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Remote Sensing Techniques
Techniques Applied to MODIS Data
A number of EOS (Level 2) products are derived at direct broadcast sites from the real-time MODIS data stream and are made available to SPoRT. Other products useful for understanding the atmospheric and surface environment on a regional scale are derived locally at and made available to selected WFOs. The generation of these products is detailed in the accompanying link.
AIRS Profile and Radiance Techniques
Recently, SPoRT has begun to investigate radiance assimilation within the regional modeling framework. SPoRT, in cooperation with the NASA/NOAA/DoD JCSDA and NCEP/EMC, has begun to utilize the Gridpoint Statistical Interpolation (GSI) 3D-VAR analysis system, which is used operationally by NCEP for the NAM and the GFS data assimilation systems. This system, as well as access to NCEP resources, has allowed for the ability to reproduce an operational run-time environment. The GSI system is a sophisticated 3D-VAR scheme supported by NASA and NOAA. This united effort allows for the accelerated transition of improvements among agencies.
AMSR-E Techniques
Currently five products (rain rate, convective percent, water vapor, wind speed, and sea surface temperature) of many derived from the AMSR-E data are being sent in near real-time to three NWS forecast offices. Additionally, cloud liquid water, soil moisture, and vegetation fraction derived from AMSR-E data are being evaluated to assess their application within SPoRT.
 CloudSat Product Development
SPoRT is currently investigating the use of NASA's CloudSat satellite for validation of observed and derived cloud parameters from AIRS and simulated cloud parameters from regional weather models. CloudSat uses a 94 GHz Cloud Profiling Radar (CPR) to create two dimensional cross sections of clouds as it orbits the Earth as a member of the "A-Train", a series of Earth observing satellites designed to take measurements that are nearly coincident in both time and space.
GOES Data Product Development
SPoRT derives a number of real-time products from the direct broadcast data stream collected from its roof-top GOES East and West antennas. The most useful of these parameters are Land Surface Temperature (LST), insolation and albedo, and a several of cloud top pressure products from both the imagery and sounder using both IR and CO2 techniques.
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