Creating a Consistent Multi-Decadal Oceanic TRMM-GPM Brightness
Temperature Data Record
Abstract
The Tropical Rainfall Measurement Mission (TRMM) Microwave Imager (TMI)
and the Global Precipitation Measuring (GPM) Microwave Imager (GMI) have
been used as the radiometric transfer standard one after another for the
GPM constellation radiometers, during the past nearly two decades. Given
that GMI and TMI share only a 13-month common operational period, for
the time there is no overlap in between, WindSat can serve as the
calibration bridge to provide additional intercalibration for the
realization of a consistent multi-decadal oceanic brightness temperature
(Tb) product. Thus, we conducted the intercalibration of TMI/GMI for
13-month period, TMI/WindSat for >9 years’ overlap period,
and WindSat/GMI XCAL for one year, to assess the Tb bias of one to
another. A multi-decadal oceanic Tb dataset was thereafter achieved to
ensure a consistent long-term precipitation record that covers TRMM and
GPM eras. Moreover, a generic uncertainty quantification model (UQM) was
developed by taking various sources of uncertainties into account
rigorously and orderly. This UQM model was then applied to quantify the
uncertainty estimates associated with these Tb biases. This allows the
unified high-sampling-frequency and globally-covered Tb product with
associated boundary uncertainties to be much improved for scientific
utilization as compared to existing Tb products that are with ad-hoc
uncertainties estimates. Moreover, based upon the results of uncertainty
quantification process, it is recognized that there is room for
improvement in the intercalibration for the water vapor sensitive
channels. Further analysis indicates that the issue may be associated
with the atmospheric water vapor profile input to the radiative transfer
model. Suggestions are subsequently made to use water vapor profile
retrieved from millimeter radiometer sounders’ measurements (rather than
numerical weather predictions) to determine the impact on the Tb biases
of these problematic channels.