SAFARI 2000 TOVS Surface and Atmospheric Parameters, 1-Deg, 1999-2001

NOAA's TIROS (Television Infrared Observation Satellite) Operational Vertical Sounder (TOVS) is a suite of three sensors: the Microwave Sounding Unit (MSU), the High resolution Infrared Radiation Sounder (HIRS), and the Stratospheric Sounding Unit (SSU) aboard the NOAA series of polar-orbiting operational meteorological satellites. TOVS-derived data provide a means to investigate long-term climate change and interannual variability and study local and periodic phenomena such as El Nino and stratospheric warmings.

A set of the derived meteorological parameters for southern Africa have been selected by SAFARI 2000. The data were extracted from 1 degree x 1 degree global fields, with data from each satellite's local AM and PM orbits provided separately.Selected parameters for SAFARI 2000 data set:Layer mean temperature at 4 coarse layers Total effective cloud fraction Cloud fractions at 7 pressure layers Longwave cloud radiative forcing Outgoing long-wave radiation Cloud top pressure Precipitation estimate Precipitable water vapor above the surface and four pressure levels Surface pressure Cloud top temperature Cloud fraction at 7 pressure layers Surface skin temperature Specific humidity at surface and at 5 pressure layers Temperature at multiple levels Retrieved virtual temperature between levelsThe data files are stored as annual files of pentad (5-day) images.