A New Approach for Radiometric Cross Calibration of Satellite-borne Radiometers
Abstract
Approaches for establishing the absolute calibration of a newly deployed, satellite-borne radiometer have varied from aircraft under flights with previously calibrated sensors to vicarious calibration over known, benign backgrounds, utilizing radiative transfer models to generate top-of-atmosphere radiances. In this paper, we demonstrate the efficacy of this approach by presenting results of the cross comparison of two sensors that are known to be well calibrated, Atmospheric Infrared Sounder (AIRS) and Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS). We focus on the results of the cross-comparison between MODIS and AIRS for the ranges of atmospheric and surface conditions embodied in a variety of common Earth scenes in this paper. We also investigate the dependence of the quality of the cross-calibration process as a function of the surface emissivity spectrum, phenomenology, and atmospheric conditions, identifying under what conditions the cross-calibration process is effective.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Jul 25, 2005
- Accession Number
- ADA453285
Entities
People
- Bruce Hauss
- Chunming Wang
- Jeffrey Privette
- John J. Qu
- Xianjun Hao
Organizations
- George Mason University