NSA/MWRP/C1 - Missing data

Data are missing and unrecoverable.

• Pressure, level of free convection(levelFreeConvectionPres)
• Temperature, virtual, vert. prof. sfc-10km, fr. wtr. vap. dens. and temp. prof.(virtualTemperature)
• Pressure, lifting condensation level(liftingCondensationLevelPres)
• Pressure, equilibrium level(equilibriumLevelPres)
• dataQualityFlags
• totalPrecipitableWater2RmsError
• Density, water vapor, at instrument height (1 or 2 m)(surfaceWaterVaporDensity)
• Humidity, relative, prof. from sfc.-10km, from water vap. dens. and temp. prof.(relativeHumidity)
• wetWindowFlag
• Liquid water content, cloud, vert. prof. sfc.-10km, from Tbright stat. retrvl.(liquidWaterContent)
• Liquid water path, from Tbright at 23.835 and 30.0 GHz only, using stat. retrvl.(liquidWaterPath2)
• Height, equilibrium level(equilibriumLevel)
• infraredTemperature
• Energy, potential, convective, available, from RUC model(cape)
• time
• time_offset
• liquidWaterPathRmsError
• waterVaporDensityRmsError
• Barometric pressure(pressure)
• blackbodyTemperature
• Microwave brightness temperature(brightnessTemperature)
• Liquid water path, from brightness temperatures using statistical retrieval(liquidWaterPath)
• Retrieved water vapor mixing ratio(waterVaporMixingRatio)
• alt
• Pressure, barometric. at instrument height (1 or 2 m)(surfacePressure)
• Height, lifting condensation level(liftingCondensationLevel)
• Pressure, associated geometric height, at altitude, NGM model output(height)
• Height, level of free convection(levelFreeConvection)
• elevation
• liquidWaterContentRmsError
• liquidWaterPath2RmsError
• Humidity, relative, at instrument height (1 or 2 m)(surfaceRelativeHumidity)
• Retrieved dewpoint temperature(dewpointTemperature)
• Temperature, air, at instrument height (1 or 2 m)(surfaceTemperature)
• Water vapor, total precipitable, derived from Tbright using stat. retrvl.(totalPrecipitableWater)
• temperatureRmsError
• frequency
• Air temperature(temperature)
• base_time
• Density, water vapor, prof. from sfc.-10 km, der. from Tbright stat. retrvl.(waterVaporDensity)
• totalPrecipitableWaterRmsError
• lon
• Height, cloud base, height where IR temp. matches retrieved temp. profile(cloudBaseHeight)
• lat
• Water vapor, tot. precipitable, from Tbright, 23.835 & 30.0 GHz, stat. retrvl.(totalPrecipitableWater2)
• azimuth

NIM/MWRP/M1 - Software problem

The MWRP computer failed and it was cloned with a new Gx620. Soon after, the MWRP program 
started to crash and was intermittent. Data were lost on March 3, 4, 5. 
On March 7 the program was forcefully ended and restarted. This appears to have cleared 
the problem. The instrument has been running since.

• AVHRR satellite images for Darwin from BOM (RAW)(raw)

• Pressure, lifting condensation level(liftingCondensationLevelPres)
• liquidWaterPath2RmsError
• time_offset
• frequency
• Pressure, barometric. at instrument height (1 or 2 m)(surfacePressure)
• elevation
• Liquid water path, from Tbright at 23.835 and 30.0 GHz only, using stat. retrvl.(liquidWaterPath2)
• wetWindowFlag
• liquidWaterContentRmsError
• Pressure, level of free convection(levelFreeConvectionPres)
• Barometric pressure(pressure)
• Retrieved dewpoint temperature(dewpointTemperature)
• totalPrecipitableWaterRmsError
• Height, lifting condensation level(liftingCondensationLevel)
• Pressure, equilibrium level(equilibriumLevelPres)
• infraredTemperature
• Energy, potential, convective, available, from RUC model(cape)
• Liquid water path, from brightness temperatures using statistical retrieval(liquidWaterPath)
• Temperature, virtual, vert. prof. sfc-10km, fr. wtr. vap. dens. and temp. prof.(virtualTemperature)
• Height, cloud base, height where IR temp. matches retrieved temp. profile(cloudBaseHeight)
• Density, water vapor, at instrument height (1 or 2 m)(surfaceWaterVaporDensity)
• dataQualityFlags
• Retrieved water vapor mixing ratio(waterVaporMixingRatio)
• Height, level of free convection(levelFreeConvection)
• Water vapor, total precipitable, derived from Tbright using stat. retrvl.(totalPrecipitableWater)
• base_time
• Pressure, associated geometric height, at altitude, NGM model output(height)
• liquidWaterPathRmsError
• waterVaporDensityRmsError
• Temperature, air, at instrument height (1 or 2 m)(surfaceTemperature)
• totalPrecipitableWater2RmsError
• temperatureRmsError
• Humidity, relative, at instrument height (1 or 2 m)(surfaceRelativeHumidity)
• alt
• Density, water vapor, prof. from sfc.-10 km, der. from Tbright stat. retrvl.(waterVaporDensity)
• Microwave brightness temperature(brightnessTemperature)
• azimuth
• Humidity, relative, prof. from sfc.-10km, from water vap. dens. and temp. prof.(relativeHumidity)
• time
• lon
• Liquid water content, cloud, vert. prof. sfc.-10km, from Tbright stat. retrvl.(liquidWaterContent)
• lat
• Height, equilibrium level(equilibriumLevel)
• blackbodyTemperature
• Water vapor, tot. precipitable, from Tbright, 23.835 & 30.0 GHz, stat. retrvl.(totalPrecipitableWater2)
• Air temperature(temperature)

