|
NOAA KLM User's GuideSection 9.6.3 |
Introduction Page, NOAA KLM TOC,
Acronyms,The first AMSU-A and -B instruments were launched on NOAA-15 on May 13, 1998. These instruments provided a new opportunity to produce microwave surface and precipitation products from NOAA polar orbiter satellites similar to the microwave surface and precipitation products [known as Environmental Data Records (EDRs)] produced by Fleet Numerical Meteorology and Oceanography Center (FNMOC) from the Defense Meteorological Satellite Program's (DMSP) Special Sensor Microwave/Imager (SSM/I) instrument. The Special Sensor Microwave/ Temperature (SSM/T) and Special Sensor Microwave/moisture (SSM/T-2) sounders (both cross-track instruments), along with the SSM/I (conical scanner), provided valuable data to expedite both sounding and MSPPS algorithm development. The commonality of the AMSU-A and -B instrument suite with the current DMSP SSM/T/I/T-2 suite of instruments, as well as the future DMSP Special Sensor Microwave/Imager-Sounder (SSM-IS) (conical scanner) is illustrated in Table 9.6.3.1-1. AMSU-A is a 15-channel cross-track scanning passive microwave radiometer. An AMSU-A scan takes eight seconds and is comprised of 30 Earth views. AMSU-B is a five channel cross-track scanning passive microwave radiometer. An AMSU-B scan takes 8/3 seconds and is comprised of 90 Earth views.
| AMSU-A/B | SSM/I/T/T2 | SSM-IS | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Frequency (MHz) | Footprint (km) | Frequency (MHz/Polarization - see Note 1) | Footprint (km) | Frequency (MHz/Polarization - see Note 1) | Footprint (km) | 19350 / H & V | 43 x 69 | 19350 / H & V | 73 x 47 |
| 23800 | 45 x 45 - 86 x 172 | 22235 / V | 40 x 60 | 22235 / V | 73 x 47 |
| 31400 | 45 x 45 - 86 x 172 | 37000 / H & V | 28 x 37 | 37000 / H & V | 41 x 31 |
| 50300 | 45 x 45 - 86 x 172 | 50500 / H | 175 x 175 - 305 x 313 | 50300 / H | 38 x 38 |
| 52800 | 45 x 45 - 86 x 172 | 53200 / H | 175 x 175 - 305 x 313 | 52800 / H | 38 x 38 |
| 53596 ± 115 | 45 x 45 - 86 x 172 | 53596 / H | 38 x 38 | ||
| 54400 | 45 x 45 - 86 x 172 | 54350 / H | 175 x 175 - 305 x 313 | 54400 / H | 38 x 38 |
| 54940 | 45 x 45 - 86 x 172 | 54900 / H | 175 x 175 - 305 x 313 | ||
| 55500 | 45 x 45 - 86 x 172 | 55500 / H | 38 x 38 | ||
| 57900.344 (flo) | 45 x 45 - 86 x 172 | 57290 / (see Note 2) | 38 x 38 | ||
| flo ± 217 | 45 x 45 - 86 x 172 | ||||
| flo ± 322.2 ± 48 | 45 x 45 - 86 x 172 | 59400 / (see Note 2) | 38 x 38 | ||
| flo ± 322.2 ± 22 | 45 x 45 - 86 x 172 | 58400 / V | 175 x 175 - 305 x 313 | ||
| flo ± 322.2 ± 10 | 45 x 45 - 86 x 172 | 58825 / V | 175 x 175 - 305 x 313 | ||
| flo ± 322.2 ±4.5 | 45 x 45 - 86 x 172 | 59400 / V | 175 x 175 - 305 x 313 | ||
| 89000 | 45 x 45 - 86 x 172 | 85500 / H & V | 13 x 15 | 91655 / V | 14 x 13 (imager) |
| 89000 | 15 x 15 - 26 x 52 | 91655 / V | 84 x 84 | 91655 / H | 14 x 13 (imager) |
| 15700 | 15 x 15 - 26 x 52 | 150000 / V | 54 x 54 | 150000 / H | 14 x 13 (imager) |
| 183310 ± 1000 | 15 x 15 - 26 x 52 | 183310 ± 1000 / V | 48 x 48 | 183310 ± 1000/H | 14 x 13 (imager) |
| 183310 ± 3000 | 15 x 15 - 26 x 52 | 183310 ± 3000 / V | 48 x 48 | 183310 ± 3000/H | 14 x 13 (imager) |
| 183310 ± 7000 | 15 x 15 - 26 x 52 | 183310 ± 7000 / V | 48 x 48 | 183310 ± 7000/H | 14 x 13 (imager) |
| (see Note 3) | 75 x 75 | ||||
| Notes: | |||||
