scholarly journals Improved GOMOS/Envisat ozone retrievals in the upper troposphere and the lower stratosphere

2017 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 231-246 ◽  
Author(s):  
Viktoria F. Sofieva ◽  
Iolanda Ialongo ◽  
Janne Hakkarainen ◽  
Erkki Kyrölä ◽  
Johanna Tamminen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Lower Stratosphere ◽  
Middle Atmosphere ◽  
Lower Thermosphere ◽  
High Sensitivity ◽  
Retrieval Algorithm ◽  
Inversion Algorithm ◽  
Upper Troposphere ◽  
Spectral Inversion ◽  
Vertical Range ◽  
Visible Wavelengths

Abstract. Global Ozone Monitoring by Occultation of Stars (GOMOS) on board Envisat has performed about 440 000 nighttime occultations during 2002–2012. Self-calibrating measurement principle, good vertical resolution, excellent pointing accuracy, and the wide vertical range from the troposphere up to the lower thermosphere make GOMOS profiles interesting for different analyses. The GOMOS ozone data are of high quality in the stratosphere and the mesosphere, but the current operational retrieval algorithm (IPF v6) is not optimized for retrievals in the upper troposphere–lower stratosphere (UTLS). In particular, validation of GOMOS profiles against ozonesonde data has revealed a substantial positive bias (up to 100 %) in the UTLS region. The retrievals in the UTLS are challenging because of low signal-to-noise ratio and the presence of clouds. In this work, we discuss the reasons for the systematic uncertainties in the UTLS with the IPF v6 algorithm or its modifications based on simultaneous retrievals of several constituents using the full visible wavelength range. The main reason is high sensitivity of the UTLS retrieval algorithms to an assumed aerosol extinction model. We have developed a new ozone profile inversion algorithm for GOMOS data (ALGOM2s version 1.0), which is optimized in the UTLS and uses IPF v6 advantages in the middle atmosphere. The ozone retrievals in the whole altitude range from the troposphere to the lower thermosphere are performed in two steps, as in the operational algorithm: spectral inversion followed by the vertical inversion. The spectral inversion is enhanced by using a DOAS-type method at visible wavelengths for the UTLS region. This method uses minimal assumptions about the atmospheric profiles. The vertical inversion is performed as in IPF v6 with the Tikhonov-type regularization according to the target resolution. The validation of new retrieved ozone profiles with ozonesondes shows a dramatic reduction of GOMOS ozone biases in the UTLS. The new GOMOS ozone profiles are also in a very good agreement with measurements by MIPAS, ACE-FTS, and OSIRIS satellite instruments in the UTLS. It is also shown that the known geophysical phenomena in the UTLS ozone are well reproduced with the new GOMOS data.

scholarly journals Improved GOMOS/Envisat ozone retrievals in the upper troposphere and the lower stratosphere

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Viktoria F. Sofieva ◽  
Iolanda Ialongo ◽  
Janne Hakkarainen ◽  
Erkki Kyrölä ◽  
Johanna Tamminen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Lower Stratosphere ◽  
Middle Atmosphere ◽  
Lower Thermosphere ◽  
Retrieval Algorithm ◽  
Inversion Algorithm ◽  
Night Time ◽  
Upper Troposphere ◽  
Spectral Inversion ◽  
Vertical Range ◽  
Visible Wavelengths

