Radiative Flux Estimation from a Broadband Radiometer Using Synthetic Angular Models in the EarthCARE Mission Framework. Part II: Evaluation

AbstractThe instantaneous top-of-atmosphere (TOA) radiance-to-flux conversion for the broadband radiometer (BBR) on board the Earth Clouds, Aerosols, and Radiation Explorer (EarthCARE) was assessed in Part I of this paper, by developing theoretical angular distribution models (ADMs) specifically designed for the instrument viewing configuration. This paper validates the BBR ADMs by comparing derived flux estimates with flux retrievals obtained from the Clouds and the Earth’s Radiant Energy System (CERES) Terra models. A CERES BBR-like database is employed in the assessment, which is an optimum dataset to validate the BBR algorithms and to determine the benefits of the multiangular conversio…