THE GLOBAL PRECIPITATION CLIMATOLOGY PROJECT Second Session of the INTERNATIONAL WORKING GROUP on DATA MANAGEMENT FOK
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•.. '' . THE GLOBAL PRECIPITATION CLIMATOLOGY PROJECT Second Session of the INTERNATIONAL WORKING GROUP ON DATA MANAGEMENT FOK THE GLD~AL ~(C\P1\"'AllOJ\) CL,./1v/1-)TDL0G-.y Pt<oJCCT ( !92'+ '. He<&l S..?V,,Jr_fl) (Madison, USA, 9-11 September 1987) March 1988 WCRP - 6 WMO/TD - NO. 221 1 i s;r}, s·n: ~n.ro7 . 36i.t: s-n,ro 1,.6 1rvr CNTER!NATIONAL COUNCIL OF WORLD METEOROLOGICAL 'CIENTIFIC UNIONS L: ORGANIZATION 01-so2T- The World Climate Programme launched by the World Meteorological Organiza tion (WMO) includes four components: The World Climate Data Programme The World Climate Applications Programme The World Climate Impact Studies Programme The World Climate Research Programme The World Climate Research Programme is jointly sponsored by the WMO and the International Council of Scientific Unions. This report has been produced without editorial revision by the WMO Secretariat. It is not an official WMO publication and its distribution in this form does not imply endorsement by the Organization of the ideas expressed. "· TABLE OF CONTENTS LIST OF ACRONYMS 111 1. OPENING OF THE SESSION 1 2. PROJECT MANAGER'S STATUS REPORT 1 3. STATUS REPORTS OF THE GPCP CENTRES 2 3.1 Geostationary Satellite Data Processing Centres 2 3.1.1 GSDPC for METEOSAT ........................ 2 3.1.2 GSDPC for GMS ............................. 2 3.1.3 GSDPC for GOES ............................ 3 3.1.4 GSDPC for INSAT ........................... 4 3.2 Geostationary Satellite Precipitation Data Centre .. 4 3.3 Polar Satellite Data Processing Centre 6 3.4 Polar Satellite Precipitation Data Centre 7 3.5 Global Precipitation Climatology Centre 7 4. CALIBRATION/VALIDATION PLAN 7 4.1 Establishment of a Surface Reference Data Centre ... 7 4.2 Establishment of a Basic Calibration and Validation Facility 8 4.3 Selection of Primary and Secondary Validation Sites 9 4.4 Contribution to the Calibration/Validation Programme 12 4.5 Preparation of Calibration and Validation Plan 14 5. DEVELOPMENT AND TESTING OF ALGORITHMS/ANALYSIS TECHNIQUES ............................................. 14 5 . 1 Geostationary Satellite IR Technique 14 5.1.1 Arkin technique ..... ................... 14 5.1.2 Convective-Stratiform Technique .......... 14 5.1. 3 Work done at the JMA Meteorological Satellite Center ......................... 15 5.1.4 Development of improved techniques 15 5.2 Polar-Orbiting Satellite Microwave Technique 17 ii 6 . IMPLEMENTATION/DATA MANAGEMENT PLAN 17 7. PROJECT MANAGEMENT 20 7.1 Organization 20 7 . 2 Moni toring and Reporting 20 8. OUTSTANDING ISSUES 21 8.1 Action Items from the First Session 21 8.2 Action Items from the Second Session 21 9. FUTURE MEETINGS 22 REFERENCES 23 APPENDICES: A. List of Participants B. Agenda C. Plan for Calibration and Validation of Satellite Precipitation Estimates for the GPCP 111 LIST OF ACRONYMS AFGWC Air Force Global Weather Central (USA) AMEX Australian Monsoon Experiment BCVF Basic Calibration and Validation Facility CAC Climate Analysis Center (USA/NOAA) ccco Committee on Climatic Changes and the Ocean CST Convective-Stratiform Technique EDR Environmental Data Record EPI ESOC Precipitation Index ESA European Space Agency ESMR Electrically Scanning Microwave Radiometer ESOC European Space Operations Centre EUMETSAT European Organisation for the Exploitation of Meteorological Satellites FACE Florida Area Cumulus Experiment FNOC Fleet Numerical Oceanographic Center GMS Geostationary Meteorological Satellite GOES Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite GPCC Global Precipitation Climatology Centre GPCP Global Precipitation Climatology Project GP! GOES Precipitation Index GSDPC Geostationary Satellite Data Processing Centre GSPDC Geostationary Satellite Precipitation Data Centre GSFC Goddard Space Flight Center !MD India Meteorological Department INSAT Indian National Satellite IR Infrared (channel) JMA Japan Meteorological Agency JPS Joint Planning Staff for WCRP JSC Joint Scientific Committee for WCRP KSC Kennedy Space Center METEOSAT ESA Geostationary Meteorological Satellite MSC Meteorological Satellite Center (Japan/JMA) NASA National Aeronautics and Space Administration (USA) NCDC National Climatic Data Center (USA/NOAA) NESDIS National Environmental Satellite, Data, and Information Service (USA/NOAA) NOAA National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (USA) OLR Outgoing Long-wave Radiation PSDPC Polar Satellite Data Processing Centre PSPDC Polar Satellite Precipitation Data Centre SDR Sensor Data Record SDSD Satellite Data Services Division SPN Shared Processing Network SRDC Surface Reference Data Centre SSMI Special Sensor Microwave Imager TDR Temperature Data Record TOGA Tropical Ocean and Global Atmosphere TRMM Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission WCRP World Climate Research Programme WDC World Data Centre WGDM Working Group on Data Management WMO World Meteorological Organization 1. OPENING OF THE SESSION The second session of the Working Group on Data Management (WGDM) for the__NCRP___GJ.Q_ba_l__E.l::ac.i~iLation Climai:.Qlo_gy~~r-_oject