Validation of aircraft-measured land surface emissivity

ABSTRACT This paper evaluates the performance of two techniques currently under development for use in the future validation of AIRS surface emissivity measurements over the Southern Great Plains Atmospheric Radiation Measurement site 111 Oklahoma, USA. The first technique involves a simultaneous retrieval of atmospheric tem- perature and water vapor, surface skin temperature, and surface emissivity using a statistical approach; the second, a relative retrieval of the relative surface einissivity from spectral radiance observations between gaseousabsorption lines.High spectral resolution upwelli ng radiance measurements from the aircraft-based NP OESS AtmosphericSounder Testbed-Interferometer (NAS'T-I) obtained during the ARM/FIRE Water Vapor Experiment (AFWEX)2000 and Chesapeake Lighthouse and Aircraft Measurements for Satellites (CLAMS) 2001 were used to compareeach method. Surface truth was provided by ground-based Atmospheric Emitted Radiance Interferometer (AERI)measurements.Keywords: surface emission, remote sensing, FTS, interferometer