The lineage of MSPPS at NOAA/NESDIS includes the generation of orbital and gridded (Mastermap) products from SSM/I "raw" data transmitted via the Shared Processing Network (SPN) from Air Force Global Weather Central (AFGWC). Both of these systems were intended to produce experimental products until FNMOC was ready to begin transmission of the official SSM/I operational products over SPN. In 1992, FNMOC began transmitting Temperature Data Records (TDR), Sensor Data Records (SDR), and Environmental Data Records (EDRs) to NESDIS via SPN. NESDIS processed the SDRs and EDRs into 30-orbit files and mapped the EDRs and SDRs into Mastermap files (eighth-mesh polar stereographic maps). Under the auspices of the NOAA Climate and Global Change Program, a prototype Microwave Climate System (MCS) was developed. MCS entailed the production of orbital Brightness Temperatures (BTs) from the seven SSM/I channels as well as total precipitable water and rain rate products from the EDRs and from the BTs using experimental algorithms. Besides the orbital files, daily, pentad (five-day), and monthly climate products were generated and archived. The design and development of MCS provided the foundation and fundamental "building blocks" for the design of MSPPS.
The design philosophy of MSPPS is to maintain commonality with MCS to the extent possible realizing that the generation of real-time and climate products have much in common, as do the generation of products from different microwave instruments such as SSM/I, AMSU-A and AMSU-B.
MSPPS produces near real-time operational surface and precipitation products from the AMSU-A and AMSU-B instruments. The products are listed in Table 9.6.3.1-2.
| Product | AMSU-A | AMSU-B |
|---|---|---|
| Antenna Temperatures (AT) | X | X |
| Total Precipitable Water (TPW) | X | |
| Cloud Liquid Water (CLW) | X | |
| Sea Ice Concentration | X | |
| Surface Emissivity at 23.8 GHz | X | |
| Surface Emissivity at 31.4 GHz | X | |
| Surface Emissivity at 50.3 GHz | X | |
| Surface (skin) Temperature | X | |
| Snow Cover (Yes or No) | X | |
| Rain Rate | X | |
| Ice Water Path | X |
Operational MSPPS includes three integrated subsystems:
AMSU-A OPG processing is initiated by converting the Level 1b* AMSU-A data (Level 1b* is a centralized database which contains the basic elements of the Level 1b and the associated supporting ancillary data) from IBM MVS to IEEE format; then antenna temperatures and geophysical products are computed and stored in HDF-EOS Swath files (with compression). The MSU-A OPG data are available on an orbital basis. An AMSU-A Snow Cover Product can be computed but is not currently being done since the AMSU-B product is available and improved with respect to the AMSU-A product. Likewise, the AMSU-A Rain Rate Product is not computed since the superior AMSU-B product is available. The AMSU-A products would be turned on for output if the AMSU-B processing stream fails. The AMSU-A Swath output is available as NPR.AAOP.
AMSU-B OPG processing first converts the AMSU-B Level 1b* data from IBM MVS to IEEE format, then computes the AMSU-B antenna temperatures (ATs), and stores the AMSU-B antenna temperatures and ancillary data in AMSU-B HDF-EOS Swath files (with compression). Then, the relevant AMSU-A ATs and geophysical products from the AMSU-A Swath file and the AMSU-B Swath file from the previous step are read; the AMSU-B geophysical products are computed and appended to AMSU-B HDF-EOS Swath files (with compression). The AMSU-B OPG data are available on an orbital basis. The AMSU-B Swath output is available as NPR.ABOP.
