ASPB

CIMSS-NOAA Weekly Report
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ASPB AND CIMSS WEEKLY HIGHLIGHTS FOR THE WEEK ENDING MARCH 7, 2003

IN THE PRESS:

ITEMS FOR THE ADMINISTRATOR:

ITEMS FOR THE ASSISTANT ADMINISTRATOR:

ITEMS FOR THE OFFICE DIRECTOR, ORA:

Cloudsat and Calipso Meeting: A joint meeting of the science teams for the Cloudsat and Calipso missions was held in Broomfield, Colorado. Both missions will fly together in formation behind the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's (NASA) Earth Observing System (EOS-AQUA) satellite and will be launched together in November 2004. These missions will provide for the first time direct observations of the vertical distribution of cloud and aerosol through the atmosphere. NOAA can benefit by using this data to validate its passive satellite products and to validate the forecast cloud fields. (A. Heidinger, E/RA2, 608-263-6757)

Kick-off Meeting Held for Atmospheres, Ocean, and Land TAP: T. Schmit and A. Heidinger participated (via telecon) in the kick-off meeting of the Atmospheres, Ocean and the Land Technical Advisor Panel(TAP) on March 7, 2003. This panel will assist in translating between the stated requirements and the specific satellite parameters for Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite (GOES)-R. For example, advice will be given on which bands and spectral widths are needed for each product. ( T. Schmit, E/RA2, 608-263-0291, A. Heidinger, E/RA2, 608-263-6757)

Geostationary Fire Detection and Validation Activities in Acre, Brazil: Over the past 2 years the Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite (GOES)-8 Wildfire Automated Biomass Burning Algorithm (WF_ABBA) has been used to monitor fire activity associated with new agricultural activity in Acre, Brazil along a new road being constructed across the Andes from Brazil to Peru. During the 2002 fire season a ground truth validation effort was conducted in Acre to determine the capability of the GOES-8 WF_ABBA to detect agricultural burning in the region. The GOES Wildfire ABBA identified 84% of the 88 fires that were monitored by on-site survey teams; the majority of the fires not detected with the GOES WF_ABBA were obscured by clouds. This validation effort was presented by K. McClaid-Cook (University of New York-SUNY, Albany/ Universidade Federal do Acre) at the 99th Annual Meeting of the Association of American Geographers in New Orleans on March 7, 2003. (J. Feltz, CIMSS, 608-263-3434, E. Prins, E/RA2, 530-271-2256)

(Click on image to enlarge)

Figure: This GOES-8 Wildfire ABBA fire composite shows fire activity in western Brazil in the state of Acre from June through October 2002. Fires associated with deforestation and agricultural management are evident along a new road being built across the Andes from Brazil to Peru.

ITEMS FOR THE DIVISION CHIEF, ARAD:

Input Provided for VISITview Session on GOES Wildland Fire Detection: Input regarding the Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite (GOES) Wildfire Automated Biomass Burning Algorithm (WF_ABBA) was provided to the Cooperative Institute for Research in the Atmosphere (CIRA) for a new Virtual Institute for Satellite Integration Training (VISIT) teletraining session on applications of GOES imagery for wildland fire detection in the U.S. Input included an overview of the GOES WF_ABBA and examples of 5-minute GOES-11 WF_ABBA fire products for the Western U.S. conflagrations during the summer of 2002. Using high temporal GOES-11 data, the WF_ABBA was able to identify several wildfires at or before the initial reported start times. This suggests the need to dedicate resources for rapid GOES WF_ABBA processing and dissemination for early wildfire detection applications in the U.S. (C. Schmidt, CIMSS, 608-262-7973, E. Prins, E/RA2, 530-271-2256)

CIMSS Interactive Display Program Now on Linux: The Cooperative Institute for Meteorological Satellite Studies (CIMSS) interactive display program has been converted to run on Linux computers. This program displays gridded fields and observational (point) data with human interaction on a computer screen. More work remains to be done but the basic display functions have been converted and tested. (G. Callan, E/RA2, 608-263-3951)

Antarctic Atmospheric Profiles Provided to NASA Researcher: Mean monthly and seasonal temperature and humidity profiles from South Pole Station compiled on request by a researcher at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's (NASA) Langley Research Center. The profiles will be used to test gas absorption in a radiative transfer model. (Y. Liu, CIMSS, 608-265-8620, J. Key, E/RA2, 608-263-2605)

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