Outlook for Ocean Remote Sensing (Global Component)

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Outlook for Ocean Remote Sensing (Global
Component)

• Dr. Eric Lindstrom
• Physical Oceanography Program
• NASA Headquarters
• Earth Science Division, Science Mission
  Directorate

October 4, 2005
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GCOS Essential Climate Variables Essential
Climate Variables that are both currently
feasible for global implementation and have a
high impact on UNFCCC requirements. Domain Atmos
pheric(over land, sea and ice) Surface Air
temperature, Precipitation, Air pressure, Surface
radiation budget, Wind speed and direction, Water
vapour. Upper-air Earth radiation budget
(including solar irradiance), Upper-air
temperature (including MSU radiances), Wind speed
and direction, Water vapour, Cloud
properties. Composition Carbon dioxide,
Methane, Ozone, Other long-lived greenhouse gases
, Aerosol properties. Oceanic Surface Sea-surfa
ce temperature, Sea-surface salinity, Sea level,
Sea state, Sea ice, Current, Ocean colour (for
biological activity), Carbon dioxide partial
pressure. Sub-surface Temperature, Salinity,
Current, Nutrients, Carbon, Ocean tracers,
Phytoplankton. Terrestrial River discharge,
Water use, Ground water, Lake levels, Snow cover,
Glaciers and ice caps, Permafrost and
seasonally-frozen ground, Albedo, Land cover
(including vegetation type), Fraction of absorbed
photosynthetically active radiation (fAPAR), Leaf
area index (LAI), Biomass, Fire disturbance.
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CEOS is constructing a response to the GCOS
SatelliteRequirements for UNFCCC (in process
Sept 2006 - POC is Barbara Ryan USGS).
Satellite Observation of the Climate System The
Committee on Earth Observation Satellites (CEOS)
Response to the Global Climate Observing System
(GCOS) Implementation Plan (IP) Developed by
CEOS and submitted to the United Nations
Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC)
Subsidiary Body on Scientific and Technical
Advice (SBSTA) on behalf of CEOS by the United
States of America (USA) delegation Draft -
September 2006
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KNOWN FUTURE ALTIMETRY MISSIONS
End of life
In orbit
Approved
Planned/Pending approval
00 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14

GFO
NPOESS
IPY
Data gap
ERS-2/RA
Sentinel-3
ENVISAT/RA-2
ERS-1
ALTIKA
TOPEX/Poseidon
Data gap?
Data gap?
Jason-1
Jason-2
Jason-3?
CRYOSAT-2
CNES/EUMETSAT/NASA/NOAA signedLetter of
Agreement for Jason-2
GODAE
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Summary Assessment
Summary (using a color bar chart.)

• No Bar Nothing
• Red Something, Below Threshold
• Yellow At threshold (marginal)
• Green Above threshold (fully adequate)
• Threshold GCOS ECV threshold
• Mission nominal lifetime
• Beyond lifetime go to Red within six months

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Example - ECV Sea Level
Planned or pending approval
In orbit
Approved
86 88 90 92 94 96 98 00 02 04 06 08 10 12 14

T/P
High accuracy Reference orbit
Jason
Jason-1
Jason-2
ERS-1
ERS-2
Lower accuracy Polar orbit
Envisat
S-3
GFO
NPOESS
Altika
ECV Sea Level
Above threshold
Below threshold
At threshold
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• Challenges for the IOOS Workshop
• Validate and regionalize the established
  general requirements for coastal remote sensing
  (Paul Digiacomo to set the stage).
• 2) Suggest priorities for new/modified remote
  sensing products to better serve regional
  applications.
• 3) Provide ideas for next generation remote
  sensing capabilities.

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BACKUP SLIDES

• ERIC LINDSTROM

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NASA Earth Observatories
Ocean Coastal Research
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Several Decades of Satellite Data Records

• Sea Surface Temperature
• Sea Surface Topography
• Sea Surface Winds
• Chlorophyll
• Precipitation
• Sea ice
• Geoid

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Global Mean Sea Level Trends
Sea level trend changes in the past decade have
complex global patterns that show basin-wide
changes of ocean circulation on decadal time
scales
L-L Fu, JPL
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Global Mean Sea Level Trends
For the first time in history the global mean sea
level is directly estimated from global
observations. The contribution of ice melting is
estimated when global mean sea level is coupled
with ocean temperature.
J. Willis/JPL
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Ocean Heat Storage
- Interannual variability 2 Wm-2 in both data
sets forcing is 0.6 Wm-2/decade - Changes must
occur in cloud radiative forcing - New question
how does time varying cloud radiative forcing
relate to equilibrium state feedback given
varying ocean warming rates?
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Sea Surface Salinity Aquarius

• The effect of salinity on surface height is
  comparable to the effect of temperature.
• Salinity is a key density variable that drives
  circulation. It is a critical area of scientific
  uncertainty in the oceans' capacity to store and
  transport heat that affects the Earth's water
  cycle and climate.
• Conventional in situ sampling is sparse.
• Aquarius will provide the first-ever global maps
  of salt concentration on the ocean surface.
• Aquarius will measure global SSS synoptically
  every month for 3 years, that will link the water
  cycle, climate, and ocean.
• Aquarius is joint US-Argentine collaboration -
  mission confirmation review is scheduled for
  Fall, 2005

Percentage of dynamic height variability due to
salinity (Maes and Behringer, 2000).
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Enhancing Ocean Altimetry Wide Swath

• Wide Swath Ocean Altimentry (WSOA) will measure
  ocean surface topography with a spatial
  resolution that is required to sample ocean
  eddies, an important component of the ocean
  circulation.
• WSOA (solid box plus dashed box) will resolve
  eddies in most of the oceans. It takes more than
  5 nadir altimeters to match the WSOA resolution.

1000 yr
climate change
100 yr
Future Satellites
10 yr
1 yr
Time Scale
1 mon
Current Satellites
1 wk
WSOA
1 d
103
104
102
10
1
10-1
10-2
Spatial Scale (km)
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Research and Operations

• Process is an evolution
• Maturity of transition is parameter dependent
• Objective extend relevant NASA research to
  help NOAA meet short and long-term service and
  operational mission requirements
• NASA and NOAA have R2O working group to address
  transition
• Ocean Parameter
• Sea Surface Temperature
• AVHRR ? MODIS ? NPP VIIRS ? NPOESS VIIRS
• Sea Surface Height TOPEX/Poseidon ? Jason ?
  OSTM ?
• Chlorophyll-a
• SeaWiFS ? MODIS ? NPP VIIRS ? NPOESS VIRS
• Ocean Surface Wind
• QuikSCAT, WindSat/Coriolis ? NPOESS CMIS
• Sea Ice Properties (Extent, Thickness)
• Extent DMSP ? AMSR-E ? CMIS Thickness ICESat
• Gravity
• GRACE
• Sea Surface Salinity
• Aquarius (mission confirmation, Fall 2005)