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Remote Sensing of Carbon Dioxide and Methane in Earth’s Atmosphere II

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A special issue of Remote Sensing (ISSN 2072-4292). This special issue belongs to the section "Satellite Missions for Earth and Planetary Exploration".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (1 December 2023) | Viewed by 5370

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Special Issue Editors

Dr. Lihang Zhou

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Guest Editor

Joint Polar Satellite System (JPSS), National Environmental Satellite, Data and Information Service (NESDIS), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 7700 Hubble Dr, Lanham, MD 20706, USA
Interests: environmental satellite remote sensing; satellite sensors and algorithms; products calibration and validation, and their applications to weather and climate monitoring and forecasting

Dr. Nicholas R. Nalli

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Guest Editor

I.M. Systems Group at Center for Satellite Applications and Research (STAR), National Environmental Satellite, Data and Information Service (NESDIS), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 5830 University Research Court, College Park, MD 20740, USA
Interests: environmental satellite remote sensing; radiative transfer; satellite data validation and calibration; oceanic and atmospheric applications; global climate change; air–sea interactions; marine meteorology
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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The satellite remote sensing of global atmospheric carbon greenhouse gases (GHGs) has received increased interest and attention in recent years in an effort to obtain global observations aimed at facilitating our understanding of global climate change and air quality (AQ) forecasts. Climate change detection requires the ability to resolve small global signals over decadal timescales (ΔT ≈ 0.1 K per decade), and AQ assessments require measurements at relatively fine spatial scales (<1 km). In particular, increasing levels of carbon dioxide (CO₂) and methane (CH₄), the two most important long-lived GHGs, are primary contributors to anthropogenic climate change. However, the processes involved in the increase of emissions (e.g., regional sources and/or sinks) are not completely understood, in part due to the sparseness of data. Satellite missions dedicated to global GHG observation have thus been designed and implemented, with satellite missions originally designed for numerical weather forecasting applications (e.g., Joint Polar Satellite System, JPSS, payloads) also being adapted to complement existing observing systems. This has led to a growing complement of derived carbon GHG products and state parameters (environmental data records, climate data records, etc.) being retrieved from spectral radiances for the global observation of atmospheric composition at varying spatiotemporal scales.

We are pleased to announce this follow-up Part II Special Issue, which will continue the focus of Part I on the satellite remote sensing of long-lived carbon GHGs, specifically CH₄ and CO₂, from advanced passive sensors (thermal IR and near-IR) essential for Earth (atmospheric/oceanic) observation onboard operational, experimental and next-generation environmental satellites, including but not limited to dedicated missions such as GOSAT, OCO-2, TROPOMI, Sentinel-2, GHGSAT, MethaneSAT, as well as more traditional operational satellite missions such as JPSS-2, NOAA-20, SNPP, Aqua, Metop-B,-C, GOES-16,-17,-18, MSG/MTG, Himawari-8, and FY satellites, and planned future missions such as GOSAT-GW, CarbonMapper, MERLIN, OCO-3, etc. We invite papers on the remote sensing of these gases, including retrieval algorithms, validation, and applications.

Dr. Lihang Zhou
Dr. Nicholas Nalli
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Remote Sensing is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

satellite data calibration
validation
cal/val
measurement
applications

Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

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26 pages, 2173 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Uvsq-Sat NG, a New CubeSat Pathfinder for Monitoring Earth Outgoing Energy and Greenhouse Gases

by Mustapha Meftah, Cannelle Clavier, Alain Sarkissian, Alain Hauchecorne, Slimane Bekki, Franck Lefèvre, Patrick Galopeau, Pierre-Richard Dahoo, Andrea Pazmino, André-Jean Vieau, Christophe Dufour, Pierre Maso, Nicolas Caignard, Frédéric Ferreira, Pierre Gilbert, Odile Hembise Fanton d’Andon, Sandrine Mathieu, Antoine Mangin, Catherine Billard and Philippe Keckhut

Remote Sens. 2023, 15(19), 4876; https://doi.org/10.3390/rs15194876 - 8 Oct 2023

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1807

Abstract

Climate change is undeniably one of the most pressing and critical challenges facing humanity in the 21st century. In this context, monitoring the Earth’s Energy Imbalance (EEI) is fundamental in conjunction with greenhouse gases (GHGs) in order to comprehensively understand and address climate change. The French Uvsq-Sat NG pathfinder mission addresses this issue through the implementation of a Six-Unit CubeSat, which has dimensions of 111.3 × 36.6 × 38.8 cm in its unstowed configuration. Uvsq-Sat NG is a satellite mission spearheaded by the Laboratoire Atmosphères, Observations Spatiales (LATMOS), and supported by the International Satellite Program in Research and Education (INSPIRE). The launch of this mission is planned for 2025. One of the Uvsq-Sat NG objectives is to ensure the smooth continuity of the Earth Radiation Budget (ERB) initiated via the Uvsq-Sat and Inspire-Sat satellites. Uvsq-Sat NG seeks to achieve broadband ERB measurements using state-of-the-art yet straightforward technologies. Another goal of the Uvsq-Sat NG mission is to conduct precise and comprehensive monitoring of atmospheric gas concentrations (CO