Abstract. Global Ozone Monitoring by Occultation of Stars (GOMOS) on board Envisat has performed about 440 000 night-time occultations during 2002–2012. Self-calibrating measurement principle, good vertical resolution, excellent pointing accuracy and the wide vertical range from the troposphere up to the lower thermosphere make GOMOS profiles interesting for different analyses. The GOMOS ozone data are of high quality in the stratosphere and the mesosphere, but the current operational retrieval algorithm (IPF v.6) is not optimized for retrievals in the upper troposphere–lower stratosphere (UTLS). In particular, validation of GOMOS profiles against ozonesonde data has revealed a substantial positive bias (up to 100 %) in the UTLS region. The retrievals in the UTLS are challenging because of low signal-to-noise ratio and the presence of clouds. In this work, we discuss the reasons for the systematic uncertainties in the UTLS with the IPF v.6 algorithm or its modifications based on simultaneous retrievals of several constituents using the full visible wavelength range. The main reason is high sensitivity of the UTLS retrieval algorithms to an assumed aerosol extinction model. We have developed a new aerosol–insensitive ozone profile inversion algorithm for GOMOS data in the UTLS using a DOAS-type method at visible wavelengths. The method uses minimal assumptions about the atmospheric profiles. The ozone retrievals in the whole altitude range from the troposphere to the lower thermosphere are performed in two steps, as in the operational algorithm: spectral inversion followed by the vertical inversion. The horizontal column ozone densities retrieved in the spectral inversion follow V6 profiles in the middle atmosphere and follow the triplet ozone profiles in the UTLS. The vertical inversion is performed as in IPF v6 with the Tikhonov-type regularization according to the target resolution. The validation of new retrieved ozone profiles with ozonesondes show dramatic reduction of GOMOS ozone biases in the UTLS. The new GOMOS ozone profiles are also in a very good agreement with measurements by MIPAS, ACE-FTS and OSIRIS satellite instruments in the UTLS. It is also shown that the known geophysical phenomena in the UTLS ozone are well reproduced with the new GOMOS data.

scholarly journals Profiling wind and greenhouse gases by infrared-laser occultation: results from end-to-end simulations in windy air

2015 ◽  
Vol 8 (7) ◽  
pp. 2813-2825 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. Plach ◽  
V. Proschek ◽  
G. Kirchengast
Keyword(s):  
Wind Speed ◽  
Greenhouse Gases ◽  
Doppler Shift ◽  
Lower Stratosphere ◽  
Infrared Laser ◽  
Retrieval Algorithm ◽  
Upper Troposphere ◽  
Wind Retrieval ◽  
End To End ◽  
Thermodynamic Variables

Abstract. The new mission concept of microwave and infrared-laser occultation between low-Earth-orbit satellites (LMIO) is designed to provide accurate and long-term stable profiles of atmospheric thermodynamic variables, greenhouse gases (GHGs), and line-of-sight (l.o.s.) wind speed with focus on the upper troposphere and lower stratosphere (UTLS). While the unique quality of GHG retrievals enabled by LMIO over the UTLS has been recently demonstrated based on end-to-end simulations, the promise of l.o.s. wind retrieval, and of joint GHG and wind retrieval, has not yet been analyzed in any realistic simulation setting. Here we use a newly developed l.o.s. wind retrieval algorithm, which we embedded in an end-to-end simulation framework that also includes the retrieval of thermodynamic variables and GHGs, and analyze the performance of both stand-alone wind retrieval and joint wind and GHG retrieval. The wind algorithm utilizes LMIO laser signals placed on the inflection points at the wings of the highly symmetric C18OO absorption line near 4767 cm−1 and exploits transmission differences from a wind-induced Doppler shift. Based on realistic example cases for a diversity of atmospheric conditions, ranging from tropical to high-latitude winter, we find that the retrieved l.o.s. wind profiles are of high quality over the lower stratosphere under all conditions, i.e., unbiased and accurate to within about 2 m s−1 over about 15 to 35 km. The wind accuracy degrades into the upper troposphere due to the decreasing signal-to-noise ratio of the wind-induced differential transmission signals. The GHG retrieval in windy air is not vulnerable to wind speed uncertainties up to about 10 m s−1 but is found to benefit in the case of higher speeds from the integrated wind retrieval that enables correction of wind-induced Doppler shift of GHG signals. Overall both the l.o.s. wind and GHG retrieval results are strongly encouraging towards further development and implementation of a LMIO mission.

scholarly journals Retrieval of water vapor vertical distributions in the upper troposphere and the lower stratosphere from SCIAMACHY limb measurements