GPCP was op~e=n=e~d~a~t~~~~~ 9.00 a . m. on 9 September 1987 at the Friedrick Center of the University of Wisconsin, in Madison, Wisconsin, USA. P. Arkin, GPCP Project Manager, was elected to chair the meeting. The names and addresses of the participants are given in Appendix A. The agenda, as approved, is given in Appendix B. 2. PROJECT MANAGER ' S STATUS REPORT P. Arkin reported on the status of the project as of 31 August 1987. Formal commitments to par ticipate in the project had been received from Japan (GSDPC for GMS) and the USA CGSDPC for GOES, GSPDC). A commi t ment from EUMETSAT, to operate the GSDPC for METEOSAT, had been expected in the very near future (commitment subsequently made on 23 September 1987). Although the India Meteorological Department (IMD) had been producing IR histograms experimentally since June 1986 and the IMD representative at the first session had indicated that these data could be made available to the project, no reply to a request for IMD participation had been received by the WMO Secretariat. Thus, the geostationary satellite component has begun its operations with data available from four of the five satellites. For the polar-orbiting satellite microwave component, the first USA satellite to carry the Special Sensor Microwave Imager CSSMI) instrument was launched in June 1987 and data collection had been initiated. However, during the first 90 days after launch, distribution of data to the general user community had not been permitted, to allow a calibration/validation team to verify the integrity of the data . There was considerable optimism that the authorization to release the SSMI data to the public would be granted by late October 1987. For the GPCP, the representative of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's (NOAA) National Environmental Satellite, Data, and Information Service (NESDIS) noted that his organization required external funding support to operate the PSDPC, so a commitment could not be made until the resources could be assured. In the meantime, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's (NASA) Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) had developed an algorithm to process microwave imager data, using Nimbus-6 Electrically Scanning Microwave Radiometer (ESMR) data, and was prepared to make a commitment to operate the PSPDC once SSMI data availability could be assured. The Federal Republic of Germany, which was seriously considering the establishment of the GPCC, had run into some complications in obtaining the necessary resources. However, there was still considerable optimism that a commitment would be forthcoming before the end of 1987 (commitment made in October 1987). With the launch of the GOES - 7 satellite in February 1987, to replace GOES-6 which had failed in July 1984, the network of five geostationary satellites around the globe was again complete (although INSAT data had not been available to the project). - 2 - Because of delays in obtaining the necessary commitments, GPCP operations had gotten off to a slow start. Test tapes for GMS, GOES and METEOS-AT data had been rece-ived by the- GSPDC so tha-t the--star-t of ope:r:;a-t--ions was awaiting the regular receipt of histogram data. The International Workshop on the Validation of Satellite Precipitation Measurements for the GPCP, which was held in Washington, D.C. from 17 to 21 1986, proposed a number of recommendations for organizing a calibration /validation project in support of the GPCP. A discussion of the results of the workshop is presented in section 4 of this report, along with actions which have already been taken to establish a Basic Calibration/Validation Facility (BCVF) in Florida. 3. STATUS REPORTS OF THE GPCP CENTRES 3.1 Geostationary Satellite Data Processing Centres CGSDPC) 3.1.1 GSDPC for METEOSAT G. Szejwach reported on the status of the GSDPC for METEOSAT. The European Organisation for the Exploitation of Meteorological Satellites CEUMETSAT) is now responsible for METEOSAT operations. The European Space Agency CESA), through the European Space Operations Centre (ESOC), continues to operate the system on behalf of EUMETSAT . ESA began production of an experimental ESOC Precipitation Index CEPI) i n Novembe r 1985 . Two slightly different products were being calculated and archi ved for each METEOSAT segment of 32 x 32 pixels (approximately 1 . 5° l atitude x 1 . 5° longitude), as described in the r eport of the first s ession of t he WGDM CWMO, 1987) . A test tape had been sent in March 1987 to the USA Climate Analysis Center (CAC), in care of the Project Manager , and a proposal wa s made to use the same format for the GSDPC data tapes . If this was agreeable to the Geostationary Satellite Precipitation Data Centre (GSPDC) , EUMETSAT would then be in a position to make a formal commitment to continue t he rout ine production of EPI information and to provide quarterly data tapes t o the GSPDC. J . Janowiak of the GSPDC noted that the test tape had been read and there had been no difficulty with the proposed format. The working group recommended that EUMETSAT note this fact in its reply to the WMO Secretariat indicating its willingness to participate in the GPCP. 3.1.2 GSDPC for GMS T.