MERRA: MODERN ERA-RETROSPECTIVE ANALYSIS FOR RESEARCH AND APPLICATIONS
MERRA INPUT DATA
Figure: MERRA Sources of Radiance Data [Click on figure for larger version][ NOTE: While originally proposed, ROSB and G5-AMIP were not performed with the MERRA system. ]
Input Data by Category
1. Conventional Observations
| Data Type | Time Period | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Radiosonde | 1977 - present | NCEP (Woollen) |
| Dropsonde | 1977 - present | NCEP (Woollen) |
| Aircraft | 1977 - present | NCEP (Woollen) |
| Pilot Balloon | 1977 - present | NCEP (Woollen) |
| Surface Obs | 1977 - present | NCEP (Woollen) |
| Ship, Buoy | 1977 - present | NCEP (Woollen) |
| Wind Profiler | 1992/5/14 - present | UCAR CDAS |
| PAOB | 1978 - present | NCEP CDAS |
2.a TOVS Satellite Observations
used in full MERRA analysis and Reduced Observing System Baseline
| Data Type | Time Period | Source timeline of TOVS satellite missions |
|---|---|---|
| TOVS/tn (TIROS N) | 1978/10/30 - 1980/06/01 | NCAR/NESDIS |
| TOVS/na (NOAA 6) | 1979/07/02 - 1983/04/17 | NCAR |
| TOVS/nc (NOAA 7) | 1981/07/11 - 1986/06/01 | NCAR |
| TOVS/ne (NOAA 8) | 1983/04/26 - 1985/01/01 | NCAR |
| TOVS/nf (NOAA 9) | 1985/01/01 - 1988/11/01 | NCAR |
| TOVS/ng (NOAA 10) | 1986/11/25 - 1991/09/17 | NCAR |
| TOVS/nh (NOAA 11) | 1988/09/02 - 1994/12/31 | NCAR |
| TOVS/nd (NOAA 12) | 1991/08/18 - 1997/07/14 | NCAR |
| TOVS/nj (NOAA 14) | 1995/01/19 - present | NCAR/NESDIS |
| TOVS/nk (NOAA 15) | 1998/07/01 - present | NCAR/NESDIS |
| TOVS/nl (NOAA 16) | 2001/03/02 - present | NCAR/NESDIS |
| TOVS/nm (NOAA 17) | 2003/03/01 - present | NESDIS |
2.b Other Satellite Observations
used in full MERRA analysis only
| Data Type | Time Period | Source |
|---|---|---|
| SSM/I Radiance | 1987 - present | RSS (Wentz V6) |
| SSM/I rain rate | 1987 - present | GPROF |
| SSM/I winds | 1987 - present | RSS (Wentz V6) |
| TRMM rain rate | 1998 - present | NASA GSFC DAAC |
| AIRS | Oct. 2002 - present | NOAA |
| SBUV | 1978 - present | NASA GSFC code916 |
| Cloud Motion Winds | 1977 - present | NCEP (Woollen) |
| GOES Sounder | Apr 1994 - present | NCEP |
| QuikScat | July 1999 - present | JPL |
| ERS-1 and -2 | 1991/8/5 - 1996/5/21, 1996/3/19 - 2001/1/17 |
ESA |
| MODIS Winds | TERRA July 2002 - present, AQUA Sept 2003 - present |
NCEP |
3. Boundary Conditions
| Data Type | Time Period | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Sea/Ice | 1977 - present | Reynolds |
| SST | 1977 - present | Reynolds |