AMSU-B MOP processing generates mapped geophysical products on an orbit-by-orbit basis. These mapped AMSU surface and precipitation products are written into a rotating file so that portions of the file are overwritten orbitally. In this manner, the MOP satisfies the requirements that necessitate the mapped products to be updated orbitally. The output from the AMSU-A OPG and the AMSU-B OPG serve as the input to the AMSU-B product mapping. Currently, sea-ice, snow and the rain rate products are written to a 1/16th-mesh Polar Stereographic (1024x1024) projection. For a complete description of the mapping algorithm see the NOAA Polar Orbiter Data User's Guide - Appendix A (URL: http://www2.ncdc.noaa.gov/docs/podug/html/a/app-a.htm).
The rain rate was added to the MOP file on January 10, 2002. The snow and sea ice products are composited from descending orbital data only, while the rain rate is composited from both descending and ascending data. The AMSU-B MOP output files, NPR.ABMP, are in HDF-EOS Grid format (with compression).
As part of Product Validation on the Research System version of MSPPS, selected Mapped Daily Products (MDP) are created. The MSPPS has been extended to meet climate requirements, climate subsystems for Daily, Pentad, and Monthly product generation have been created. HDF-EOS was chosen as the standard output format for MSPPS for a variety of reasons. First, there are the inherent attributes of HDF-EOS forming the basis for its selection as the standard format for EOS. Some of these are: support for multiple data objects; coupling of geolocation with the data, resulting in subsetting capabilities; self defining (self documented); supports internal compression; portable; non-proprietary; and widespread use. Second, because of its widespread use and being a standard, an extremely large suite of tools for HDF-EOS and applications that support HDF-EOS are anticipated
MSPPS Level-2 and Level-3 data are stored in the HDF-EOS format, an extension of National Center for Supercomputing Applications's (NCSA) HDF (URL: http://hdf.ncsa.uiuc.edu), developed by NASA to support its Earth Observing System (EOS). Among other attributes, the multi-object HDF-EOS format that supports compression is portable, flexible, and self-defining. For an overview of HDF and HDF-EOS, refer to the excellent Primer at URL: http://edhs1.gsfc.nasa.gov/waisdata/sdp/pdf/wp1750102.pdf. HDF-EOS enhances the flexibility of HDF by permitting temporal and spatial subsetting. Traditionally, product files have been in a fixed format requiring up-to-date external documentation describing the format. To accommodate changes in format, spares are often included. If additional changes in format are required, users must rewrite their data-read modules. The self-defining nature of HDF-EOS greatly reduces the impact of any change in format on the user. The HDF_EOS tools can be downloaded from the library found at URL: http://hdfeos.gsfc.nasa.gov/hdfeos/workshop.cfm
Currently, MSPPS files "NPR.AAOP", "NPR.ABOP", and "NPR.ABMP" are archived at NCDC. Although the MSPPS Day-2 files have the same type of naming convention as the Day-1 files, the formats are slightly different. The change-over to Day-2 files for archive occurred in August 2001.
The major differences between the Day-1 and Day-2 file are parameter names. Several parameters appear in the Day-1 Data Sets that should not be used and were only included as either potential parameters or spare fields. These include a QC field and a surface elevation field. In the Day-1 AMSU-A Swath file the surface type parameter is not valid; whereas the surface type is valid for the Day-1 AMSU-B swath data. The major differences between the Day-1 and Day-2 file are delineated in Table 9.6.3.1-3.
