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SeaWiFS long-term solar diffuser reflectance and sensor noise analyses.

Robert E Eplee¹, Frederick S Patt, Robert A Barnes

¹Science Applications International Corporation, Maryland 20705, USA. eplee@seawifs.gsfc.nasa.gov

|February 7, 2007

Summary

The SeaWiFS satellite

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Area of Science:

Earth observation science
Satellite calibration and validation
Ocean color remote sensing

Background:

NASA's SeaWiFS mission collected ocean color data for 9 years.
The solar diffuser's long-term degradation impacts data accuracy.
Pre-launch characterization of the diffuser's reflectance was incomplete.

Purpose of the Study:

To analyze the SeaWiFS solar calibration time series for degradation.
To assess the long-term performance of the SeaWiFS solar diffuser.
To develop a method for calculating on-orbit signal-to-noise ratio (SNR).

Main Methods:

Analyzed 9 years of SeaWiFS solar calibration data.
Regressed solar incidence angles and orbital drift to correct diffuser reflectance.
Applied an exponential function (200-day time constant) to model degradation.
Computed on-orbit SNR using a sensor noise model.

Main Results:

Diffuser reflectance decreased by 5-9% over the mission, varying with wavelength.
On-orbit SNRs remained stable, showing no significant change.
The degradation followed an exponential decay pattern.

Conclusions:

The SeaWiFS solar diffuser exhibited predictable, wavelength-dependent degradation.
On-orbit SNR remained consistent, indicating robust instrument performance.
Findings inform the calibration of future satellite instruments.

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