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Modelling Solar Irradiance Using Remotely Sensed Cloud Properties From ARM's SGP Site

Barker, H.W., Atmospheric Environment Service of Canada; Li, Z., Canada Centre for Remote Sensing; Clothiaux, E.E., and Ackerman, T.P., The Pennsylvania State University; Kato, S., National Aeronautics and Space Administration-Langley Research Center
Ninth Atmospheric Radiation Measurement (ARM) Science Team Meeting

Time series of profiles of cloud water content and droplet effective radii have been inferred from data obtained by a 35-GHz radar and a Microwave Radiometer (MWR) at the Atmospheric Radiation Measurement (ARM) Program's Southern Great Plains (SGP) site. These profiles initialize a Monte Carlo algorithm that predicts time series of broadband surface solar irradiance, which in turn are compared with coeval measurements. Special attention is given to the impact of drizzle and non-overcast clouds. Also, mean fluxes over extended periods are modelled with an analytic one-dimensional (1-D) transfer code that utilizes profiles of the arithmetic and logarithmic mean liquid water contents. This code also considers profiles of cloud fraction over the averaging period and makes simple assumptions regarding the general overlapping structure of extinction coefficient.

Note: This is the poster abstract presented at the meeting; an extended version was not provided by the author(s).