• AVHRR satellite images for Darwin from BOM (RAW)(raw)

NIM/SONDE/M1 - RH data incorrect.

RH% values oscillate between ambient values and 0%.  The 0% RH values are incorrect.

• Dewpoint Temperature(dp)
• Humidity, relative(rh)

NIM/MWRP/M1 - Instrument noise problem

There are spikes and elevated noise in MWRP data. The origine of the spikes is RF 
interference from various sources.  All brightness temperatures are affected, but in particular 
the 5 K-band channels. LWP retrievals are noisy and affected by spikes as a result.

• AVHRR satellite images for Darwin from BOM (RAW)(raw)

• Water vapor, total precipitable, derived from Tbright using stat. retrvl.(totalPrecipitableWater)
• Density, water vapor, prof. from sfc.-10 km, der. from Tbright stat. retrvl.(waterVaporDensity)
• Liquid water path, from Tbright at 23.835 and 30.0 GHz only, using stat. retrvl.(liquidWaterPath2)
• Microwave brightness temperature(brightnessTemperature)
• Retrieved dewpoint temperature(dewpointTemperature)
• Humidity, relative, prof. from sfc.-10km, from water vap. dens. and temp. prof.(relativeHumidity)
• Liquid water path, from brightness temperatures using statistical retrieval(liquidWaterPath)
• Liquid water content, cloud, vert. prof. sfc.-10km, from Tbright stat. retrvl.(liquidWaterContent)
• Temperature, virtual, vert. prof. sfc-10km, fr. wtr. vap. dens. and temp. prof.(virtualTemperature)
• Water vapor, tot. precipitable, from Tbright, 23.835 & 30.0 GHz, stat. retrvl.(totalPrecipitableWater2)
• Air temperature(temperature)
• Retrieved water vapor mixing ratio(waterVaporMixingRatio)

• AVHRR satellite images for Darwin from BOM (RAW)(raw)

NSA/MWRP/C1 - Incorrect calibration

On 4/12 a calibration was attempted but the calibration was not successful. A new 
calibration was completed on 4/13 20:00 UTC.  Data between the two calibration attempts are 
incorrect and should be disregarded.

