Radiometric Calibration of the

ASTER Thermal Infrared (TIR)

Subsystem

Simon J. Hook
NASA/JPL
 Outline
• ASTER TIR subsystem.
• On-board calibration (OBC) of TIR
subsystem.
• In-flight validation of TIR subsystem.
• Consequence of instrument drift on higher
level data products.
• Conclusions/Future work
TIR Subsystem
TIR Subsystem Characteristics

Scan Whiskbroom
Telescope optics Reflective (Newtonian)
Spectrum
separation Bandpass filter
Focal plane
(Detector) HgCdTe (PC) 10x5
Cryocooler Stirling cycle, 80K
Scan mirror rotation +/-
Cross track pointing 8.55 degrees
Thermal control Cold plate
Calibration Blackbody 270-340 K
 TIR Baseline Performance
Requirements

Maximum Input High Level Input Low Level Input

Band No
Radiance Radiance Radiance
Radiance of a 370 Radiance of a Radiance of a 200 K
10-14
K Blackbody 300 K blackbody blackbody
 On Board Calibration of TIR
• Short term calibration performed for every
strip with blackbody set to nominal value.
• Long term calibration performed by
periodically looking at blackbody a 4
temperatures between 270 K and 340 K.
Temperatures are: 270 K, 300 K, 320 K and
340 K. To date ~ 50 long term calibrations
have been performed.
Radiometric Database Status
Date of On-board
Radiometric Database
Calibration
Ver. 1.0x, 2.00, 2.01, 2.02 85
Ver. 2.03, 2.04 270
Ver. 2.05 406
Ver. 2.06 607
Ver. 2.07 738
Ver. 2.08 837
Ver. 2.09 871
 C1 of online RCC DB
-3
Band 12
9.00 10

-3
8.50 10
v2.09

-3
8.00 10
C1

v2.06

v2.05
-3
7.50 10

v1.0x
-3
7.00 10
0 200 400 600 800 1000 1200

Days
Calibration error in using online
RCC DB
Band 12 @ 300K
0.5

v1.0x
0

v2.05
Calibration Error (K)

-0.5 v2.06

-1

-1.5

-2
0 200 400 600 800 1000 1200
Days
In-Flight Validation of ASTER
Data at the Lake Tahoe CA/NV
Automated Validation Site
2000-09-20-D
 Measurements
• Offshore
– bulk temperature, skin temperature, air
temperature, wind speed, wind direction,
relative humidity, net radiation.
• Onshore
– air temperature, wind speed, wind direction,
relative humidity, short and longwave radiation
(up and down), sky imager, aerosols, total
column water.
Bulk temperature measurements
Laboratory Calibration: Radiometer
• NIST designed cone in a 44 liter temperature
controlled bath. Stability at 25 C: +/- 0.0007 C
(7008-IR)
• Thermistor standard probe with an accuracy
specification of 0.0015 ° C over 0-60 ° C and
stability/yr of 0.005 ° C. (Model 5643-R)
• Readout system with an accuracy of 0.0025 ° C at
25 ° C and resolution of 0.0001 ° (Chub E4)
• Secondary standard PRT.
Laboratory Calibration of Radiometer
Cross Comparison of Radiometers at Miami
 Cross Comparison of Radiometers at
Miami
30.00
JPL - kinetic
29.50 salinograph (D)
Hard Hat (E)
29.00 DAR011 (F)
MAERI (H)
28.50
SISTer (I)

28.00

27.50

27.00

26.50

26.00
05/30/01 05/30/01 05/31/01 05/31/01 05/31/01 05/31/01 06/01/01
Date and Time (GMT)
 Means and standard deviations of the estimated skin
SST differences between pairs of radiometers for the
entire cruise period, and for each half of the cruise
Time 150.50 to 152.00 150.50 to 151.25 151.25 to 152.00
Radiometer Mean Std.Dev N Mean Std.Dev N Mean Std.Dev N
Pair (K) (K) (K) (K) (K) (K)
MAE-ISA 0.002 0.135 80 0.005 0.135 69 –0.015 0.135 11
MAE-SIS 0.046 0.066 144 0.046 0.066 74 0.045 0.068 70
MAE-JPL 0.007 0.114 148 0.052 0.111 77 -0.042 0.096 71
MAE-DAR -0.008 0.076 149 0.022 0.071 78 -0.041 0.067 71
ISA-SIS 0.038 0.101 79 0.030 0.101 67 0.085 0.093 12
ISA-JPL 0.026 0.142 81 0.027 0.141 70 0.018 0.150 11
ISA-DAR 0.007 0.114 80 0.019 0.112 69 -0.064 0.107 11
SIS-JPL -0.048 0.099 144 -0.009 0.103 74 -0.088 0.078 70
SIS-DAR -0.053 0.074 144 -0.019 0.054 74 -0.088 0.076 70
JPL-DAR -0.014 0.103 148 -0.028 0.102 77 0.000 0.102 71
 Data Reduction: Methodology For
Radiance at Sensor Validation
• Extract the bulk temperatures.
• Extract the radiometric temperature.
• Correct the radiometric temperature to skin kinetic
temperature.
• Propagate the skin temperature to the satellite using a radiative
transfer model and interpolated atmospheric profile.
• Convolve the propagated at-sensor radiance to the instrument
response function to obtain the Vicarious Radiance (VR).
• Extract the image radiance derived using the On Board
calibrator (OBC).
• Compare and contrast the OBC and VR Radiance values.
 Sensitivity Analysis for Correction of
Radiometric Temperature to Skin Temperature