| Day-1 | Day-2 |
|---|---|
| AMSU-A and AMSU-B Swath Files | |
| Surface_type (not a valid parameter - AMSU-A only) | Sfc_type (valid) |
| Antenna Temperatures assigned to variable - Chanx_BT (x is channel number) Note: incorrectly named variable | Antenna Temperatures - Chanx_AT (x is channel number) |
| AMSU-A Swath Files | |
| Full set of products | As listed in Table 9.6.3.1-2 |
| AMSU-B Swath Files | |
| Channel Temperatures only | As listed in Table 9.6.3.1-2 |
| Mapped Data File | |
| 1/8th mesh (512 x 512) Polar Stereographic | 1/16th mesh (1024 x 1024) Polar Stereographic |
| TPW, CLW, Sea Ice, Snow Cover and Rain Rate | Snow and Sea Ice (rain rate added January 2002) |
Access routines for the HDF-EOS AMSU-A and AMSU-B swath files and the HDF-EOS MSPPS Polar Stereographic Mapped file are available for download at URL: ftp://ftp2.ncdc.noaa.gov/pub/doc/klmguide/meta/. There are three directories called: AMSU-A, AMSU-B, and PSmap. Each of these directories contains three sub-directories: input, output, and src. Refer to the "README" file in the "src" sub-directory for instructions about retrieving data from the designated file type.
For general information about the Microwave Surface and Precipitation Products System, see the MSPPS home page at URL: http://orbit-net.nesdis.noaa.gov/arad2/MSPPS/. There are links to discussions of the product algorithms, case studies, product monitoring, presentations, MSPPS documentation, and more.
Tables 9.6.3.1-4 and 9.6.3.1-5 contain the format of AMSU-A HDF-EOS swath for NPR.AAOP files and attributes, respectively. Tables 9.6.3.1-6, 9.6.3.1-7 and 9.6.3.1-8 contain the format of AMSU-B HDF-EOS swath for NPR.ABOP files, attributes and polar stereographic grid for NPR.ABMP files.
| Parameter Name | Data Type | Missing Data | Scale | Explanation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ScanTime_year | I*2 | 0 (See Note 1) | 1 | Four digit calendar year (e.g., 1999) |
| ScanTime_month | I*1 | 0 (See Note 1) | 1 | Month of year (e.g., 1-12) |
| ScanTime_dom | I*1 | 0 (See Note 1) | 1 | Day of month (e.g., 1-31) |
| ScanTime_hour | I*1 | 0 (See Note 1) | 1 | Hour of day (e.g., 0-23) |
| ScanTime_minute | I*1 | 0 (See Note 1) | 1 | Minute of hour (e.g., 0-59) |
| ScanTime_second | I*1 | 0 (See Note 1) | 1 | Second of minute (e.g.,0-59) |
| ScanTime_doy | I*2 | 0 (See Note 1) | 1 | Day of year (e.g., 1-366) |
| Latitude | R*4 | 0 (See Note 1) | 1 | Latitude (degrees, e.g., -90 to 90) |
| Longitude | R*4 | 0 (See Note 1) | 1 | Longitude (degrees, e.g., -180 to 180) |
| Time | R*8 | 0 (See Note 1) | 1 | Number of seconds and fractions since 0000 UTC Jan. 1, 1993 (TAI93) |
| Sfc_type | I*1 | 255 | 1 | Surface Type: 0=ocean; 1=land; 2=coast. |
| Orbit_mode | I*1 | 0 (See Note 1) | 1 | Orbit direction: 1=ascending; 2=descending. |
| LZ_angle | R*4 | 0 (See Note 1) | 1 | Local zenith angle range (degrees) range 0 - 57 |
| SZ_ angle | R*4 | 0 (See Note 1) | 1 | Solar zenith angle range (degrees) range 1 - 180 |
| Chan1_AT | I*2 | -99 | 100 | Channel 1 Antenna Temperature (K) range 125.0-310.0 |
| Chan2_AT | I*2 | -99 | 100 | Channel 2 Antenna Temperature (K) range 125.0-310.0 |
