Nimbus-5 ITPR Experiment

The Nimbus-5 infrared temperature profile radiometer (ITPR) experiment was designed to measure up-welling infrared radiation in appropriate spectral intervals and with sufficient geographical resolution for sounding the atmosphere’s temperature distribution down to the earth’s surface even under partly cloudy sky conditions. A primary scientific goal of the experiment was the specification of the mesoscale features of surface and atmospheric temperature and water vapor that are associated with intense weather systems. In this paper the ITPR instrument is described and some initial spacecraft results are given that demonstrate the success of the experiment in achieving its scientific goals.