Globally gridded satellite observations for climate studies

Geostationary satellites have now been providing weather data for 50 years. Much of these data have been neglected by climate observation studies due to difficulties with calibration and data processing over such a long period. Collection and data ownership rights were spread out across several international agencies. The ISCCP project is overcoming these barriers and this paper has presented details on the most up-to-date and easily accessible global satellite record: GridSat. This new record provides equal-angle gridded uniform observations of brightness temperatures every 3 h from 1980 to the present for most of the globe. We have demonstrated the multiple and diverse uses of the data for climate analysis made possible by GridSat data-from predicting drought and food security in Africa to the detailed and historical tracking of hurricanes. This only touches on some of the potential uses of GridSat. Accurate records of global atmospheric fields are essential for future research on climate change as well as the understanding of the planet's meteorology. By reconstructing past satellite data and combining them with current satellite observations, a seamless data record has been obtained for the study of Earth's atmospheric state. In addition, GridSat has given a wide range of users very easy access to this new data record. Development of GridSat will continue, focusing on improving the current data files and supporting more applications. © 2011 American Meteorological Society