| Chan3_AT | I*2 | -99 | 100 | Channel 3 Antenna Temperature (K) range 150.0-310.0 |
| Chan4_AT | I*2 | -99 | 100 | Channel 4 Antenna Temperature (K) range 170.0-295.0 |
| Chan5_AT | I*2 | -99 | 100 | Channel 5 Antenna Temperature (K) range 190.0-280.0 |
| Chan6_AT | I*2 | -99 | 100 | Channel 6 Antenna Temperature (K) range 190.0-260.0 |
| Chan7_ AT | I*2 | -99 | 100 | Channel 7 Antenna Temperature (K) range 190.0-250.0 |
| Chan8_AT | I*2 | -99 | 100 | Channel 8 Antenna Temperature (K) range 180.0-245.0 |
| Chan9_AT | I*2 | -99 | 100 | Channel 9 Antenna Temperature (K) range 175.0-250.0 |
| Chan10_AT | I*2 | -99 | 100 | Channel 10 Antenna Temperature (K) range 170.0-250.0 |
| Chan11_AT | I*2 | -99 | 100 | Channel 11 Antenna Temperature (K) range 175.0-255.0 |
| Chan12_AT | I*2 | -99 | 100 | Channel 12 Antenna Temperature (K) range 180.0- 265.0 |
| Chan13_AT | I*2 | -99 | 100 | Channel 13 Antenna Temperature (K) range 190.0- 280.0 |
| Chan14_AT | I*2 | -99 | 100 | Channel 14 Antenna Temperature (K) range 195.0-290.0 |
| Chan15_AT | I*2 | -99 | 100 | Channel 15 Antenna Temperature (K) range 130.0- 315.0 |
| TPW | I*2 | See Table 9.6.3.1-9 | 10 | Total Precipitable Water (mm x 10) range .0 - 75.0 |
| CLW | I*2 | See Table 9.6.3.1-9 | 100 | Cloud Liquid Water (mm x 100) range 0.0-6.0 |
| SIce | I*2 | See Table 9.6.3.1-9 | 1 | Sea Ice Concentration (%) range 0.0 - 100.0 |
| T_sfc | I*2 | See Table 9.6.3.1-9 | 100 | Surface Temperature (K) range 150.0 - 50.0 |
| Emis_23 | I*2 | See Table 9.6.3.1-9 | 100 | Emissivity at 23.8 GHz (unitless) range 0.3 - 1.0 |
| Emis_31 | I*2 | See Table 9.6.3.1-9 | 100 | Emissivity at 31.4 GHz (unitless) range 0.3 - 1.0 |
| Emis_50 | I*2 | See Table 9.6.3.1-9 | 100 | Emissivity at 50.3 GHz (unitless) range 0.3 - 1.0 |
|
Note:
1. The initialization value is zero. No missing scan lines should be encountered, but verification can be made by using product parameters. |
||||
| Parameter Name | Data Type | Explanation |
|---|---|---|
| AT_Limits | R*4 | Lower and upper limits of AMSU-A antenna temperatures (K) |
| TPW_Limits | R*4 | Lower and upper limits of total precipitable water (mm) |
| CLW_Limits | R*4 | Lower and upper limits of cloud liquid water (mm) |
| SIce_Limits | R*4 | Lower and upper limits of sea ice concentration (%) |
| TS_Limits | R*4 | Lower and upper limits of surface temperature (K) |
| EM23_Limits | R*4 | Lower and upper limits of emissivity at 23.8 GHz (unitless) |
| EM31_Limits | R*4 | Lower and upper limits of emissivity at 31.4 GHz (unitless) |
| EM50_Limits | R*4 | Lower and upper limits of emissivity at 50.3 GHz (unitless) |
| Rain_Limits | R*4 | Lower and upper limits of rain rate (mm/hr) |
| SNowC_Limits | R*4 | Lower and upper limits of snow cover (unitless) |
| AT_SCAL | R*4 | Scaling factor of antenna temperature |
| TPW_SCAL | R*4 | Scaling factor of total precipitable water |
| CLW_SCAL | R*4 | Scaling factor of cloud liquid water |
| SICE_SCAL | R*4 | Scaling factor of sea ice concentration |
| TS_SCAL | R*4 | Scaling factor of surface temperature |
| EM_SCAL | R*4 | Scaling factor of emissivity |
| RR_SCAL | R*4 | Scaling factor of rain rate |
| SNOWC_SCAL | R*4 | Scaling factor of snow cover |