2011 ◽  
Vol 4 (5) ◽  
pp. 933-954 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. Rozanov ◽  
K. Weigel ◽  
H. Bovensmann ◽  
S. Dhomse ◽  
K.-U. Eichmann ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Water Vapor ◽  
Solar Radiation ◽  
Lower Stratosphere ◽  
Water Vapor Content ◽  
Retrieval Algorithm ◽  
Altitude Range ◽  
Upper Troposphere ◽  
Vertical Distributions ◽  
First Results ◽  
Scanning Imaging

Abstract. This study describes the retrieval of water vapor vertical distributions in the upper troposphere and lower stratosphere (UTLS) altitude range from space-borne observations of the scattered solar light made in limb viewing geometry. First results using measurements from SCIAMACHY (Scanning Imaging Absorption spectroMeter for Atmospheric CHartographY) aboard ENVISAT (Environmental Satellite) are presented here. In previous publications, the retrieval of water vapor vertical distributions has been achieved exploiting either the emitted radiance leaving the atmosphere or the transmitted solar radiation. In this study, the scattered solar radiation is used as a new source of information on the water vapor content in the UTLS region. A recently developed retrieval algorithm utilizes the differential absorption structure of the water vapor in 1353–1410 nm spectral range and yields the water vapor content in the 11–25 km altitude range. In this study, the retrieval algorithm is successfully applied to SCIAMACHY limb measurements and the resulting water vapor profiles are compared to in situ balloon-borne observations. The results from both satellite and balloon-borne instruments are found to agree typically within 10 %.

scholarly journals Retrieval of daytime mesospheric ozone using OSIRIS observation of O<sub>2</sub>(a<sup>1</sup>∆<sub>g</sub>) emission

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anqi Li ◽  
Chris Roth ◽  
Kristell Pérot ◽  
Ole Martin Christensen ◽  
Adam M. Bourassa ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Middle Atmosphere ◽  
Lower Thermosphere ◽  
High Sensitivity ◽  
Retrieval Technique ◽  
Volume Emission ◽  
Hartley Band ◽  
One Year ◽  
Along Track ◽  
Very High

Abstract. Improving knowledge of the ozone global distributions in the mesosphere-lower thermosphere (MLT) is a crucial step in understanding the behaviour of the middle atmosphere. However, the ozone concentration under sunlit conditions in the MLT is often so low that its measurement requires instruments with very high sensitivity. Fortunately, the bright oxygen airglow can serve as a proxy to retrieve the daytime ozone density indirectly, due to the strong connection to ozone photolysis in the Hartley band. The OSIRIS IR imager (hereafter IRI), one of the instruments on the Odin satellite, routinely measures the oxygen infrared atmospheric band (IRA band) at 1.27 μm. In this paper, we will describe the detailed steps of retrieving the calibrated IRA band limb radiance, the volume emission rate of O2(a1∆g) and, finally, the ozone number density. This retrieval technique is applied to a one-year-sample IRI dataset. The resulting product is a completely new ozone dataset with very high along-track resolution. The performance of the retrieval technique is demonstrated by a comparison of the coincident ozone measurements from the same spacecraft, as well as zonal mean and monthly average comparisons between OS, SMR, MIPAS and ACE-FTS. The consistency of this IRI ozone dataset implies that such a retrieval technique can be further applied to all the measurements made throughout the 19 years-long mission, leading to a long-term, high resolution dataset in the middle atmosphere.

scholarly journals Retrieval of water vapor vertical distributions in the upper troposphere and the lower stratosphere from SCIAMACHY limb measurements

2010 ◽  
Vol 3 (5) ◽  
pp. 4009-4057 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. Rozanov ◽  
K. Weigel ◽  
H. Bovensmann ◽  
S. Dhomse ◽  
K.-U. Eichmann ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Water Vapor ◽  
Solar Radiation ◽  
Lower Stratosphere ◽  
Water Vapor Content ◽  
Retrieval Algorithm ◽  
Altitude Range ◽  
Upper Troposphere ◽  
Vertical Distributions ◽  
First Results

