The Total Irradiance Monitor (TIM): Instrument calibration

Abstract

The calibrations of the SORCE Total Irradiance Monitor (TIM) are detailed and compared against the designed uncertainty budget. Several primary calibrations were accomplished in the laboratory before launch, including the aperture area, applied radiometer power, and radiometer absorption efficiency. Other parameters are calibrated or tracked on orbit, including the electronic servo system gain, the radiometer sensitivity to background thermal emission, and the degradation of radiometer efficiency. The as-designed uncertainty budget is refined with knowledge from the on-orbit performance. © 2005 Springer.