Enhancements of Satellite Data Assimilation over Antarctica

Abstract The Concordiasi field experiment, which is taking place in Antarctica, involves the launching of radiosoundings and stratospheric balloons. One of the main goals of this campaign is the validation of the Infrared Atmospheric Sounding Interferometer (IASI) radiance assimilation. Prior to the campaign, it was necessary to improve satellite data assimilation at high latitudes. Two types of sensors, microwave and infrared, have been considered to help with this issue. A major problem associated with microwave satellite data is the calculation of the surface emissivity. An innovative approach, based on satellite observations, improves the surface emissivity modeling over land and sea ice within the constraints of the four-dimensional variational data assimilation (4D-VAR) system. With this new calculation of emissivity, it has been possible to include many more microwave observations during the assimilation. In this study, this method has been applied to high latitudes, after some adjustments have bee...