Six-frequency passive-microwave radiometer data provides vertically and horizontally polarized brightness temperature measurements at 6.925, 10.65, 18.7, 23.8, 36.5 and 89.0 GHz. The instrument, with a 1.6-meter reflector, scans the Earth at a constant 55-degree incidence angle, offering spatial resolutions from 5.4 km to 56 km. Data was collected by the AMSR-E instrument on NASA's Aqua satellite, managed by the AMD_KOPRI organization, with observations beginning in 2002.
Use Cases
- Retrieve sea ice concentration by analyzing the polarization difference at 36.5 GHz and 18.7 GHz channels.
- Estimate global soil moisture levels using the lower frequency 6.925 GHz and 10.65 GHz brightness temperature measurements.
- Detect rainfall over oceans by identifying scattering signatures in the high-frequency 89.0 GHz channel data.
- Monitor snow water equivalent by modeling the scattering effect observed across the six available frequency bands.
- Perform atmospheric water vapor correction for other sensors by utilizing the 23.8 GHz channel, which is sensitive to vapor absorption.
Strengths
- Provides dual-polarization measurements at six distinct microwave frequencies, enabling multi-parameter geophysical retrievals.
- Offers a wide swath width from a conical scanning system, ensuring frequent global coverage.
- Calibration uses cosmic background radiation and an on-board warm target for consistent radiometric accuracy.
Limitations
- Spatial resolution is coarse, varying from 56 km at 6.9 GHz to 5.4 km at 89.0 GHz, limiting fine-scale analysis.
- Data is from a single year (2002), providing only a snapshot rather than a long-term climate record.
- The description lacks specifics on data volume, file format, and accessibility, complicating immediate use.
Provenance
- Source
- Advanced Microwave Scanning Radiometer for EOS (AMSR-E) instrument on NASA's Aqua satellite, provided via NASA Earthdata.
- Collection Method
- Passive microwave radiation collected by a scanning 1.6-meter parabolic reflector and measured by a twelve-channel radiometer system.
- Time Range
- Observations began in 2002.
- Freshness
- null
- Geography
- Global coverage from the Aqua satellite's sun-synchronous orbit.