CIMSS-NOAA Weekly Report
[ Archive ]
ASPB AND CIMSS WEEKLY HIGHLIGHTS FOR THE WEEK ENDING APRIL 18, 2003

IN THE PRESS:

ITEMS FOR THE ADMINISTRATOR:

ITEMS FOR THE ASSISTANT ADMINISTRATOR:

ITEMS FOR THE OFFICE DIRECTOR, ORA:

"Introducing GOES-12" VISIT Distance Learning Lesson: The new "Introducing Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite (GOES-12)" Virtual Institute for Satellite Integration Training (VISIT) lesson was given for the first time on 11 April 2003. Eight National Weather Service (NWS) offices participated in the distance learning lesson, with forty NWS staff in attendance.  (S. Bachmeier, CIMSS, 608-263-3958)

Biomass Burning Trend Analysis in South America:  Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite (GOES)-8 Automated Biomass Burning Algorithm (ABBA) fire products for June through October 2002 indicate that the amount of burning during the 2002 fire season in South America was over 25% higher than observed in 2001 and 50% higher than 2000.  Much of this fire activity occurred late in the fire season with over 375,000 fire pixels detected by the GOES-8 ABBA at 11:45, 14:45, 17:45, and 20:45 UTC.  These results are being integrated into an 8-year GOES-8 fire, smoke, and cloud climatology to characterize diurnal, spatial, seasonal and interannual trends in South America.  The study area extends from 0 to 40°S and from 35 to 75°W and includes portions of Brazil, Peru, Bolivia, Paraguay, Uruguay, and northern Argentina. (E. Prins, E/RA2, 608-263-6607, J. Feltz, CIMSS, 608-263-3434)

(Click on image to enlarge)

Figure caption: The GOES-8 ABBA and Merged Automated Cloud/Aerosol Detection Algorithm (MACADA) were applied to 3-hourly (11:45, 14:45, 17:45, and 20:45 UTC) multispectral data collected from June through October in each year from 1995 to 2002.  The figure gives an overview of the number of fire pixels detected at each time period and total burning for each year, along with the percent opaque cloud coverage. The number of fires detected in the 2002 fire season represents a large increase in burning observed over the previous two years. The opaque cloud coverage gives an indication if the interannual variability in the number of detected fire pixels is due to cloud coverage issues.

GOES Cloud Top Pressure Validation: An objective comparison of the Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite (GOES) Sounder Cloud Top Pressure (CTP) product with an independent source was performed as a Master of Science thesis topic by Mr. James Hawkinson of the Cooperative Institute of Meteorological Satellite Studies (CIMSS).  The GOES cloud product is compared with cloud top height retrievals from a ground-based micropulse lidar (MPL) and a millimeter cloud radar (MMCR) from the Cloud and Radiation Test Bed (CART) site in Lamont, Oklahoma. Two years of GOES Sounder CTP data and MPL/MMCR data from March 2000 to April 2002 were used in the study.  Rapid Update Cycle (RUC) computer model output was used to convert the cloud top pressure output (in millibars) from the GOES sounder into the height above ground units (in meters above ground) used by the MPL/MMCR for comparison. (S. Ackerman, CIMSS, 608-263-3647, T. Schreiner , CIMSS, 608-263-6754, J. Hawkinson, CIMSS)

GOES 3x3 CTP and MPL/MMCR (Click on image to enlarge)

GOES single FOV CTP and MPL/MMCR (Click on image to enlarge)

Figure caption: The two figures compare the GOES cloud top pressure (CTP) with the micropulse lidar/millimeter cloud radar (MPL/MMCR) for the 3x3 GOES product (top) and the GOES single field-of-view (SFOV, bottom).  The SFOV product compares as favorably with the MPL/MMCR product as the 3x3 GOES product.  The tendency for the GOES to have lower cloud tops than the MPL/MMCR is consistent with the physics of the two measurements.

ITEMS FOR THE DIVISION CHIEF, ARAD:

AVN Now Used as Temperature/Moisture Retrieval First Guess: The Geostationary Operational Environmental Sounder (GOES) Sounder retrieved profiles and associated Derived Product Imagery (DPI) generated at the Cooperative Institute for Meteorological Satellite Studies (CIMSS), at 3x3 field-of-view (FOV) horizontal resolution, are now using forecast fields from the National Centers for Environmental Prediction (NCEP) Aviation (AVN) model as the first guess.  Previously, the NCEP Eta model was used.  Now both the 3x3 1x1 FOV retrievals use the AVN model as the first guess (http://cimss.ssec.wisc.edu/goes/realtime/changes.html). (J. Nelson, CIMSS, 608-263-6013)

VISITORS:

NEXT WEEK:

LOOKING AHEAD:

Archived Weeklies Page