| Epoch_year | I*2 | Epoch Year for Orbit Vector (e.g., 2003) |
| Epoch_day | I*2 | Day of Epoch Year for Orbit Vector (e.g., 365) |
| Epoch_time | I*4 | Epoch UTC Time of Day for Orbit Vector (milliseconds) |
| semimajor_axis | R*4 | Semi-major Axis (kilometers) |
| eccentricity | R*4 | Eccentricity (unitless) |
| inclination | R*4 | Inclination (degrees) |
| argument_of_perigee | R*4 | Argument of Perigee (degrees) |
| right_ascension | R*4 | Right Ascension of the Ascending Node (degrees) |
| mean_anomaly | R*4 | Mean Anomaly (degrees) |
| Parameter Name | Data Type | Missing Data | Scale | Explanation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ScanTime_year | I*2 | 0 (See Note 1) | 1 | Four digit calendar year (e.g., 1999) |
| ScanTime_month | I*1 | 0 (See Note 1) | 1 | Month of year (e.g., 1-12) |
| ScanTime_dom | I*1 | 0 (See Note 1) | 1 | Day of month (e.g., 1-31) |
| ScanTime_hour | I*1 | 0 (See Note 1) | 1 | Hour of day (e.g., 0-23) |
| ScanTime_minute | I*1 | 0 (See Note 1) | 1 | Minute of hour (e.g., 0-59) |
| ScanTime_second | I*1 | 0 (See Note 1) | 1 | Second of minute (e.g., 0-59) |
| ScanTime_doy | I*2 | 0 (See Note 1) | 1 | Day of year (e.g., 1-366) |
| Latitude | R*4 | 0 (See Note 1) | 1 | Latitude (degrees, range: -90.0 to 90.0) |
| Longitude | R*4 | 0 (See Note 1) | 1 | Longitude (degrees, range: -180.0 to 180.0) |
| Time | R*8 | 0 (See Note 1) | 1 | Number of seconds and fractions since 0000 UTC Jan. 1, 1993 (TAI93) |
| Sfc_type | I*1 | 255 | 1 | Surface Type: 0=ocean; 1=land; 2=coast. |
| Orbit_mode | I*1 | 0 (See Note 1) | 1 | Orbit direction: 1=ascending; 2=descending. |
| LZ_angle | R*4 | 0 (See Note 1) | 1 | Local zenith angle range (degrees) |
| SZ_ angle | R*4 | 0 (See Note 1) | 1 | Solar zenith angle range (degrees) |
| Chan1_AT | I*2 | -99 | 100 | Channel 1 Antenna Temperature (K) range 75.0 - 325.0 |
| Chan2_AT | I*2 | -99 | 100 | Channel 2 Antenna Temperature (K) range 75.0 - 325.0 |
| Chan3_AT | I*2 | -99 | 100 | Channel 3 Antenna Temperature (K) range 75.0 - 325.0 |
| Chan4_AT | I*2 | -99 | 100 | Channel 4 Antenna Temperature (K) range 75.0 - 325.0 |
| Chan5_AT | I*2 | -99 | 100 | Channel 5 Antenna Temperature (K) range 75.0 - 325.0 |
| RR | I*2 | See Table 9.6.3.1-9 | 100 | Rain Rate (mm/hr) range 0.0 - 30.0 |
| Snow | I*2 | See Table 9.6.3.1-9 | 1 | Snow Cover (0 or 100; 100 = snow) range 0.0 -100.0 |
| IWP | I*2 | See Table 9.6.3.1-9 | 100 | Ice Water Path (kg/m2) range 0.0 -2.0 |
|
Note:
1. The initialization value is zero. No missing scan lines should be encountered, but verification can be made by using product parameters. |
||||
| Parameter Name | Data Type | Explanation |
|---|---|---|
| AT_Limits | R*4 | Lower and upper limits of AMSU-B |
| RR_Limits | R*4 | Lower and upper limits of rain rate |
| SNOW_Limits | R*4 | Lower and upper limits of snow cover |
| IWP_Limits | R*4 | Lower and upper limits of ice water path |
| AT_SCAL | R*4 | Scaling factor of antenna temperature |
| RR_SCAL | R*4 | Scaling factor of rain rate |
| SNOW_SCAL | R*4 | Scaling factor of snow cover |
| IWP_SCAL | R*4 | Scaling factor of ice water path |
| Epoch_year | I*2 | Epoch Year for Orbit Vector (e.g., 1999) |
