Session 4: Atmospheric retrieval over land and sea ice: impact of
surface information on cloud and rain retrieval
Session Chair: Sid Boukabara
24. On the Sensitivity of TRMM Microwave Imager Channels to
Over-Land Rainfall
Author：
Y. You and G. Liu
Affiliation： Florida State University
Current passive microwave rain retrievals over land are known to contain large
uncertainties. A major setback for over land rain retrieval is its reliance on ice
scattering information. The relation between ice aloft has variable relations with
rainfall at the surface. In some cases, problems arise since rainfall is not directly
proportional to ice. By analyzing TRMM data and performing radiative transfer
modeling, here we argue that a combination of TMI channels does contain liquid
information. Additionally, it is found that land surface type and 2-meter air
temperature have significant skills in characterizing rain cloud types. An effective
use of such information can lead to significant improvement for land rain retrieval.