• Pressure, level of free convection(levelFreeConvectionPres)
• Temperature, virtual, vert. prof. sfc-10km, fr. wtr. vap. dens. and temp. prof.(virtualTemperature)
• Pressure, lifting condensation level(liftingCondensationLevelPres)
• Pressure, equilibrium level(equilibriumLevelPres)
• dataQualityFlags
• totalPrecipitableWater2RmsError
• Density, water vapor, at instrument height (1 or 2 m)(surfaceWaterVaporDensity)
• Humidity, relative, prof. from sfc.-10km, from water vap. dens. and temp. prof.(relativeHumidity)
• wetWindowFlag
• Liquid water content, cloud, vert. prof. sfc.-10km, from Tbright stat. retrvl.(liquidWaterContent)
• Liquid water path, from Tbright at 23.835 and 30.0 GHz only, using stat. retrvl.(liquidWaterPath2)
• Height, equilibrium level(equilibriumLevel)
• infraredTemperature
• Energy, potential, convective, available, from RUC model(cape)
• time
• time_offset
• liquidWaterPathRmsError
• waterVaporDensityRmsError
• Barometric pressure(pressure)
• blackbodyTemperature
• Microwave brightness temperature(brightnessTemperature)
• Liquid water path, from brightness temperatures using statistical retrieval(liquidWaterPath)
• Retrieved water vapor mixing ratio(waterVaporMixingRatio)
• alt
• Pressure, barometric. at instrument height (1 or 2 m)(surfacePressure)
• Height, lifting condensation level(liftingCondensationLevel)
• Pressure, associated geometric height, at altitude, NGM model output(height)
• Height, level of free convection(levelFreeConvection)
• elevation
• liquidWaterContentRmsError
• liquidWaterPath2RmsError
• Humidity, relative, at instrument height (1 or 2 m)(surfaceRelativeHumidity)
• Retrieved dewpoint temperature(dewpointTemperature)
• Temperature, air, at instrument height (1 or 2 m)(surfaceTemperature)
• Water vapor, total precipitable, derived from Tbright using stat. retrvl.(totalPrecipitableWater)
• temperatureRmsError
• frequency
• Air temperature(temperature)
• base_time
• Density, water vapor, prof. from sfc.-10 km, der. from Tbright stat. retrvl.(waterVaporDensity)
• totalPrecipitableWaterRmsError
• lon
• Height, cloud base, height where IR temp. matches retrieved temp. profile(cloudBaseHeight)
• lat
• Water vapor, tot. precipitable, from Tbright, 23.835 & 30.0 GHz, stat. retrvl.(totalPrecipitableWater2)
• azimuth

NIM/MWRP/M1 - IRT Sensor Calibration

Discrepancies between the MWRP and Skyrad IRT were observed in January. The MWRP IRT 
readings were constantly higher than those of the skyrad IRT. Some changes were introduced to 
the MWRP IRT to address the problem (see DQR D060602.2). On May 3, the IRT mirror was 
replaced. After the change in the mirror, the MWRP IRT readings became about 5-8 C lower. On 
June 3 the agreement between MWRP and Skyrad IRT became satisfactory (2-5 degree C 
difference).

It is hard to numerically quantify the difference in the IRT readings caused by the change 
in the mirror. We can only warn the user that between January 1 and June 3 the MWRP 
readings are 8 to 15 degree higher than the skyrad IRT.

• AVHRR satellite images for Darwin from BOM (RAW)(raw)

• infraredTemperature

• AVHRR satellite images for Darwin from BOM (RAW)(raw)

NSA/MWRP/C1 - Bad calibration values

After calibration was completed on 4/26/2006 the last value in the V-band calibration file 
was corrupted. V-band data are wrong between 4/26 19:30 and 4/27 15:27 when the 
corrupted values were removed.

• AVHRR satellite images for Darwin from BOM (RAW)(raw)

• waterVaporDensityRmsError
• Temperature, virtual, vert. prof. sfc-10km, fr. wtr. vap. dens. and temp. prof.(virtualTemperature)
• Air temperature(temperature)
• Density, water vapor, prof. from sfc.-10 km, der. from Tbright stat. retrvl.(waterVaporDensity)
• Humidity, relative, prof. from sfc.-10km, from water vap. dens. and temp. prof.(relativeHumidity)
• Liquid water content, cloud, vert. prof. sfc.-10km, from Tbright stat. retrvl.(liquidWaterContent)
• Height, cloud base, height where IR temp. matches retrieved temp. profile(cloudBaseHeight)
• Microwave brightness temperature(brightnessTemperature)
• Retrieved water vapor mixing ratio(waterVaporMixingRatio)
• Retrieved dewpoint temperature(dewpointTemperature)

• AVHRR satellite images for Darwin from BOM (RAW)(raw)

NIM/MWRP/M1 - Reprocessed: IRT configuration setting error

The infrared thermometer settings (IRT) were not configured as specified by the 
manufacturer. The analog output was set to a range of -60 to +50 C (0-10V) instead of -50 to +50 C 
(0-10V). The settings were changed on April 20. The IR temperatures should be slightly 
smaller than reported.

The data have been reprocessed to correct the IRT calibrations.  Reprocessed data were 
archived in August 2006.

• infraredTemperature

NIM/MWRP/M1 - Reprocessed - New retrieval coefficients

Occasionally, the retrieved relative humidity was exceeding 120%. Upon reviewing the data 
it was noticed that the high values were appearing in the highest layers (above 8 km) and 
especially during spring season. Since retrievals at the highest levels are mainly 
affected by the climatology used to constrain the retrievals, we reviewed the statistical 
coefficients that were used to retrieve temperature and humidity. It was discovered that, in 
the training dataset (radiosonde), there were a few outliers (invalid radiosonde 
soundings) that had escaped the screening process and were affecting the computations of the 
retrieval coefficients.