| Epoch_day | I*2 | Day of Epoch Year for Orbit Vector (e.g.,365) |
| Epoch_time | I*4 | Epoch UTC Time of Day in Milliseconds for Orbit Vector |
| semimajor_axis | R*4 | Semi-major Axis (kilometers) |
| eccentricity | R*4 | Eccentricity (unitless) |
| inclination | R*4 | Inclination (degrees) |
| argument_of_perigee | R*4 | Argument of Perigee (degrees) |
| right_ascension | R*4 | Right Ascension of the Ascending Node |
| mean_anomaly | R*4 | Mean Anomaly (degrees) |
| Parameter Name | Data Type | Missing Data | Explanation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Northern Hemisphere | |||
| North_year | I*2 | -99 | Four digit calendar year (e.g., 1999) |
| North_moy | I*1 | 255 | Month of year (e.g., 1-12) |
| North_dom | I*1 | 255 | Day of month (e.g., 1-31) |
| North_hour | I*1 | 255 | Hour of day (e.g., 1-24) |
| North_minute | I*1 | 255 | Minute of hour (e.g., 1-60) |
| North_second | I*1 | 255 | Second of minute (e.g., 1-60) |
| North_doy | I*2 | -99 | Day of year (e.g., 1-366) |
| North_lat | R*4 | -999.0 | Latitude (degrees, 0 to 90) |
| North_lon | R*4 | -999.0 | Longitude (degrees, -180 to 180) |
| North_RR | I*2 | See Table 9.6.3.1-9 | Rain Rate (mm/hr; 0.0 - 30.0 with a scaling factor of 10, negative values are flags) |
| North_Snow | I*2 | See Table 9.6.3.1-9 | Snow Cover (%; 0 or 100; 100 = snow, negative values are flags) |
| North_Sice | I*2 | See Table 9.6.3.1-9 | Sea ice concentration (%; 0 -100) |
|
Southern Hemisphere | |||
| South_year | I*2 | -99 | Four digit calendar year 4 digits (e.g., 1999) |
| South_moy | I*1 | 255 | Month of year (e.g., 1-12) |
| South_dom | I*1 | 255 | Day of month (e.g., 1-31) |
| South_hour | I*1 | 255 | Hour of day (e.g., 1-24) |
| South_minute | I*1 | 255 | Minute of hour (e.g., 1-60) |
| South_second | I*1 | 255 | Second of minute (e.g., 1-60) |
| South_doy | I*2 | -99 | Day of year (e.g., 1-366) |
| South_lat | R*4 | -999.0 | Latitude (degrees, -90 to 0) |
| South_lon | R*4 | -999.0 | Longitude (degrees, -180 to 180) |
| South_RR | I*2 | See Table 9.6.3.1-9 | Rain Rate (mm/hr; 0.0 - 30.0 with a scaling factor of 10, negative values are flags) |
| South_Snow | I*2 | See Table 9.6.3.1-9 | Snow Cover (%; 0 or 100; 100 = snow, negative values are flags) |
| South_Sice | I*2 | See Table 9.6.3.1-9 | Sea ice concentration (%; 0 -100, negative values are flags) |
Table 9.6.3.1-9 contains an explanation of the product error flags used for MSPPS data.
| Flag Value | Explanation |
|---|---|
| -1 | Calculated product value larger than its upper limit. |
| -2 | Calculated product value less than its lower limit. |
| -3 | Calculated antenna temperature larger than its upper limit. |
| -4 | Calculated antenna temperature less than its lower limit. |
| -5 | Undetermined because of undetermined cloud liquid water. |
| -6 | Undetermined because of possible rain. |
| -7 | Undetermined because of possible snow. |
| -8 | Undetermined because of possible sea ice. |
| -9 | Undetermined because of coast. |
| -10 | Undetermined because of unknown reasons. |
| -11 | Undetermined because of possible desert. |
| -12 | Undetermined because of elevation (> 3000 m). |
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