Note from June 29, 2020
Although we do not yet know how long the social distancing related to the Covid-19 pandemic will last, and regardless of the changes that had to be made in the evaluation of the June 2020 session in relation to what is provided for in this learning unit description, new learnig unit evaluation methods may still be adopted by the teachers; details of these methods have been - or will be - communicated to the students by the teachers, as soon as possible.
Although we do not yet know how long the social distancing related to the Covid-19 pandemic will last, and regardless of the changes that had to be made in the evaluation of the June 2020 session in relation to what is provided for in this learning unit description, new learnig unit evaluation methods may still be adopted by the teachers; details of these methods have been - or will be - communicated to the students by the teachers, as soon as possible.
5 credits
30.0 h
Q2
This biannual learning unit is not being organized in 2019-2020 !
Language
English
Prerequisites
Basic training in physics and mathematics (level of bachelor in sciences or applied sciences).
Main themes
Physico-chemical characteristics of the upper atmosphere and of radiative transfer of solar radiation ; ground-based and space-borne spectroscopic methods ; data processing algorithm and inverse methods.
Aims
At the end of this learning unit, the student is able to : | |
| 1 |
a. Contribution of the teaching unit to the learning outcomes of the programme (PHYS2M and PHYS2M1) AA1: A1.1, A1.5 AA2: A2.5 b. Expected learning outcomes At the end of this teaching unit, the student will be able to : 1. describe the main processes defining the trace gas composition of the upper atmosphere ; 2. understand the basic principles of atmospheric remote sensing: geometry, spectral domains and observation methods ; 3. understand the inverse problems related to ground-based and space-borne observations ; 4. assess the error budgets for several remote sensing modes and identify their intrinsic limitations ; 5. understand the design principles of a space remote sensor and its operational use. |
The contribution of this Teaching Unit to the development and command of the skills and learning outcomes of the programme(s) can be accessed at the end of this sheet, in the section entitled “Programmes/courses offering this Teaching Unit”.
Content
1. Basic concepts about the atmospheric system and radiative transfer
a. atmospheric vertical structure
b. global dynamics and chemical composition
c. solar irradiance and Earth’s radiative balance
d. light-particle interaction and multiple scattering : albedo, aerosols and clouds
2.Observation methods
a. observation geometries from space : emission and absorption, nadir and limb views
b. spectrometers and imagers from UV to mm waves
c. 40 years of space remote sensing : achievements and perspectives
d. ground-based networks and validation of space observations
3. Data processing in space remote sounding
a. scope : orders of magnitude and spatio-temporal resolutions
b. atmospheric corrections
c. specific inverse methods for atmospheric remote sensing
4. Climate variables : measurements and climatologies
a. review of the main climate variables
b related open questions for atmospheric remote sensing
a. atmospheric vertical structure
b. global dynamics and chemical composition
c. solar irradiance and Earth’s radiative balance
d. light-particle interaction and multiple scattering : albedo, aerosols and clouds
2.Observation methods
a. observation geometries from space : emission and absorption, nadir and limb views
b. spectrometers and imagers from UV to mm waves
c. 40 years of space remote sensing : achievements and perspectives
d. ground-based networks and validation of space observations
3. Data processing in space remote sounding
a. scope : orders of magnitude and spatio-temporal resolutions
b. atmospheric corrections
c. specific inverse methods for atmospheric remote sensing
4. Climate variables : measurements and climatologies
a. review of the main climate variables
b related open questions for atmospheric remote sensing
Teaching methods
Lectures.
Integrative project.
Tutorial of MODTRAN 6.
Integrative project.
Tutorial of MODTRAN 6.
Evaluation methods
Oral examination based on a global analysis of a scientific paper describing a remote sensing space mission.
Bibliography
« Inverse Methods for Atmospheric Sounding : Theory and Practice », Clive Rodgers, World Scientific, https://doi.org/10.1142/3171.
Faculty or entity
PHYS