Abstract. This study describes the retrieval of water vapor vertical distributions in the upper troposphere and lower stratosphere (UTLS) altitude range from space-borne observations of the scattered solar light made in limb viewing geometry and presents first results using measurements from SCIAMACHY. In the previous publications, the retrieval of water vapor vertical distributions has been achieved exploiting either the emitted radiance leaving the atmosphere or the transmitted solar radiation. In this study the scattered solar radiation is used as a new source of information on the water vapor content in the UTLS region. A recently developed retrieval algorithm utilizes the differential absorption structure of the water vapor in 1353–1410 nm spectral range and yields the water vapor content in 11–25 km altitude range. In this study the retrieval algorithm is successfully applied to SCIAMACHY limb measurements and the resulting water vapor profiles are compared to in situ balloon-borne observations. The results from both satellite and balloon-borne instruments are found to agree typically within 20%.

scholarly journals High-resolution vertical velocities and their power spectrum observed with the MAARSY radar – Part 1: frequency spectrum

2018 ◽  
Vol 36 (2) ◽  
pp. 577-586 ◽  
Author(s):  
Qiang Li ◽  
Markus Rapp ◽  
Gunter Stober ◽  
Ralph Latteck
Keyword(s):  
High Resolution ◽  
Wind Velocity ◽  
Lower Stratosphere ◽  
Middle Atmosphere ◽  
Vertical Wind ◽  
Asymmetric Distribution ◽  
Spectral Slope ◽  
Frequency Spectra ◽  
Upper Troposphere ◽  
Wind Velocities

Abstract. The Middle Atmosphere Alomar Radar System (MAARSY) installed at the island of Andøya has been run for continuous probing of atmospheric winds in the upper troposphere and lower stratosphere (UTLS) region. In the current study, we present high-resolution wind measurements during the period between 2010 and 2013 with MAARSY. The spectral analysis applying the Lomb–Scargle periodogram method has been carried out to determine the frequency spectra of vertical wind velocity. From a total of 522 days of observations, the statistics of the spectral slope have been derived and show a dependence on the background wind conditions. It is a general feature that the observed spectra of vertical velocity during active periods (with wind velocity > 10 m s−1) are much steeper than during quiet periods (with wind velocity < 10 m s−1). The distribution of spectral slopes is roughly symmetric with a maximum at −5/3 during active periods, whereas a very asymmetric distribution with a maximum at around −1 is observed during quiet periods. The slope profiles along altitudes reveal a significant height dependence for both conditions, i.e., the spectra become shallower with increasing altitudes in the upper troposphere and maintain roughly a constant slope in the lower stratosphere. With both wind conditions considered together the general spectra are obtained and their slopes are compared with the background horizontal winds. The comparisons show that the observed spectra become steeper with increasing wind velocities under quiet conditions, approach a spectral slope of −5/3 at a wind velocity of 10 m s−1 and then roughly maintain this slope (−5/3) for even stronger winds. Our findings show an overall agreement with previous studies; furthermore, they provide a more complete climatology of frequency spectra of vertical wind velocities under different wind conditions. Keywords. Meteorology and atmospheric dynamics (turbulence; waves and tides)

scholarly journals Profiling wind and greenhouse gases by infrared-laser occultation: algorithm and results from end-to-end simulations in windy air

2015 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 405-441
Author(s):  
A. Plach ◽  
V. Proschek ◽  
G. Kirchengast
Keyword(s):  
Wind Speed ◽  
Greenhouse Gases ◽  
Doppler Shift ◽  
Lower Stratosphere ◽  
Infrared Laser ◽  
Retrieval Algorithm ◽  
Upper Troposphere ◽  
Wind Retrieval ◽  
End To End ◽  
Thermodynamic Variables

