JAXA Earth Observation Research Center (EORC) opened a new website to display and distribute “EarthCARE Research A-Train Product” derived from A-train (CloudSat/CALIOP/MODIS) data by using algorithms developing for the JAXA EarthCARE mission. In this system, the data from 2006 to 2014 are now available via ftp.
In numerical climate models used for predicting climate change, there are still many uncertainties in the treatment of cloud process, as pointed out in the fifth assessment report (AR5) of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). By comparing and verifying the outputs of the numerical climate models with this product, we expect to clarify issues in the numerical models and to contribute to the improvements of the climate change predictions.
EarthCARE Research A-Train Product
http://www.eorc.jaxa.jp/EARTHCARE/research_product/ecare_monitor_e.html
EarthCARE is a joint European-Japanese earth observation mission. Using its four payloads (Cloud Profiling Radar, Backscatter Lidar, Multi-Spectral Imager and Broadband Radiometer), clouds and aerosols (small atmospheric particles such as PM2.5 and desert dust) will be observed on a global scale to improve the accuracy of climate change predictions. The launch is scheduled on JFY2019. The “EarthCARE Research A-Train Product” is released to maximize the outcomes of our algorithm development activities using A-train data and prepare for the distribution of the JAXA EarthCARE products before the launch.
