Atmospheric Temperature Profiles by Ground-Based Infrared Spectrometer Measurements

A method to recover atmospheric temperature profiles using a ground-based Fourier Transform Infrared spectrometer was investigated. The method used a difference form of the radiative transfer equation, a Bomem MR series Fourier Transform Infrared Spectrometer to collect atmospheric radiance values, and the Phillips Laboratory Expertassisted User Software (PLEXUS) atmospheric radiance model, to recover an atmospheric temperature profile. The method researched uses radiance values from both the spectrometer measurements and the atmospheric model, along with kernel functions calculated by the atmospheric model as input to a difference form of the radiation transfer equation. From this the change in brightness temperatures was determined. The method assumes that the actual brightness temperature profile is a summation of a standard or reference brightness temperature profile plus some change in the brightness temperature. The brightness temperature profile used by the atmospheric model is the reference brightness temperature profile. Planck`s Law was employed to transform the calculated brightness temperature function into a Temperature function. A temperature profile was retrieved, although significant differences existed between the recovered temperature profile and a radiosonde recovered temperature profile.