The 20th International TOVS Study Conference (ITSC) at Lake Geneva in Wisconsin, USA, was co-organised by the Centre and hosted by the University of Wisconsin, the institute many consider the spiritual home of satellite meteorology; it is here that atmospheric satellite sounding was pioneered. The conference took place from 28 October to 3 November.
ECMWF scientists joined forces with researchers and data providers from around the world to discuss the latest developments in the fields of satellite sounding data, radiative transfer, data assimilation, and new and future satellite missions.
The conference is the most focused forum for the use of passive satellite sounding data, which are the most influential observations for medium-range weather forecasts, particularly for temperature and humidity. Passive sounding instruments measure radiation that is emitted naturally and do not actively transmit their own signals.
ECMWF staff presented their research through talks and poster presentations, in sessions dedicated to radiative transfer, data assimilation, and clouds. They also contributed to the working groups that shape the work and recommendations of this interactive community.
A major theme at ITSC-20 was efforts at many centres, including ECMWF, to better characterise uncertainty at all stages, from the raw observations and the radiative transfer model right through to the data assimilation and climate reanalysis.
In a session on the calibration and validation of new and current observations, Heather Lawrence and Qifeng Lu (CMA; visiting scientist at ECMWF) talked about the evaluation of data from China’s first operational meteorological polar-orbiting satellite, Fengyun-3C (FY-3C). ECMWF collaborates with CMA and the UK Met Office to analyse and evaluate microwave humidity sounding data from FY-3C, with a view to assimilating more Chinese satellite data in the future.
Heather Lawrence from ECMWF won a prize for her poster entitled ‘Scene-Dependent Observation Errors for AMSU-A in the ECMWF system’. Hyoung-Wook Chun from KIAPS in Korea won a prize for his presentation on the work he did while visiting ECMWF earlier in 2015, entitled ‘A Physically Based Observation Error Covariance Matrix for IASI’.
In the poster sessions, ECMWF’s contributions covered topics such as the use of satellite data in the next ECMWF reanalysis, ERA5; the assimilation of microwave humidity sounding channels over sea ice; and the monitoring of infrared satellite radiance biases using the ECMWF model. There was also an update on changes to the ECMWF numerical weather prediction system since the last study conference, and information about the Centre’s automatic data checking system.
The conference offered opportunities for ECMWF to reinvigorate ongoing activities with its Member States and EUMETSAT and to progress its strong collaboration with teams from around the world, notably China, Korea, the USA and Japan.
ECMWF’s new collaboration with Russia's Roshydromet will build on a preliminary joint paper presented to ITSC-20 and will now go forward in partnership with EUMETSAT and the UK Met Office.
The conference is organised every 18 to 24 months by the International TOVS Working Group, a subgroup of the Coordination Group for Meteorological Satellites (CGMS) and the International Radiation Commission (IRC). By reporting to the CGMS and IRC, the group plays an important role in the co-ordination and development of the global satellite observing system and the evolution of sounding science. The group is co-chaired by Mitch Goldberg (NOAA) and Niels Bormann (ECMWF).
More information
International TOVS Study Conference web pages