Abstract. The new mission concept of microwave and infrared-laser occultation between low-Earth-orbit satellites (LMIO) is designed to provide accurate and long-term stable profiles of atmospheric thermodynamic variables, greenhouse gases (GHGs), and line-of-sight (l.o.s.) wind speed with focus on the upper troposphere and lower stratosphere (UTLS). While the unique quality of GHG retrievals enabled by LMIO over the UTLS has been recently demonstrated based on end-to-end simulations, the promise of l.o.s. wind retrieval, and of joint GHG and wind retrieval, has not yet been analyzed in any realistic simulation setting so far. Here we describe a newly developed l.o.s. wind retrieval algorithm, which we embedded in an end-to-end simulation framework that also includes the retrieval of thermodynamic variables and GHGs, and analyze the performance of both standalone wind retrieval and joint wind and GHG retrieval. The wind algorithm utilizes LMIO laser signals placed on the inflection points at the wings of the highly symmetric C18OO absorption line near 4767 cm−1 and exploits transmission differences from wind-induced Doppler shift. Based on realistic example cases for a diversity of atmospheric conditions, ranging from tropical to high-latitude winter, we find that the retrieved l.o.s wind profiles are of high quality over the lower stratosphere under all conditions, i.e., unbiased and accurate to within about 2 m s−1 over about 15 to 35 km. The wind accuracy degrades into the upper troposphere due to decreasing signal-to-noise ratio of the wind-induced differential transmission signals. The GHG retrieval in windy air is not vulnerable to wind speed uncertainties up to about 10 m s−1 but is found to benefit in case of higher speeds from the integrated wind retrieval that enables correction of wind-induced Doppler shift of GHG signals. Overall both the l.o.s. wind and GHG retrieval results are strongly encouraging towards further development and implementation of a LMIO mission.

scholarly journals Extending the satellite data record of tropospheric ozone profiles from Aura-TES to MetOp-IASI: characterisation of optimal estimation retrievals

2014 ◽  
Vol 7 (12) ◽  
pp. 4223-4236 ◽  
Author(s):  
H. Oetjen ◽  
V. H. Payne ◽  
S. S. Kulawik ◽  
A. Eldering ◽  
J. Worden ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Degrees Of Freedom ◽  
Lower Stratosphere ◽  
Optimal Estimation ◽  
Retrieval Algorithm ◽  
Random Errors ◽  
Upper Troposphere ◽  
Sample Covariance ◽  
Atmospheric Sounding ◽  
Data Record ◽  
Better Than

Abstract. We apply the Tropospheric Emission Spectrometer (TES) ozone retrieval algorithm to Infrared Atmospheric Sounding Instrument (IASI) radiances and characterise the uncertainties and information content of the retrieved ozone profiles. This study focuses on mid-latitudes for the year 2008. We validate our results by comparing the IASI ozone profiles to ozone sondes. In the sonde comparisons, we find a negative bias (1–10%) in the IASI profiles in the lower to mid-troposphere and a positive bias (up to 14%) in the upper troposphere/lower stratosphere (UTLS) region. For the described cases, the degrees of freedom for signal are on average 3.2, 0.3, 0.8, and 0.9 for the columns 0 km – top of atmosphere, (0–6), (0–11), and (8–16) km, respectively. We find that our biases with respect to sondes and our degrees of freedom for signal for ozone are comparable to previously published results from other IASI ozone algorithms. In addition to evaluating biases, we validate the retrieval errors by comparing predicted errors to the sample covariance matrix of the IASI observations themselves. For the predicted versus empirical error comparison, we find that these errors are consistent and that the measurement noise and the interference of temperature and water vapour on the retrieval together mostly explain the empirically derived random errors. In general, the precision of the IASI ozone profiles is better than 20%.

scholarly journals On the Dynamical Control of the Mesosphere–Lower Thermosphere by the Lower and Middle Atmosphere

2017 ◽  
Vol 74 (3) ◽  
pp. 933-947 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anne K. Smith ◽  
Nicholas M. Pedatella ◽  
Daniel R. Marsh ◽  
Tomoko Matsuo
Keyword(s):  
Gravity Wave ◽  
Climate Model ◽  
Middle Atmosphere ◽  
Lower Thermosphere ◽  
Wave Drag ◽  
Error Growth ◽  
Vertical Range ◽  
Rayleigh Friction ◽  
Mesosphere And Lower Thermosphere ◽  
Dynamical Control

