Performance of the GCOM-C/SGLI satellite prelaunch phase cloud properties’ algorithm

Abstract The performance of the cloud properties algorithm of the future Global Change Observation Mission-Climate/Second-Generation Global Imager (GCOM-C/SGLI) satellite is compared with that of a spectrally compatible sensor, the moderate resolution image spectroradiometer (MODIS). The results obtained are evaluated against the target accuracy of the GCOM-C/SGLI satellite mission. Three direct cloud parameters: the cloud optical thickness (COT), the cloud particle effective radius (CLER), and the cloud top temperature (CTT), and an indirect parameter: the cloud liquid water path (CLWP), are the cloud properties that are evaluated. The satellite–satellite comparison shows a good alignment between the retrievals of the GCOM-C/SGLI algorithm and those of MODIS in most of the areas and agreement with the accuracy targets of the new satellite mission. However, the COT comparison shows an increasing dispersion with the increase of the cloud thickness along the GCOM-C/SGLI-MODIS 1 ∶ 1 line. The CTT is systematically overestimated by the GCOM-C/SGLI (against MODIS), particularly in mid-thermal clouds. This is found to be due to an insufficient cloud emissivity correction of the thermal radiances by the GCOM-C/SGLI algorithm. The lowest COT, CLER, and CLWP accuracies, noticed in forest areas, are found to be related to the cloud detection uncertainty and the nonabsorption channel sensitivity differences.

• Publication year

  2013

• Venue

  Journal of Applied Remote Sensing

• Publication date

  2013-01-02

• Fields of study

  Engineering, Environmental Science

• Identifiers
  DOI 10.1117/1.JRS.7.073693
• External record

  Open on Semantic Scholar

• Source metadata

  Semantic Scholar

• No claims are published for this paper.

• No concepts are published for this paper.

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