Imaging Spectrometry XIII

ABSTRACT The NIST role in supporting our Nation’s climate research is described. The assembly of climate data records over decadal time scales requires assimilating readings from a large number of optical sensors deployed in space and on the Earth by various nations. NIST, in partnership with NASA and NOAA, develops and disseminates the calibration tools and standards to ensure that the measurements from these sensors are accurate, comparable, and tied to international standards based on the SI system of units. This effort helps to provide confidence that the small decadal changes in environmental variables attributed to climate change are not an artifact of the measurement system. Additionally, it ensures that the measurements are physics based an d thus comparable to climate models. Keywords: climate change, measurement science, metrology, remote sensing 1. INTRODUCTION The Earth’s climate is complex and highly variable, making it difficult to measure and model small changes that occur over decadal and longer time scales. The resulting uncertainties in measurement and modeling underlie the long-term debate over the direction, magnitude, and consequence of climate change. Even as the consensus grows on climate change, climate monitoring will continue to be necessary to quantify regional variation; to establish the effectiveness of mitigation efforts, including possible geo-engineering solutions;