_{2}

and CH

_{4}

) on a global scale and to investigate its correlation with Earth’s Outgoing Longwave Radiation (OLR). Uvsq-Sat NG carries several payloads, including Earth Radiative Sensors (ERSs) for monitoring incoming solar radiation and outgoing terrestrial radiation. A Near-Infrared (NIR) Spectrometer is onboard to assess GHGs’ atmospheric concentrations through observations in the wavelength range of 1200 to 2000 nm. Uvsq-Sat NG also includes a high-definition camera (NanoCam) designed to capture images of the Earth in the visible range. The NanoCam will facilitate data post-processing acquired via the spectrometer by ensuring accurate geolocation of the observed scenes. It will also offer the capability of observing the Earth’s limb, thus providing the opportunity to roughly estimate the vertical temperature profile of the atmosphere. We present here the scientific objectives of the Uvsq-Sat NG mission, along with a comprehensive overview of the CubeSat platform’s concepts and payload properties as well as the mission’s current status. Furthermore, we also describe a method for the retrieval of atmospheric gas columns (CO

_{2}

, CH

_{4}

, O

_{2}

, H

_{2}

O) from the Uvsq-Sat NG NIR Spectrometer data. The retrieval is based on spectra simulated for a range of environmental conditions (surface pressure, surface reflectance, vertical temperature profile, mixing ratios of primary gases, water vapor, other trace gases, cloud and aerosol optical depth distributions) as well as spectrometer characteristics (Signal-to-Noise Ratio (SNR) and spectral resolution from 1 to 6 nm). Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Remote Sensing of Carbon Dioxide and Methane in Earth’s Atmosphere II)

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19 pages, 6190 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Simulation and Error Analysis of Methane Detection Globally Using Spaceborne IPDA Lidar

by Xuanye Zhang, Miaomiao Zhang, Lingbing Bu, Zengchang Fan and Ahmad Mubarak

Remote Sens. 2023, 15(13), 3239; https://doi.org/10.3390/rs15133239 - 23 Jun 2023

Viewed by 1109

Abstract

Methane (CH₄) is recognized as the second most important greenhouse gas. An accurate and precise monitoring of methane gas globally has a vital role in studying the carbon cycle and global warming. The spaceborne integrated path differential absorption (IPDA) lidar is one of the most effective payload for methane detection. The simulation and optimization of the lidar system parameters can create an important base for the development of spaceborne payloads. However, previous IPDA lidar simulations have mostly used standard atmospheric models at simulation conditions, and to the best of our knowledge, there is no literature yet which applies a wavelength optimization to the IPDA system. In this study, we have investigated the relationship between the IPDA lidar system, based on wavelength optimization, and error measurement for CH₄ column-averaged concentration. By selecting the wavelengths with the lowest comprehensive error as on-line and off-line, the error has been minimized by 10 ppb approximately relative to before optimization. We have proposed an IPDA simulation model at real atmospheric conditions, combining with ERA-5 reanalysis data, to simulate methane concentration globally, and present the distribution of errors. Finally, after the optimization of the lidar system parameters, we have ensured that the maximum inversion error for CH₄ measurement is less than 10 ppb, to provide a reference for designing spaceborne IPDA lidar systems for high-precision CH₄ column-averaged concentration detection. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Remote Sensing of Carbon Dioxide and Methane in Earth’s Atmosphere II)

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Other

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16 pages, 28293 KiB

Open AccessTechnical Note

Spatiotemporal Variability of Global Atmospheric Methane Observed from Two Decades of Satellite Hyperspectral Infrared Sounders

by Lihang Zhou, Juying Warner, Nicholas R. Nalli, Zigang Wei, Youmi Oh, Lori Bruhwiler, Xingpin Liu, Murty Divakarla, Ken Pryor, Satya Kalluri and Mitchell D. Goldberg

Remote Sens. 2023, 15(12), 2992; https://doi.org/10.3390/rs15122992 - 8 Jun 2023

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1790

Abstract

Methane (CH₄) is the second most significant contributor to climate change after carbon dioxide (CO₂), accounting for approximately 20% of the contributions from all well-mixed greenhouse gases. Understanding the spatiotemporal distributions and the relevant long-term trends is crucial to identifying the sources, sinks, and impacts on climate. Hyperspectral thermal infrared (TIR) sounders, including the Atmospheric Infrared Sounder (AIRS), the Cross-track Infrared Sounder (CrIS), and the Infrared Atmospheric Sounding Interferometer (IASI), have been used to measure global CH₄ concentrations since 2002. This study analyzed nearly 20 years of data from AIRS and CrIS and confirmed a significant increase in CH₄ concentrations in the mid-upper troposphere (around 400 hPa) from 2003 to 2020, with a total increase of approximately 85 ppb, representing a +4.8% increase in 18 years. The rate of increase was derived using global satellite TIR measurements, which are consistent with in situ measurements, indicating a steady increase starting in 2007 and becoming stronger in 2014. The study also compared CH₄ concentrations derived from the AIRS and CrIS against ground-based measurements from NOAA Global Monitoring Laboratory (GML) and found phase shifts in the seasonal cycles in the middle to high latitudes of the northern hemisphere, which is attributed to the influence of stratospheric CH₄ that varies at different latitudes. These findings provide insights into the global budget of atmospheric composition and the understanding of satellite measurement sensitivity to CH₄. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Remote Sensing of Carbon Dioxide and Methane in Earth’s Atmosphere II)

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