Satellite Climate Studies Branch Highlights – April – September 2012

1. Satellite Climate Studies BranchHighlights – April – September 2012 Chris Ralph Huan Scott Tom Brown FerraroMengRudloskySmith

2. SCSB/CICS Personnel and Visitors • Staffing: • Frank D’Erasmo – WRP Summer Intern • New CICS researchers & staff • VivianaMaggioni, Martina Ricko (Bob Adler’s growing precipitation team) • Jim Beauchamp (long time at ESSIC, now part time support on CICS tasks) • Noteworthy visitors: • NESDIS – S. Goodman; T. Howard • OAR – R. Hood; S. MacLean • CIDirectors – C. Kummerow; T. Strub • NASA – A. Hou; G. Skofronick-Jackson; G. Huffman • International - P. Bauer (ECMWF); F. Karbou (Meteo-France); D. Vila (CPTECH/Brazil) • Outreach - R. Foot (“Foots Forecast”); Mike Mogil • NOAA retired – N. Grody; D. Tarpley; H. Jacobowitz • NRC – R. Gamble, J. Thornhill • Academia – S. Shen (San Diego State Univ.)

3. Some things we have been working on… • JPSS and GOES-R Projects • ABI & GLM • NPP/CrIMSS • GCOM/AMSR2 • Climate Projects • Precipitation reconstructions and uncertainty estimates • AMSU/MHS climate data records • SSM/I – SSMI/S time series • Ocean phenology • PSDI Projects • Megha-Tropiques • Ocean ecological products • MHS Snowfall rates • STAR Precipitation Cal/Val Center • NASA Programs • Ocean colorand salinity • TRMM; GPM and AMSR-E • Washington D.C. Lightning Mapping Array • SBIR Phase I and Phase II

4. Some meetings we have gone to • NASA Review Panel (Greenbelt, MD) • GPM MW Radiometer Algorithm Team (College Park, MD) • Howard University NCASWeather Camp (Falls Church, VA) • Satellite Science Week (Kansas City, MO) • NCDC CDR PI’s Meeting (Asheville, NC) • ILDC/ILMC (Broomfield, CO) • Coming up soon…. • CICS Science Meeting (College Park, MD – Sept 2012) • GLM Science Team Meeting (Huntsville, AL – Sept 2012) • AMSR-E Science Team Meeting (Portland, OR – Sept 2012) • Phenology 2012 (Milwaukee, WI – Sept 2012) • Seminars presented at: • University of Maryland/ESSIC • Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory

5. CICS Updates • Extremely busy grant year • KUDOS’s to Ingrid/Team for their efforts and accuracy! • Director Changes • Hugo Berbery takes over as CICS-MD Director Phil Arkin remains as CICS director • CICS Science Meeting (Sept. 6 & 7) • CICS Review (Week of Nov. 5) • Increased collaborations with STAR and NCEP move to College Park!

6. SCSB FY12 Metrics

7. Specific Topics to Discuss Brown: Climatology of Phytoplankton Phenology Smith: Reconstructions for SST, Precipitation and Phytoplankton Meng: AMSU Snowfall Rates - Validation Rudlosky: DCLMA Outreach Efforts Ferraro: SBIR Phase II Progress

8. T. Smith, SCSB/CoRP/STAR/NOAASeptember, 2012 • Continued development and improvement of reconstructed SST & precipitation • SST updates with NCDC • Precipitation error analysis with CICS • Phytoplankton reconstruction using CCA • With graduate student at UMD Reconstructed oceanic precipitation anomalies (Recon) with 95% confidence intervals from lack of data alone (red dashed) and from lack of data and model errors (black short dashed). The GPCP is also plotted for comparison. Because of the CCA reconstruction the ocean area is well filled but the filling data have a large model error.

9. Climatology of Phytoplankton Phenology Phytoplankton Bloom Duration • Documenting phenology of phytoplankton biomass is useful to assess the response of marine ecosystems to environmental change • Fit Generalized Linear Models (GLM) to time-series of SeaWiFS chlorophyll concentrations and extracted phenological markers • Results represent global climatology of phytoplankton bloom onset, maturity, and termination, and bloom duration • Establishes a baseline from which to assess future changes and relate these changes to oceanic variables and climate indices • Sapiano, M. R. P., C. W. Brown, S. E. Schollaert and M. Vargas. 2012. Establishing a global climatology of marine phytoplankton phenological characteristics. Journal of Geophysical Research 117(C8), C08026. doi: 10.1029/2012jc007958 Spatial distribution of mean phytoplankton bloom duration in the oceans for the period September 1997 to July 2007.

10. Validation of AMSU Snowfall Rate • Validation with five large snowstorms • Validation sources • StageIV: Radar/gauge combined hourly precipitation • Station (QCLCD) hourly snow accumulation • NEXRAD reflectivity • Overall statistics • A large snowstorm system in the Midwest on Dec 8-9, 2009 (right) • Heavy snowfall (1’+) in NE, IA, MN, WI

11. Bladensburg Microburst DCLMA Outreach Efforts Washington D.C. Derecho Continuing collaborations with the Sterling WFO COMET Project Real-time LMA observations Discussion of significant events Launched “Its Severe” Blog Began collaborations with the Washington Post’s Capital Weather Gang Above: DCLMA Observations

12. SBIR Phase II Project Status“New NOAA-derived data products for the TV broadcast Market” This SBIR Phase II project will provide enhanced operational NOAA satellite and other products to the TV broadcast market to aid TV forecasters in their weather analysis and forecasts. WorldWinds, Inc. (Slidell, LA) + Baron Services, Inc. (Huntsville, AL) Subcontractor Baron Services provides the commercially available weather display packages. 10 new products will be made available. Those under consideration include: Blended Total Precipitable Water (bTPW) with Upper Air Wind Overlay North American Snow and Ice Coverage 850mb-200mb Wind Shear Drought Indices, Seasonal Forecasts, and Percent of Normal Precipitation Saharan Air Layer / Dust Forecast Forecast Rainfall Accumulation Ocean Heat Content Beta Tester – Mike Clay, TV9, Tampa, FL