Abstract

A critical measurement to be performed by future high resolution spectral radiometers such as the Tropospheric Emission Sounder (TES; Beer and Glavitch, 1989), is the global profiling of ozone. In order to assess the capability of retrieving tropospheric ozone profiles using a space based Fourier Transform Spectrometer (FTS) observing in the nadir, retrieval studies have been performed using simulated spectral radiances. The approach we have used in studying tropospheric ozone profile retrievals is the maximum likelihood method (Rodgers, 1987). This method is attractive for two principal reasons: (1) null space is systematically treated and (2) a consistent error analysis of the retrieved parameters is provided. The effect on the retrievals of supplementing the spectral thermal emission radiances in the 10 micron ozone band with scattered solar spectral radiances from the three micron ozone region has been studied. These studies have been performed with an unapodized resolution of 0.071 cm-1 and with measurement noise consistent with the specifications for TES. The entire spectral ozone region at 10 microns has been utilized in these studies taking advantage of the TES capability to provide a simultaneous measurement over a broad spectral range.

© 1991 Optical Society of America