Evaluation of NESDIS (National Environmental Satellite, Data, and Information Service) TOVS (TIROS Operational Vertical Sounder) Physical Retrievals Using Data Impact Studies

摘要

A new National Environmental Satellite and Data Information Service (NESDIS) technique to produce temperature profiles from radiance information measured by satellite-born sensors has been evaluated. The new procedure relies on explicit knowledge of the physical processes involved, while the previous operational procedure required only a set of prior statistics. The evaluation was performed using data impact studies, a departure from the previous National Meteorological Center (NMC) practice of using only collocation statistics to make such evaluations. Two real-time data impact studies were performed. The results of the second data impact study led to operational use of temperature retrievals produced by the new method, beginning on September 20, 1988. The experiments demonstrate the necessity for a close cooperation between a data producer (NESDIS) and a data user (NMC) as the meteorological community moves toward an era of consolidated data assimilation procedures.