Dear Karl,
Thanks for the message...based on my reading of the current CF variables
which include the surface temperature in their name, I believe that the
"land_surface_skin_temperature" name is needed.
The following standard names correspond to the temperature of the sea
surface medium itself at varying depths below the surface (where surface
is the interface between the sea and atmosphere):
sea_surface_skin_temperature, sea_surface_skin_temperature, and
sea_surface_temperature. The standard name "surface_temperature"
corresponds to the temperature at the interface between the atmosphere
and medium below (either land, open sea, or snow), and is not the
temperature of the actual medium above or below the surface. The GOES-R
product that is motivating this proposal is not the temperature at the
atmosphere/land interface (e.g. it does not correspond to the
"surface_temperature") but instead the actual temperature of the land
surface. In its case, it is the temperature of the thin, top layer of
land, or skin. So, it is analogous to the
"sea_surface_skin_temperature" definition.
If my interpretation of all of the surface temperature names is correct,
then there may need to be a modification to the current definition of
"sea_surface_temperature." In particular, this definition states "It is
the temperature of sea water near the surface (including the part under
sea-ice, if any), and not the skin temperature, whose standard name is
surface_temperature." However, it seems to me that the
"surface_temperature" is the atmosphere/medium interface temperature,
and not the temperature of the medium below the interface (e.g. the skin
temperature). So, I'm wondering if the above sentence in quotes
incorrectly refers to the "surface_temperature" when perhaps it should
refer to the "sea_surface_skin_temperature"?
Sincerely,
Jonathan Wrotny
On 6/6/2013 12:15 PM, Karl Taylor wrote:
> Dear Jonathan W.
>
> If I recall correctly, surface_temperature means "sea surface
> temperature" over the ocean and "skin" temperature over land. In
> models I think it is the temperature used in radiation calculations
> (emissivity*sigma* surf. temp**4). How would
> "land_surface_skin_temperature" differ from land
> "surface_temperature"? (note that there is also a standard name for
> "surface_air_temperature" which is the air temperature typically 2 m
> above the surface.)
>
> Karl
>
>
>
> On 6/6/13 8:25 AM, Jonathan Wrotny wrote:
>> Dear CF board:
>>
>> I would like to propose the following standard name:
>>
>> Standard Name: land_surface_skin_temperature
>>
>> Definition:The surface called "surface" means the lower boundary of
>> the atmosphere. The land surface skin temperature is the temperature
>> measured by an infrared radiometer, but measurements from microwave
>> radiometers operating at GHz wavelengths also exist. It represents
>> the aggregate temperature of the skin surface where "skin" means the
>> surface medium viewed by a sensor to a vertical depth of
>> approximately 12 micrometers. Measurements of this quantity are
>> subject to a large potential diurnal cycle which is primarily due to
>> the balance between heating during the day by solar radiation and
>> continual cooling from terrestrial (long-wave) radiation emitted by
>> the skin surface.
>>
>> Canonical Units:K
>>
>>
>> NOTE: I modeled this new name & definition from the name/definition
>> for the current CF name "sea_surface_skin_temperature" in order to
>> create some consistency between the two names & definitions.
>>
>> Sincerely,
>>
>> Jonathan Wrotny
>>
>>
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>
>
>
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Received on Thu Jun 06 2013 - 13:28:45 BST