We recomputed the retrieval coefficients with the newly screened set of radiosonde data 
and reprocessed all the previous data at Niamey.  The reprocessed data were archived in 
August 2006.

The new coefficients improve temperature and humidity profiles in two ways. The relative 
humidity will not exceed 120% in the upper layers and the temperature profiles will be in 
better agreement with the sonde in the first 4 km.

• Water vapor, total precipitable, derived from Tbright using stat. retrvl.(totalPrecipitableWater)
• liquidWaterPathRmsError
• liquidWaterPath2RmsError
• waterVaporDensityRmsError
• totalPrecipitableWater2RmsError
• temperatureRmsError
• Density, water vapor, prof. from sfc.-10 km, der. from Tbright stat. retrvl.(waterVaporDensity)
• Liquid water path, from Tbright at 23.835 and 30.0 GHz only, using stat. retrvl.(liquidWaterPath2)
• liquidWaterContentRmsError
• Retrieved dewpoint temperature(dewpointTemperature)
• totalPrecipitableWaterRmsError
• Humidity, relative, prof. from sfc.-10km, from water vap. dens. and temp. prof.(relativeHumidity)
• Liquid water path, from brightness temperatures using statistical retrieval(liquidWaterPath)
• Liquid water content, cloud, vert. prof. sfc.-10km, from Tbright stat. retrvl.(liquidWaterContent)
• Temperature, virtual, vert. prof. sfc-10km, fr. wtr. vap. dens. and temp. prof.(virtualTemperature)
• Height, cloud base, height where IR temp. matches retrieved temp. profile(cloudBaseHeight)
• Water vapor, tot. precipitable, from Tbright, 23.835 & 30.0 GHz, stat. retrvl.(totalPrecipitableWater2)
• Air temperature(temperature)
• Retrieved water vapor mixing ratio(waterVaporMixingRatio)

NIM/MWRP/M1 - 51.25 GHz channel calibration drifted

After a power outage on May 5 the 51.25 GHz had a slight change in the calibration. The 
resulting LWP computed by using all 6 channels increased of about 0.025 mm (25 g/m2).

• Microwave brightness temperature(brightnessTemperature)

NSA/SONDE/C1 - Noisy/Unstable RH and dew point data

The RH readings during the first 8 minutes of this sounding include three apparently 
incorrect oscillations to near-zero values.  After checking the absolutely raw data, it seems 
as though this period was excessively noisy, resulting in many missing values.  The noise 
abatted and the remaining sounding values are valid.

• Dewpoint Temperature(dp)
• Humidity, relative(rh)

NSA/SONDE/C1 - Bad surface RH and temperature values

This is a subtle problem that might escape notice.  For the identified sonde launches, the 
ground station lost its signal between the time it was removed from the ground check set 
and the time it was launched.  As a result, the software, which automatically determines 
the launch time and surface conditions at time of launch mistakenly used values of 
temperature and RH representative of the ground check set and the GW rather than of the 
ambient conditions before launch.  The bad values influenced only the first few samples and the 
remainder of the sounding values are correct.  

A procedural problem was identified and corrected.

• Dry Bulb Temperature(tdry)
• Dewpoint Temperature(dp)
• Humidity, relative(rh)

NSA/SONDE/C1 - RH values offset due to error in ground check

Background: After installation of the latest software update , we began performing formal 
ground checks on RS92 radiosondes.  By comparing the radiosonde readings with reference 
values in a controlled environment, the ground check is intended to ensure that the 
radiosonde sensors are in calibration before launch.  The radisonde values during the ground 
check process are recorded automatically; the reference values are entered by the operator. 
 If the radiosonde readings vary from the reference values, the system 'corrects' the 
radiosonde values.  In the case of RH, the correction is applied as an offset (true RH = 
indicated RH + correction).

Problem: Some operators misunderstood the ground-check procedure and entered the 
radiosonde values of RH rather than the reference value (assumed 0%RH), thus, some soundings done 
during this period have RH values that are different from what they would be if the 
ground check procedure had been done correctly.

Consequence:  Because the RH corrections generally are small (averaging about 0.5% RH) and 
the precision of the reported RH data during this time period is 1% RH, some values will 
not be affected at all; others will be off by about 1% RH (still within the stated 
accuracy of the sensor).  Furthermore, because entering the radiosonde value as the reference 
value results in a near zero 'correction,' one may view these soundings as being done 
without the ground check correction.  Also note that the dew point value will be suspect as well.

