PATHFINDER High Resolution
Surface Radiative Fluxes

Department of Meteorology
University of Maryland, College Park


Department of Meterology
 



Background

Project Description

Available Data

Validation

Known Problems

Data Access

References

Gallery

Links

Contacts

Specialized Data Sets

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Gallery


 

The following examples are presented:

  • Density of available satellite observation for July 1992 (Figure 1).
Global scale surface short-wave fluxes (W/m**2) for July 1992 derived from the ISSCCP D1 data (Figure 2).

To illustrate the effect of scale:
  • Monthly mean surface shortwave radiative fluxes (W/m**2) as derived from METEOSAT and GOES ISCCP DX observations, for September 1992 (Figure 3).
  • Monthly mean surface shortwave radiative fluxes (W/m**2) as derived from METEOSAT ISCCP DX and ISCCP D1 over Africa, for October 1992 (Figure 4).
  • Monthly mean surface albedo as derived from METEOSAT ISCCP DX and ISCCP D1 over Africa, for October 1992 (Figure 5).
To illustrate the effect of water vapor:
  • Annual mean distribution of precipitable water (cm) for 1986, as derived from the TIROS Operational Vertical Sounder (TOVS), and appended to the ISCCP D1 satellite information (Figure 6).
  • The global distribution of the annual difference in precipitable water (cm) for 1986, using TOVS and Data Assimilation Office (DAO) at the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center water vapor as input (upper panel: Figure 7) (Gu et al., 1998).
  • The zonal mean difference of precipitable water (cm) for 1986, using TOVS and DAO water vapor as input (lower panel: Figure 7).
  • The global distribution of the annual difference in surface shortwave fluxes (W/m**2) for 1986, using TOVS and DAO water vapor as input (Figure 8).


 
Maintained by Banglin Zhang zhang@atmos.umd.edu and Chuan Li cli@atmos.umd.edu