Data validation of Chinese microwave FY-3A for retrieval of atmospheric temperature and humidity profiles during Phoenix typhoon, 2008

As a first polar-orbit meteorological satellite, FY-3A (FY – Feng Yun, which means wind and cloud), in China, the Microwave Temperature Sounder (MWTS) and Microwave Humidity Sounder (MWHS) are aboard the satellite for the purpose of retrieving atmospheric temperature and humidity profiles. A novel mixed (MIX) model, based on the Millimetre Propagation Model (MPM) and Rosenkranz (ROS) models, is developed for calculation of atmospheric absorption coefficients in multiple channels of the MWTS and MWHS using the China National Standard Atmosphere (GB 1920-80) and US Standard Atmosphere of 1976. Using atmospheric radiative transfer with the in situ measurements of 836 radiosonde datasets (including the altitude, pressure, atmospheric temperature and humidity) from 16 sites in China and Japan, multiple channel brightness temperatures are simulated and compared with FY-3A MWTS/MWHS observations for data validation. Simulations using respective MPM, ROS and MIX models are also analysed. Furthermore, the statistical D-matrix is constructed from the MWTS/MWHS data and the aforementioned radiosonde measurements, and it is then applied to the retrieval of atmospheric temperature and humidity profiles over the north-western Pacific Ocean during 2008’s Phoenix typhoon.