Climate-Referenced Satellite Radiometer Precipitation Profiles

Precipitation profiles and related science fields retrieved from the MHS radiometer on the METOP-B satellite using a Bayesian algorithm. This climate-reference product uses ECMWF-Interim reanalysis for homogeneous ancillary data to support consistent long-term records. The dataset is produced by the GPM GPROF algorithm and distributed by the GES DISC.

Use Cases

• Analyzing long-term precipitation trends using climate-referenced brightness temperature retrievals and mean rain rate fields.
• Studying the vertical structure of cloud and precipitation hydrometeors from retrieved profile data.
• Comparing precipitation retrievals across different satellite sensors using the consistent, parametric Bayesian method.
• Investigating retrieval uncertainty estimates provided with the mean rain rate solution.

Strengths

• Climate-reference product designed for homogeneous data over a time series using ECMWF-Interim reanalysis.
• Bayesian retrieval method provides a parametric, consistent approach across the GPM constellation of sensors.

Limitations

• Ancillary data for the climate product has a 2-3 month lag behind regular production, limiting near-real-time analysis.
• Specific spatial resolution, temporal coverage, and record count are not provided in the description.

Provenance

Source

GES DISC (Goddard Earth Sciences Data and Information Services Center), NASA.

Collection Method

Retrievals from the MHS passive microwave sensor on METOP-B satellite using the GPROF Bayesian algorithm.

Time Range

null

Freshness

Version 07 is the current version; older versions are superseded and unavailable.

Geography

Global coverage from satellite observations.