The ScaRaB-resurs earth radiation budget dataset and first results

Abstract

Measurements made by the second flight model of the Scanner for Radiation Budget (ScaRaB) instrument have been processed and are now available for the scientific community. Although this set of data is relatively short and sparse, it is of excellent quality and is the only global broadband scanner radiance information for the period between October 1998 and April 1999. This second flight model marks the conclusion of the ScaRaB cooperative program of France, Russia, and Germany. The two flight models of the ScaRaB instrument gave broadband radiance measurements comparable in quality to those made by the Earth Radiation Budget Experiment and the Clouds and Earth Radiant Energy System scanning instruments. In addition, the ScaRaB instrument gave unique results for the comparison between narrowband (visible and infrared atmospheric window) and broadband radiance measurements. These measurements were mostly used to improve the broadband data processing and to study the error budget resulting when narrowband channel data are used to estimate the earth radiation budget. These concomitant narrow-and broadband measurements made by the two flight models of ScaRaB contain original information of considerable interest for further scientific use.