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Determination of the optical thickness and effective particle radius of clouds from reflected solar radiation measurements. II - Marine stratocumulus observationsA multispectral scanning radiometer has been used to obtain measurements of the reflection function of marine stratocumulus clouds at 0.75 micron and at 1.65 and 2.16 microns. These observations were obtained from the NASA ER-2 aircraft as part of the FIRE, conducted off the coast of southern California during July 1987. Multispectral images of the reflection function were used to derive the optical thickness and the effective particle radius of stratiform cloud layers on four days. In addition to the radiation measurements, in situ microphysical measurements were obtained from an aircraft. In this paper, the remote sensing results are compared with in situ observations, which show a good spatial correlation for both optical thickness and effective radius. These comparisons further show systematic differences between remote sensing and in situ values, with a tendency for remote sensing to overestimate the effective radius by about 2-3 microns, independent of particle radius. The optical thickness, in contrast, is somewhat overestimated for small optical thicknesses and underestimated for large optical thicknesses. An introduction of enhanced gaseous absorption at a wavelength of 2.16 microns successfully explains some of these observed discrepancies.
Document ID
19910045768
Acquisition Source
Legacy CDMS
Document Type
Reprint (Version printed in journal)
Authors
Nakajima, Teruyuki
(NASA Goddard Space Flight Center Greenbelt, MD, United States)
King, Michael D.
(NASA Goddard Space Flight Center Greenbelt, MD, United States)
Spinhirne, James D.
(NASA Goddard Space Flight Center Greenbelt, MD, United States)
Radke, Lawrence F.
(Washington, University Seattle, United States)
Date Acquired
August 14, 2013
Publication Date
March 1, 1991
Publication Information
Publication: Journal of the Atmospheric Sciences
Volume: 48
ISSN: 0022-4928
Subject Category
Meteorology And Climatology
Accession Number
91A30391
Funding Number(s)
CONTRACT_GRANT: NSF ATM-86-15344
Distribution Limits
Public
Copyright
Other

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