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Microwave Radiometer Instability Due to Infrequent Calibration.

Kevin J Coakley1, Jolene Splett1, David Walker1

  • 1National Institute of Standards and Technology, Boulder, CO 80305 USA.

IEEE Journal of Selected Topics in Applied Earth Observations and Remote Sensing
|October 26, 2020
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

This study introduces a new metric to quantify how infrequent calibration affects microwave radiometer stability. The metric helps determine uncertainty in temperature measurements, crucial for instrument calibration accuracy.

Keywords:
Calibrationmeasurement errorsmicrowave radiometryrandom noiseremote sensingstability criteriastatisticsstochastic processesuncertainty quantification

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Area of Science:

  • Radiometry and Microwave Remote Sensing
  • Metrology and Measurement Science
  • Statistical Uncertainty Quantification

Background:

  • Microwave radiometers are critical for Earth observation and climate monitoring.
  • Instrument calibration stability is essential for accurate temperature measurements.
  • Infrequent calibration introduces uncertainties that can impact data reliability.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To develop and validate a new metric for quantifying the impact of infrequent calibration on radiometer temperature measurement stability.
  • To determine the component of measurement uncertainty attributable to infrequent calibration.
  • To compare the performance of robust and non-robust implementations of the new metric.

Main Methods:

  • Development of a novel metric to assess measurement stability under infrequent calibration conditions.
  • Application of the metric to experimental data from NASA and NIST radiometers.
  • Utilizing a stochastic model and Monte Carlo methods to determine uncertainty in an empirical prediction model for the Noise Figure Radiometer (NFRad).
  • Introduction of a secondary metric for comparison, addressing a different calibration timing scenario.

Main Results:

  • The new metric successfully quantifies the effect of infrequent calibration on radiometer stability.
  • A component of uncertainty in single measurements due to infrequent calibration was determined.
  • The study validated the metric using real-world data from ground-based radiometers.
  • Uncertainty in an empirical prediction model was estimated via Monte Carlo simulation.

Conclusions:

  • Infrequent calibration significantly impacts microwave radiometer temperature measurement stability.
  • The developed metric provides a robust tool for assessing and quantifying calibration-related uncertainties.
  • Accurate uncertainty quantification is vital for reliable climate data derived from radiometer measurements.