I am attaching below a listing of the soundings that were affected during the indicated 
time period.  Users can see the magnitude of the problem and choose whether or not to apply 
an offset in RH.  Note that application of the offset to the processed RH data (in the 
netCDF file) will not have the same effect of applying the correction to the absolutely 
raw data (before processing), but the differences should be insignificant.  Also note that 
the corrections for each sounding are included in the netCDF header information.  These 
attributes are named 'humidity_correction' and 'humidity_correction_2'.  The values of RH 
indicated by the radiosonde while it is in the ground check set are in attributes 
'humidity_gc_sonde' and 'humidity_gc_sonde_2.'  There is an RH reading for each of the two RH 
sensors used in the RS92 radiosonde.

Here is the list - RH1 and RH2 are the radiosonde readings in the ground check set.  Ref 
is the reference value entered by the operator.  The correcte reference value should be 
0%.  To obtain an approximation to the RH value that would have been recorded if the ground 
check had been done properly, subtract the Ref value from the indicated RH.

 YYYYMMDD  HHMM  SerialNo     RH1     RH2     Ref
 20060713  0532  B1924431    0.30    0.20    0.30
 20060713  1751  B1854963    0.20    0.30    0.30
 20060714  0521  B1924425    0.40    0.40    0.40
 20060714  1739  B1854206    0.30    0.30    0.30
 20060715  0522  B1715127    1.20    1.20    1.20
 20060715  1737  B1854966    0.60    0.60    0.60
 20060716  0508  B1715126    0.40    0.40    0.40
 20060716  1732  B1844098    0.50    0.50    0.50
 20060717  0517  B1914170    0.40    0.40    0.40
 20060718  0516  B1914173    0.70    0.70    0.70
 20060720  0523  B1854149    0.40    0.40    0.40
 20060721  0517  B1914153    0.40    0.40    0.40
 20060722  0521  B1844097    1.00    1.10    1.10
 20060722  1730  B1914174    0.60    0.70    0.70
 20060723  0537  B1714439    0.40    0.40    0.40
 20060723  1734  B1734155    0.50    0.50    0.50
 20060724  0529  B1134336    0.50    0.50    0.50
 20060725  0525  B1754099    0.60    0.70    0.70
 20060726  0541  B1844108    1.80    1.80    1.80
 20060727  0520  B1714382    0.70    0.80    0.70
 20060728  0531  B1854116    0.80    0.80    0.80
 20060729  0527  B1724027    1.00    1.00    1.00
 20060729  1726  B1714392    0.70    0.80    0.80
 20060730  0522  B1854100    0.70    0.80    0.80
 20060730  1724  B1854764    0.90    1.00    1.00
 20060731  0515  B1664086    0.90    0.80    0.90
 20060801  0520  B1724758    1.50    1.50    1.50
 20060801  1729  B1754116    1.10    1.10    1.10
 20060802  0518  B1724516    0.80    0.80    0.80
 20060803  0523  B1674148    0.80    0.80    0.80
 20060804  0532  B1754092    0.90    0.90    0.90
 20060804  1727  B1844117    3.50    3.50    3.50
 20060805  0531  B1714741    0.30    0.30    0.30
 20060805  1728  B1754098    0.30    0.30    0.30
 20060806  0528  B1844115    0.40    0.40    0.40
 20060806  1728  B1914161    0.20    0.20    0.20
 20060807  0530  B1714549    0.30    0.30    0.30
 20060808  0517  B1844107    0.50    0.50    0.50
 20060808  1744  B1914166    0.20    0.20    0.20
 20060809  0527  B1914164    0.30    0.40    0.40
 20060809  1736  B1914163    0.30    0.30    0.30
 20060810  0521  B1914160    0.40    0.50    0.50
 20060810  1745  B1744671    0.40    0.40    0.40
 20060811  0525  B1854965    0.50    0.50    0.50
 20060811  1753  B1724131    0.10    0.10    0.10
 20060812  0527  B1754104    0.50    0.50    0.50
 20060812  1740  B1854256    0.30    0.40    0.40
 20060813  0522  B1854240    0.30    0.40    0.40
 20060814  0525  B1714106    0.20    0.20    0.20
 20060814  1742  B1854106    0.40    0.40    0.40
 20060815  0534  B1914169    0.50    0.60    0.60
 20060815  1734  B1854233    0.60    0.70    0.70
