Saharan Air Layers and Tropical Disturbances

2010 ◽  
Vol 67 (4) ◽  
pp. 1026-1047 ◽  
Author(s):  
Syed Ismail ◽  
Richard A. Ferrare ◽  
Edward V. Browell ◽  
Gao Chen ◽  
Bruce Anderson ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Water Vapor ◽  
High Water ◽  
Aerosol Extinction ◽  
African Easterly Waves ◽  
Easterly Waves ◽  
Mixing Ratios ◽  
Aerosol Scattering ◽  
Lidar Measurements ◽  
Air Layers ◽  
Eastern North Atlantic

Abstract The Lidar Atmospheric Sensing Experiment (LASE) on board the NASA DC-8 measured high-resolution profiles of water vapor and aerosols, and cloud distributions in 14 flights over the eastern North Atlantic during the NASA African Monsoon Multidisciplinary Analyses (NAMMA) field experiment. These measurements were used to study African easterly waves (AEWs), tropical cyclones (TCs), and the Saharan air layer (SAL). These LASE measurements represent the first simultaneous water vapor and aerosol lidar measurements to study the SAL and its interactions with AEWs and TCs. Three case studies were selected for detailed analysis: (i) a stratified SAL, with fine structure and layering (unlike a well-mixed SAL), (ii) a SAL with high relative humidity (RH), and (iii) an AEW surrounded by SAL dry air intrusions. Profile measurements of aerosol scattering ratios, aerosol extinction coefficients, aerosol optical thickness, water vapor mixing ratios, RH, and temperature are presented to illustrate their characteristics in the SAL, convection, and clear air regions. LASE extinction-to-backscatter ratios for the dust layers varied from 35 ± 5 to 45 ± 5 sr, well within the range of values determined by other lidar systems. LASE aerosol extinction and water vapor profiles are validated by comparison with onboard in situ aerosol measurements and GPS dropsonde water vapor soundings, respectively. An analysis of LASE data suggests that the SAL suppresses low-altitude convection. Midlevel convection associated with the AEW and transport are likely responsible for high water vapor content observed in the southern regions of the SAL on 20 August 2008. This interaction is responsible for the transfer of about 7 × 1015 J (or 8 × 103 J m−2) latent heat energy within a day to the SAL. Initial modeling studies that used LASE water vapor profiles show sensitivity to and improvements in model forecasts of an AEW.

scholarly journals An Intercomparison of GPS RO Retrievals with Colocated Analysis and In Situ Observations within Tropical Cyclones

2010 ◽  
Vol 2010 ◽  
pp. 1-10 ◽  
Author(s):  
Henry R. Winterbottom ◽  
Qingnong Xiao
Keyword(s):  
Tropical Cyclones ◽  
Global Positioning System ◽  
Global Analysis ◽  
Reanalysis Data ◽  
Satellite Mission ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Global Positioning ◽  
In Situ Observations ◽  
Atmospheric State

Observations from four Global Position System (GPS) Radio Occultation (RO) missions: Global Positioning System/Meteorology, CHAallenging Minisatellite Payload, Satellite de Aplicaciones Cientificas-C, and Constellation Observing System for Meteorology, Ionosphere and Climate and Taiwan's FORMOsa SATellite Mission #3 (COSMIC/FORMOSAT-3) are collected within a 600 km radius and ±180 minute temporal window of all observed tropical cyclones (TCs) from 1995 to 2006 that were recorded in the global hurricane best-track reanalysis data set (Jarvinen et al. (1984); Davis et al. (1984)). A composite analysis of tropical cyclone radial mean temperature and water vapor profiles is carried out using the GPS RO retrievals which are colocated with global analysis profiles and available in situ radiosonde observations. The differences between the respective observations and analysis profiles are quantified and the preliminary results show that the observations collected within TCs correspond favorably with both the analysis and radiosonde profiles which are colocated. It is concluded that GPS RO observations will contribute significantly to the understanding and modeling of TC structures, especially those related to vertical variability of the atmospheric state within TCs.

scholarly journals Intercomparison of mid-latitude tropospheric and lower stratospheric water vapor measurements and comparison to ECMWF humidity data

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stefan Kaufmann ◽  
Christiane Voigt ◽  
Romy Heller ◽  
Tina Jurkat-Witschas ◽  
Martina Krämer ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Water Vapor ◽  
Climate Impact ◽  
Cloud Formation ◽  
Mean Values ◽  
Stratospheric Water Vapor ◽  
Mixing Ratios ◽  
Quality Of Water ◽  
Research Aircraft ◽  
German Aerospace

