Comparison of Near-Surface Air Temperatures and MODIS Ice-Surface Temperatures at Summit, Greenland (2008–13) ...

• Main Authors: Shuman, Christopher, Hall, Dorothy K., DiGirolamo, Nicolo E., Mefford, Thomas K., Schnaubelt, Michael J.
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: AMS 2014
• Subjects: Greenland; Ice Sheet
• Online Access: https://dx.doi.org/10.13016/m25nvn-o0as; https://mdsoar.org/handle/11603/24273

The stability of the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) ice-surface temperature (IST) product from Terra was investigated for use as a climate-quality data record. The availability of climate-quality air temperature data Tᴀ from a NOAA observatory at Greenland’s Summit Station has enabled this high-temporal-resolution study of MODIS ISTs. During a >5-yr period (July 2008–August 2013), more than 2500 IST values were compared with ±3-min-average Tᴀ values from NOAA’s primary 2-m temperature sensor. This enabled an expected small offset between air and ice-sheet surface temperatures (Tᴀ > IST) to be investigated over multiple annual cycles. The principal findings of this study show 1) that IST values are slightly colder than the Tᴀ values near freezing but that this offset increases as temperature decreases and 2) that there is a pattern in IST–Tᴀ differences as the solar zenith angle (SoZA) varies annually. This latter result largely explains the progressive offset from the in situ ...