Description
Book SynopsisThis book provides a thorough introductory description of the physical principles underlying the satellite remote sensing of clouds and precipitation. A diverse collection of satellite sensors is covered, including imagers, radars, and sounders over a broad spectral range from visible to microwave radiation.
The progress in satellite instrument technology during the past two decades as represented by the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM), CloudSat, and Global Measurement Mission (GPM) satellites has drastically improved our capability of measuring clouds and precipitation across the globe. At the same time, such rapid progress makes it increasingly challenging for scientists without specialized skills in remote sensing to fully grasp how satellite measurements are being made. This book is designed to mitigate that challenge. The targeted readers are graduate students and professional scientists seeking an extended summary of the theoretical background behind observations from space, ranging from fundamental physics (the statistical mechanics and radiative processes, for instance) to more practical levels of theory such as retrieval algorithm design.
Table of ContentsPart I General Background
1 Introduction
2 Satellite Missions and Instruments
3 Satellite Orbit and Scan
Part II Basic Physics
4 Principles of Statistical Mechanics
5 Principles of Electrodynamics and Geometrical Optics
6 General Theory of Radiative Processes
Part III Measurement Principles
7 Infrared Sensing
8 Visible/Near-infrared Imaging
9 Microwave Radiometry
10 Active Remote Sensing
11 Mathematical Basis of Retrieval Algorithms
Part IV Applications
12 Global datasets of clouds and precipitation
13 Satellite Data Simulators
