Description

The First ISCCP Regional Experiments (FIRE) have been designed to improve data products and cloud/radiation parameterizations used in general circulation models (GCMs). Specifically, the goals of FIRE are (1) to improve the basic understanding of the interaction of physical processes in determining life cycles of cirrus and marine stratocumulus systems and the radiative properties of these clouds during their life cycles and (2) to investigate the interrelationships between the International Satellite Cloud Climatology Project (ISCCP) data, GCM parameterizations, and higher space and time resolution cloud data. To-date, four intensive field-observation (IFO) periods were planned and executed: a cirrus IFO (October 13 - November 2, 1986); a marine stratocumulus IFO off the southwestern coast of California (June 29 - July 20, 1987); a second cirrus IFO in southeastern Kansas (November 13 - December 7, 1991); and a second marine stratocumulus IFO in the eastern North Atlantic Ocean (June 1 - June 28, 1992). Each mission combined coordinated satellite, airborne, and surface observations with modeling studies to investigate the cloud properties and physical processes of the cloud systems. During the period from June 1 to June 29, 1992, 203 soundings were obtained. At present two forms of data exist - Level I and Level II. Level I are the raw data produced in real time by the software of the Atmospheric Instrumentation Research (AIR) radiosonde system. These data are at irregular pressure and height levels. Level II data consist of processed thermodynamic and wind data at a uniform resolution of 10m, which essentially retains the highest possible vertical resolution in the original data. The Level II thermodynamic data seem to be reasonably free of errors; however, as mentioned in Schubert et. al., (1992) the wind data requires additional filtering before use.

DOI

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Citation Styles for this Dataset

Resources and Documentation

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Earthdata Forum

DOWNLOAD SOFTWARE

FIRE II-ASTEX Read Software Package - Direct File Download (.tar)

FIRE I-Cirrus Read Software Package - Direct File Download (.tar)

FIRE I-Extended-Time-Observation Read Software Package - Direct File Download (.tar)

FIRE II-Cirrus Read Software Package - Direct File Download (.tar)

FIRE III Read Software Package - Direct File Download (.tar)

VIEW RELATED INFORMATION

DATA CITATION POLICY

• How to cite ASDC data

GENERAL DOCUMENTATION

• ASDC Data and Information for FIRE

PRODUCTION HISTORY

• Project/Campaign Document: Project/Campaign Document: FIRE Langley DAAC

READ-ME

• FIRE ASTEX Readme - Direct File Download (.ps)

SCIENCE DATA PRODUCT SOFTWARE DOCUMENTATION

• Code to read the FIRE ASTEX Rawinsonde data - Direct File Download (.c)

USER'S GUIDE

• FIRE ASTEX Radiosonde Langley DAAC Data Set Document

Keywords

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