RETRIEVAL OF EFFECTIVE MICROPHYSICAL PROPERTIES OF CLOUDS - A WAVE CLOUD CASE-STUDY

One of the important objectives of the SUbsonic aircraft: Contrail and Cloud Effecs Special Study (SUCCESS) field campaign data analysis is to investigate retrieving cloud microphysical properties using remote sensing observations. This paper presents the results of an infrared b ased retrieval of effective particle radius R-e using brightness tempe rature observations near 8.5, 11 and 12 mu m. The retrieval method rel ies on comparing 8.5-11 and 11-12 mu m observed brightness temperature differences to theoretical simulations. During SUCCESS, conducted in April-May 1996 out of Salina KS, the MODIS Airborne Simulator (MAS) on the NASA ER-2 made observations of contrails, cirrus and mountain lee wave clouds. Observations indicate that contrail and cirrus clouds ar e distinguishable by their radiative properties. Retrieval of R-e for the lee wave cloud case on 2 May agrees with in situ observations from probes mounted on a NASA DC-8 aircraft, validating the infrared retri eval. The addition of the 8.5 mu m information to the R-e retrieval gr eatly enhances the sensitivity of the retrieval at small particle size s (< 10 mu m).