 20060816  0539  B1724791    0.20    0.20    0.20
 20060816  1732  B1914171    0.10    0.20    0.20
 20060817  0535  B1354283    0.10    0.10    0.10
 20060817  1740  B1354574    0.40    0.40    0.40
 20060818  0516  B1354633    0.50    0.40    0.50
 20060818  1744  B1364673    0.20    0.20    0.20
 20060819  0538  B1364126    0.20    0.30    0.30
 20060819  1745  B1354598    0.50    0.60    0.60
 20060820  0532  B1354290    1.10    1.10    1.10
 20060820  1729  B1354317    0.40    0.40    0.40
 20060821  0530  B1354545    0.60    0.70    0.70
 20060821  1728  B1354516    0.70    0.70    0.70
 20060822  0524  B1354619    0.50    0.60    0.60
 20060822  1728  B1364377    0.40    0.40    0.40
 20060823  0533  B1354309    0.30    0.30    0.30
 20060823  1730  B1354527    0.70    0.70    0.70
 20060824  0533  B1354230    0.60    0.60    0.60
 20060824  1812  B1354587    0.70    0.70    0.70
 20060825  0517  B1354614    0.70    0.70    0.70
 20060825  1730  B1354630    0.60    0.60    0.60
 20060826  0537  B1334114    0.90    0.90    0.90
 20060826  1734  B1354246    0.70    0.70    0.70
 20060827  0508  B1354534    0.70    0.70    0.70
 20060827  1729  B1354618    0.60    0.60    0.60
 20060828  0517  B1354115    0.40    0.40    0.40
 20060828  1738  B1354206    0.50    0.60    0.60
 20060829  0516  B1354617    0.50    0.60    0.60
 20060829  1717  B1354622    0.50    0.60    0.60
 20060830  0511  B1354314    0.40    0.50    0.50
 20060830  1732  B1354537    0.60    0.70    0.70
 20060831  1802  B1354239    0.60    0.80    0.80
 20060905  1724  B1354626    0.60    0.60    0.60
 20060906  0522  B1354525    0.60    0.80    0.80
 20060906  1734  B1354107    0.50    0.50    0.50
 20060907  0537  B1354543    0.70    0.70    0.70
 20060907  1803  B1354586    0.80    0.80    0.80
 20060908  0531  B1354519    0.60    0.60    0.60
 20060908  1728  B1354224    0.60    0.60    0.60
 20060909  0534  B1354532    0.70    0.80    0.80
 20060909  1732  B1354513    0.80    0.90    0.90
 20060910  0516  B1354125    0.60    0.70    0.60
 20060910  1727  B1354110    0.40    0.50    0.50
 20060911  0528  B1354235    0.90    0.90    0.90
 20060911  1849  B1354514    0.70    0.70    0.70
 20060912  0525  B1354124    0.60    0.70    0.70
 20060913  0534  B1344478    0.50    0.50    0.50
 20060914  0520  B1354226    0.70    0.70    0.70
 20060915  0529  B1344459    0.40    0.50    0.50
 20060916  0532  B1344469    0.50    0.40    0.50
 20060916  1732  B1354106    0.50    0.60    0.60
 20060917  0527  B1354210    0.70    0.70    0.70
 20060918  0533  B1354087    0.60    0.60    0.60
 20060919  0526  B1354097    0.70    0.50    0.60
 20060920  0516  B1344462    0.50    0.40    0.50
 20060920  1810  B1354536    0.70    0.70    0.70
 20060921  0534  B1354112    0.50    0.60    0.60
 20060921  1800  B1344502    0.40    0.40    0.40
 20060922  0525  B1354531    0.70    0.80    0.80
 20060922  1736  B1354541    0.70    0.70    0.70
 20060923  0519  B1354101    0.50    0.60    0.60
 20060923  1738  B1354576    0.70    0.50    0.70
 20060924  0536  B1354095    0.60    0.60    0.60
 20060925  0536  B1354098    0.60    0.60    0.60
 20060925  1755  B1354100    0.50    0.50    0.50
 20060926  0531  B1334691    0.70    0.70    0.70
 20060926  1742  B1354108    0.40    0.50    0.50

• Dewpoint Temperature(dp)
• Humidity, relative(rh)

NSA/SONDE/C1 - Increased precision for alt, dp, pres, rh, tdry

The output precision of the following variables was increased 20060929:

   alt	changed from 1m to 0.1m
   dp	changed from 0.1degC to 0.01degC
   pres changed from 0.1 hPa to 0.01 hPa
   RH	changed from 1%RH to 0.01%RH
   tdry changed from .1degC to 0.01degC

Note that the increase in precision does not necessarily imply an increase
in accuracy.  Users are cautioned to continue to use their best scientific
judgement when using these or any other data.