Perturbation Kinetic Temperature Difference from no

(degrees C) perturbation

None 5.579 20.703 0.000 0.000

Blackbody Target 4.804 19.850 -0.775 -0.853
No Sky Radiance 5.779 20.871 0.200 0.168
Water Factor 0.7 5.596 20.715 0.017 0.012
Water Factor 1.3 5.561 20.691 -0.018 -0.012
Air Temperature – 2.0 C 5.590 20.712 0.011 0.009
Air Temperature +2.0 C 5.568 20.694 -0.011 -0.009
Ozone Factor 0.5 5.585 20.709 0.006 0.006
Ozone Factor 1.5 5.574 20.700 -0.005 -0.003
 Skin Effect
Skin cooling
Temperature
0.1 mm
Sea surface
Water surface

Diurnal thermocline

2m Night time
Depth Afternoon

After Minnett et al. 2000

 Variations in the bulk-, skin-, air-
temperatures and wind speed on June 7,
2001 at L. Tahoe
20 50
Air Temperature
45
18
40
Bulk Temperature
Skin Temperature 35
16
30

14 25

20
12
15

Net Radiation 10
10
(rescaled)
Wind Speed 5

8 0
0000 0400 0800 1200 1600 2000 0000
Time (UTC)
 ASTER 3x3 pixel Vicarious and On Board Calibrator (OBC) Derived Radiances
at Lake Tahoe CY2000-2002 versions 1.02, 2.05, 2.06, 2.09
8.50

3/12/2000 6/24/2000
8.00 8/4/2000 8/19/2000
11/7/2000 2/27/2001
2/28/2001 3/16/2001
6/3/2001 7/22/2001
7.50 8/20/2000 8/22/2001
10/9/2001 11/3/2001
1/14/2002 2/6/2002
6/6/2002 6/7/2002
7.00 6/22/2002 9/2/2002
9/10/2002 9/26/2002
10/12/2002 1x1
6.50

6.00

5.50

5.00
5.00 5.50 6.00 6.50 7.00 7.50 8.00 8.50
2
OBC Radiance (W/m µm sr)
 ASTER 3x3 pixel Vicarious and On Board Calibrator (OBC) Derived Radiances
at Lake Tahoe CY2000-2002 versions 1.02, 2.05, 2.06, 2.09

8.50

1x1 line
8.00 Band 10 (8.29 um)
Band 11 (8.63 um)
Band 12 (9.08 um)
7.50 Band 13 (10.66 um)
Band 14 (11.29 um)
Linear (Band 10 (8.29
7.00 um))
Linear (Band 11 (8.63
um))
Linear (Band 12 (9.08
um))
Linear (Band 13 (10.66
6.50 um))
Linear (Band 14 (11.29
um))
Band 11 Band 12 Band 13 Band 14
Band 10
6.00
y = 1.0156x - 0.0683 y = 1.027x - 0.1451 y = 1.0138x - 0.089 y = 1.0135x - 0.0673
y = 1.0127x - 0.0497 2 2
2 2
R = 0.9969
2
R = 0.9952 R = 0.9977 R = 0.9967
R = 0.9967
5.50
5.50 6.00 6.50 7.00 2
7.50 8.00 8.50
OBC Radiance (W/m sr µm)
 ASTER 3x3 pixel Temperature Difference between Vicarious and OBC BT's at Lake
Tahoe CY2000-2002 v1.02 (1-8), v2.05 (9-10), v1.02 (11-13), v2.0.6 (14-22), v2.09 (23)

0.8

0.6

0.4

0.2

-0.2

-0.4

-0.6
Band 10 (8.29 µm) Band 11 (8.63 µm) Band 12 (9.08 µm)
-0.8 Band 13 (10.66 µm) Band 14 (11.29 µm)

-1

Overpass Date
 ASTER 3x3 pixel Temperature Difference between Vicarious and OBC BT's at Lake
Tahoe CY2000-2002 v1.02 (1-8), v2.05 (9-10), v1.02 (11-13), v2.0.6 (14-22), v2.09 (23)
1

0.8

0.6

0.4

0.2

-0.2

-0.4

-0.6

-0.8 Band 13 (10.66 um)

-1
Overpass Date
 Comparison of Vicarious Minus OBC BT's for the clearest band for
MODIS and ASTER at Lake Tahoe CY2000-2002
1.00

0.80

0.60

0.40

0.20

0.00

-0.20

-0.40

-0.60 AB13 - 10.66 µm MB31 - 11.01 µm

-0.80

-1.00

Instrument and Overpass

Consequence of Calibration Drift on
Products

• AST08 – Surface temperature

• AST05 – Surface emissivity
 Difference between ASTER Products (AST1B and AST08) and Vicarious
Measurements at Lake Tahoe CA/NV CY 2000-2002
2.00

Delta skin temperature (AST08 - Vicarious)

1.50
Delta at sensor brightness temp. (Vicarious - Band 13)
1.00

0.50

0.00

-0.50

-1.00

-1.50

-2.00

Overpass Date
 Emissivity Change with Time for ASTER (AST05) Product

1.000

0.980

0.960

0.940

0.920 b10
b11
0.900 b12
b13
0.880 b14

0.860

0.840
10/1/2000 1/9/2001 4/19/2001 7/28/2001 11/5/2001 2/13/2002 5/24/2002 9/1/2002 12/10/2002 3/20/2003
Time
 Summary/Future
• Calibration of the TIR subsystem is changing with
time.
• Rate of change is currently increasing.
• Radiometric coefficients are not updated with
sufficient frequency, introducing artifacts into data.
• Artifacts exceed calibration requirement.
• Consequence of calibration drift depends on product.
• ASTER team currently working on a procedure to
correct the drift.