Abstract. Accurate measurement of water vapor in the climate sensitive region near the tropopause turned out to be very challenging. Unexplained systematic discrepancies between measurements at low water vapor mixing ratios made by different instruments on airborne platforms have limited our ability to adequately address a number relevant scientific questions on the humidity distribution, cloud formation and climate impact in that region. Therefore, during the past decade, the scientific community has undertaken substantial efforts to understand these discrepancies and improve the quality of water vapor measurements. This study presents a comprehensive intercomparison of airborne state-of-the-art in situ hygrometers deployed onboard the DLR (German Aerospace Center) research aircraft HALO during the Mid-Latitude CIRRUS (ML-CIRRUS) campaign conducted in 2014 over central Europe. The instrument intercomparison shows that the hygrometer measurements agree within their combined accuracy (±10 to 15 %, depending on the humidity regime), total mean values even agree within 2.5 %. However, systematic differences on the order of 10 % and up to a maximum of 15 % are found for mixing ratios below 10 parts per million (ppm) H2O. A comparison of relative humidity within cirrus clouds does not indicate a systematic instrument bias in either water vapor or temperature measurements in the upper troposphere. Furthermore, in situ measurements are compared to model data from the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF) which are interpolated along the ML-CIRRUS flight tracks. We find a mean agreement within ±10 % throughout the troposphere and a significant wet bias in the model on the order of 100 % to 150 % in the stratosphere close to the tropopause. Consistent with previous studies, this analysis indicates that the model deficit is mainly caused by a blurred humidity gradient at tropopause altitudes.

scholarly journals Two decades of water vapor measurements with the FISH fluorescence hygrometer: a review

2015 ◽  
Vol 15 (14) ◽  
pp. 8521-8538 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. Meyer ◽  
C. Rolf ◽  
C. Schiller ◽  
S. Rohs ◽  
N. Spelten ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Water Vapor ◽  
High Pressures ◽  
Calibration Procedure ◽  
Atmospheric Conditions ◽  
Total Water ◽  
Mixing Ratios ◽  
Frost Point ◽  
In Situ Observations ◽  
Quality Check

Abstract. For almost two decades, the airborne Fast In-situ Stratospheric Hygrometer (FISH) has stood for accurate and precise measurements of total water mixing ratios (WMR, gas phase + evaporated ice) in the upper troposphere and lower stratosphere (UT/LS). Here, we present a comprehensive review of the measurement technique (Lyman-α photofragment fluorescence), calibration procedure, accuracy and reliability of FISH. Crucial for FISH measurement quality is the regular calibration to a water vapor reference, namely the commercial frost-point hygrometer DP30. In the frame of this work this frost-point hygrometer is compared to German and British traceable metrological water standards and its accuracy is found to be 2–4 %. Overall, in the range from 4 to 1000 ppmv, the total accuracy of FISH was found to be 6–8 %, as stated in previous publications. For lower mixing ratios down to 1 ppmv, the uncertainty reaches a lower limit of 0.3 ppmv. For specific, non-atmospheric conditions, as set in experiments at the AIDA chamber – namely mixing ratios below 10 and above 100 ppmv in combination with high- and low-pressure conditions – the need to apply a modified FISH calibration evaluation has been identified. The new evaluation improves the agreement of FISH with other hygrometers to ± 10 % accuracy in the respective mixing ratio ranges. Furthermore, a quality check procedure for high total water measurements in cirrus clouds at high pressures (400–500 hPa) is introduced. The performance of FISH in the field is assessed by reviewing intercomparisons of FISH water vapor data with other in situ and remote sensing hygrometers over the last two decades. We find that the agreement of FISH with the other hygrometers has improved over that time span from overall up to ± 30 % or more to about ± 5–20 % @ < 10 ppmv and to ± 0–15 % @ > 10 ppmv. As presented here, the robust and continuous calibration and operation procedures of the FISH instrument over the last two decades establish the position of FISH as one of the core instruments for in situ observations of water vapor in the UT/LS.

scholarly journals Mapping radiation transfer through sea ice using a remotely operated vehicle (ROV)

2012 ◽  
Vol 6 (5) ◽  
pp. 3613-3646 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. Nicolaus ◽  
C. Katlein
Keyword(s):  
Sea Ice ◽  
Primary Source ◽  
Short Wave ◽  
Wave Radiation ◽  
Spectral Radiance ◽  
Data Sets ◽  
Polar Regions ◽  
Remotely Operated Vehicle ◽  
Data Set

Abstract. Light (solar short-wave radiation) transmission into and through sea ice is of high importance for various processes in Polar Regions. The amount of energy transferred through the ice determines formation and melt of sea ice and finally contributes to warming of the uppermost ocean. At the same time the amount and distribution of light, as the primary source of energy, is of critical importance for sea-ice associated organisms and bio-geochemical processes. However, our current understanding of these processes and their interdisciplinary interactions is still sparse. The main reason is that the under-ice environment is difficult to access and measurements require large logistical and instrumental efforts. Particularly, it was not possible to map light conditions under sea ice over larger areas. Here we present a detailed methodical description of operating spectral radiometers on a remotely operated vehicle (ROV) in the Central Arctic under sea ice. This new measurement concept resulted in a~most comprehensive data set of spectral radiance and irradiance under and above sea ice, complemented through various additional in-situ measurements of sea-ice, snow, and surface properties. Finally, such data sets allow quantifying the spatial variability of light under sea ice, especially highlighting differences between ponded and white ice as well as different ice types.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document