• alt
• Dry Bulb Temperature(tdry)
• Dewpoint Temperature(dp)
• Pressure, atmospheric, constant value of model level, RUC model output(pres)
• Humidity, relative(rh)

NIM/MWRP/M1 - Sun in radiometer's field of view

Around noon local time every day there is a spike in the brightness temperature data. This 
is due to the sun being in the field of view of the radiometer. PWV and LWP are affected 
as a consequence

• Microwave brightness temperature(brightnessTemperature)
• Water vapor, total precipitable, derived from Tbright using stat. retrvl.(totalPrecipitableWater)
• totalPrecipitableWaterRmsError
• liquidWaterPathRmsError
• infraredTemperature
• liquidWaterPath2RmsError
• Liquid water path, from brightness temperatures using statistical retrieval(liquidWaterPath)
• totalPrecipitableWater2RmsError
• Liquid water content, cloud, vert. prof. sfc.-10km, from Tbright stat. retrvl.(liquidWaterContent)
• Water vapor, tot. precipitable, from Tbright, 23.835 & 30.0 GHz, stat. retrvl.(totalPrecipitableWater2)
• Liquid water path, from Tbright at 23.835 and 30.0 GHz only, using stat. retrvl.(liquidWaterPath2)
• liquidWaterContentRmsError

NSA/MWRP/C1 - Reprocessed: Re-calibration

After being re-installed the radiometer was calibrated with liquid nitrogen.
Data between 8/8 and 9/6 have been reprocessed to apply the revised calibrations.

• Pressure, level of free convection(levelFreeConvectionPres)
• Temperature, virtual, vert. prof. sfc-10km, fr. wtr. vap. dens. and temp. prof.(virtualTemperature)
• Pressure, lifting condensation level(liftingCondensationLevelPres)
• Pressure, equilibrium level(equilibriumLevelPres)
• totalPrecipitableWater2RmsError
• Density, water vapor, at instrument height (1 or 2 m)(surfaceWaterVaporDensity)
• Liquid water content, cloud, vert. prof. sfc.-10km, from Tbright stat. retrvl.(liquidWaterContent)
• Liquid water path, from Tbright at 23.835 and 30.0 GHz only, using stat. retrvl.(liquidWaterPath2)
• Height, equilibrium level(equilibriumLevel)
• infraredTemperature
• Energy, potential, convective, available, from RUC model(cape)
• liquidWaterPathRmsError
• waterVaporDensityRmsError
• blackbodyTemperature
• Liquid water path, from brightness temperatures using statistical retrieval(liquidWaterPath)
• Microwave brightness temperature(brightnessTemperature)
• Retrieved water vapor mixing ratio(waterVaporMixingRatio)
• Height, lifting condensation level(liftingCondensationLevel)
• Height, level of free convection(levelFreeConvection)
• liquidWaterContentRmsError
• Retrieved dewpoint temperature(dewpointTemperature)
• liquidWaterPath2RmsError
• Water vapor, total precipitable, derived from Tbright using stat. retrvl.(totalPrecipitableWater)
• Density, water vapor, prof. from sfc.-10 km, der. from Tbright stat. retrvl.(waterVaporDensity)
• totalPrecipitableWaterRmsError
• Height, cloud base, height where IR temp. matches retrieved temp. profile(cloudBaseHeight)
• Water vapor, tot. precipitable, from Tbright, 23.835 & 30.0 GHz, stat. retrvl.(totalPrecipitableWater2)

NIM/MWRP/M1 - IRTs do not agree with AERI

Since deployment at PYE, and then at NIM, the AMF SKYRAD IRT measured about 10K higher sky 
temperatures than the AERI and the MWRP IRT measured about 20K higher than the AERI.  
Several actions were taken to diagnose the problem including confirming the correct 
configuration of the IRTs and data logger, cleaning the mirror and lens, and replacing the mirror.

After several days of rain beginning 6/2/2006, the three instruments came into agreement. 
The cause of the discrepancy was probably dust accumulation on the lens of the instrument

• infraredTemperature

NSA/SONDE/C1 - Incorrect surface values of T and RH

The radiosonde was launched too quickly after being removed from the ground check set.  As 
a result, the system did not equilibrate with the local ground conditions and the 
automatically entered surface values are incorrect.