Abstract The NCAR Whole Atmosphere Community Climate Model (WACCM) is used to investigate the dynamical influence of the lower and middle atmosphere on the upper mesosphere and lower thermosphere. In simulations using a methodology adapted from the “specified dynamics” (nudged) version of the model, horizontal winds and temperature over part of the vertical range of the atmosphere are relaxed toward results from a previous simulation that serves as the true simulation, equivalent to meteorological analysis. In the upper mesosphere, the magnitude of the divergence of the constrained simulations from the true simulation depends on the vertical extent and frequency of the data used for nudging the model and grows with altitude. The simulations quantify the error growth of the model dynamical fields when data and forcing terms are known exactly and there are no model biases. The error growth rate and the ultimate discrepancy between the nudged and true fields depend strongly on the method used for representing gravity wave drag. The largest error growth occurs when the gravity wave parameterization uses interactive wave sources that depend on convective activity or fronts. Errors are reduced when the same parameterization is used with smoothly varying specified wave sources. The smallest errors are seen when the parameterized gravity wave drag is replaced by linear Rayleigh friction damping on the wind speed. These comparisons demonstrate the role of gravity waves in transporting the variability of the troposphere into the mesosphere and lower thermosphere.

scholarly journals Retrieval of daytime mesospheric ozone using OSIRIS observations of O<sub>2</sub> (<i>a</i><sup>1</sup>Δ<sub>g</sub>) emission

2020 ◽  
Vol 13 (11) ◽  
pp. 6215-6236
Author(s):  
Anqi Li ◽  
Chris Z. Roth ◽  
Kristell Pérot ◽  
Ole Martin Christensen ◽  
Adam Bourassa ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Random Error ◽  
Middle Atmosphere ◽  
Lower Thermosphere ◽  
High Sensitivity ◽  
Retrieval Technique ◽  
Volume Emission ◽  
Mesospheric Ozone ◽  
Hartley Band ◽  
Along Track

Abstract. Improving knowledge of the ozone global distributions in the mesosphere–lower thermosphere (MLT) is a crucial step in understanding the behaviour of the middle atmosphere. However, the concentration of ozone under sunlit conditions in the MLT is often so low that its measurement requires instruments with very high sensitivity. Fortunately, the bright oxygen airglow can serve as a proxy to retrieve the daytime ozone density indirectly, due to the strong connection to ozone photolysis in the Hartley band. The OSIRIS IR imager (hereafter, IRI), one of the instruments on the Odin satellite, routinely measures the oxygen infrared atmospheric band (IRA band) at 1.27 µm. In this paper, we will primarily focus on the detailed description of the steps done for retrieving the calibrated IRA band limb radiance (with <10 % random error), the volume emission rate of O2 (a1Δg) (with <25 % random error) and finally the ozone number density (with <20 % random error). This retrieval technique is applied to a 1-year sample from the IRI dataset. The resulting product is a new ozone dataset with very tight along-track sampling distance (<20 km). The feasibility of the retrieval technique is demonstrated by a comparison of coincident ozone measurements from other instruments aboard the same spacecraft, as well as zonal mean and monthly average comparisons between Odin-OSIRIS (both spectrograph and IRI), Odin-SMR and Envisat-MIPAS. We find that IRI appears to have a positive bias of up to 25 % below 75 km, and up to 50 % in some regions above. We attribute these differences to uncertainty in the IRI calibration as well as uncertainties in the photochemical constants. However, the IRI ozone dataset is consistent with the compared dataset in terms of the overall atmospheric distribution of ozone between 50 and 100 km. If the origin of the bias can be identified before processing the entire dataset, this will be corrected and noted in the dataset description. The retrieval technique described in this paper can be further applied to all the measurements made throughout the 19 year mission, leading to a new, long-term high-resolution ozone dataset in the middle atmosphere.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document