Aerosol and Cloud Validation System Based on SKYNET Observations : Estimation of Shortwave Radiation Budget Using ADEOS-II/GLI Data

Abstract

Using ADEOS-II/GLI aerosol and cloud products, downward and upward solar radiation at the surface and at the top of the atmosphere are estimated to study the Earth radiation budget. There is a good agreement in the main features of the global distribution of radiative fluxes as derived from GLI and from Terra/MODIS, yet, some differences can be noticed and need to be explained. In order to evaluate satellite-retrieved parameters that play a role in the Earth radiation budget, an observational network known as SKYNET has been established in Eastern Asia and it has already been operational during the ADEOS-II/GLI launch. Specifically, observations from the newly developed i-sky radiometer have been used for aerosol and cloud product evaluation. The aerosol products have been found to be in good agreement with observations while the cloud products need further evaluation.