• Dry Bulb Temperature(tdry)
• Dewpoint Temperature(dp)
• Humidity, relative(rh)

NSA/SONDE/C1 - RH sensor failure

It appears that one of the two RH sensors on this radiosonde was affected by ice after 
emerging from a low cold cloud.  As a result the reported RH values oscillate by about 10 
percent until the alternate heating cycle stops.  I suspect the lower value is more close 
to correct, but can't be absolutely sure.

• Dewpoint Temperature(dp)
• Humidity, relative(rh)

NIM/MWRP/M1 - Reprocessed: K-band calibration drift corrected

During October and November there was a drift in the K-Band calibration of the MWRP. This 
resulted in brightness temperatures that were too high.

New calibration coefficients were derived from the median value of the noise diode 
temperature for the months of October and November and the data were reprocessed to apply the 
corrected calibrations.  The reprocessed data were archived in January 2007.

• Microwave brightness temperature(brightnessTemperature)
• Water vapor, total precipitable, derived from Tbright using stat. retrvl.(totalPrecipitableWater)
• Liquid water path, from brightness temperatures using statistical retrieval(liquidWaterPath)
• Liquid water content, cloud, vert. prof. sfc.-10km, from Tbright stat. retrvl.(liquidWaterContent)
• Water vapor, tot. precipitable, from Tbright, 23.835 & 30.0 GHz, stat. retrvl.(totalPrecipitableWater2)
• Liquid water path, from Tbright at 23.835 and 30.0 GHz only, using stat. retrvl.(liquidWaterPath2)

NSA/MWRP/C1 - Reprocessed: K-Band calibration drift

At the beginning of November, the K-band channel calibration started to drift. The MWRP 
brightness temperatures were about 1.5 K higher than the MWR-measured brightness 
temperatures. By the half of the month the differences were more than 2 K to become about 4 K by 
the end of November. On Nov 27 new calibration coefficients were derived and uploaded.

Data for 20061101-20061127 have been reprocessed with the revised calibrations and are 
available from the ARM Archive effective January 2007.

• Pressure, level of free convection(levelFreeConvectionPres)
• Height, lifting condensation level(liftingCondensationLevel)
• Pressure, lifting condensation level(liftingCondensationLevelPres)
• Height, level of free convection(levelFreeConvection)
• Humidity, relative, prof. from sfc.-10km, from water vap. dens. and temp. prof.(relativeHumidity)
• Liquid water content, cloud, vert. prof. sfc.-10km, from Tbright stat. retrvl.(liquidWaterContent)
• Liquid water path, from Tbright at 23.835 and 30.0 GHz only, using stat. retrvl.(liquidWaterPath2)
• Energy, potential, convective, available, from RUC model(cape)
• Retrieved dewpoint temperature(dewpointTemperature)
• Water vapor, total precipitable, derived from Tbright using stat. retrvl.(totalPrecipitableWater)
• Density, water vapor, prof. from sfc.-10 km, der. from Tbright stat. retrvl.(waterVaporDensity)
• Liquid water path, from brightness temperatures using statistical retrieval(liquidWaterPath)
• Microwave brightness temperature(brightnessTemperature)
• Retrieved water vapor mixing ratio(waterVaporMixingRatio)
• Water vapor, tot. precipitable, from Tbright, 23.835 & 30.0 GHz, stat. retrvl.(totalPrecipitableWater2)

NSA/SONDE/C1 - Incorrect surface RH value

For an unknown reason the surface RH was reported a 0%.  Becuase these values are entered 
automatically by the system, this is NOT likely an operator error.  Examination of the 
raw data shows that the surface RH at launch time was approximately 81.2 %RH.

• Dewpoint Temperature(dp)
• Humidity, relative(rh)

NSA/MWRP/C1 - Reprocessed: 6-channel retrieval replaced by 5-channel retrieval

Due to repeated failure of the V-band receiver and calibration problems, the 6-channel 
retrieval was retired and a new 5-channel retrieval which uses only the K-band channels was 
implemented.

All data previously processed with the 6-channel retrieval have been reprocessed.

Please note that the 7 channels (brightness temperatures) in the V-band range (51 to 60 
GHz) should not be used.  See D080331.1 and D080331.2.

• Microwave brightness temperature(brightnessTemperature)
• Liquid water path, from brightness temperatures using statistical retrieval(liquidWaterPath)
• Liquid water path, from Tbright at 23.835 and 30.0 GHz only, using stat. retrvl.(liquidWaterPath2)