Atmospheric Measurement Techniques Discussions www.atmos-meas-tech-discuss.net 1867-8610 3 2 2010 10.5194/amtd-3-1439-2010 http://www.atmos-meas-tech-discuss.net/3/1439/2010/ http://www.atmos-meas-tech-discuss.net/3/1439/2010/amtd-3-1439-2010.html http://www.atmos-meas-tech-discuss.net/3/1439/2010/amtd-3-1439-2010.pdf 1439 1494 2010-04-01 An automatic contrail tracking algorithm M. Vazquez-Navarro margarita.vazquez@dlr.de H. Mannstein B. Mayer Deutsches Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt, Institut für Physik der Atmosphäre, Oberpfaffenhofen, Germany A method designed to track the life cycle of contrail-cirrus using satellite data with high temporal and spatial resolution, from its formation to the final dissolution of the aviation-induced cirrus cloud is presented. The method follows the evolution of contrails from their linear stage until they are undistinguishable from natural cirrus clouds. Therefore, the study of the effect of aircraft-induced clouds in the atmosphere is no longer restricted to linear contrails and can include contrail-cirrus. The method takes advantage of the high spatial resolution of polar orbiting satellites and the high temporal resolution of geostationary satellites to identify the pixels that belong to an aviation induced cloud. The high spatial resolution data of the MODIS sensor is used for contrail detection, and the high temporal resolution of the SEVIRI sensor in the Rapid Scan mode is used for contrail tracking. An example is included in which the method is applied to the study of a long lived contrail over the bay of Biscay. Bakan, S., Betancor, M., Gayler, V., and Graßl, H.: Contrail frequency over Europe from NOAA-satellite images, Ann. Geophys., 12, 962–968, 1994. Canty, M J.: Image analysis, classification and change detection in remote sensing, CRC Taylor & Francis, 2007. Fu, Q. and Liou, K N.: Parameterization of the Radiative Properties of Cirrus Clouds, J. Atmos. Sci., 50, 2008–2025, 1993. Gierens, K.: Numerical simulations of persistent contrails, J. Atmos. Sci., 53, 3333–3348, 1996. Lee, D S., Fahey, D W., Forster, P M., Newton, P J., Wit, R. C N., Lim, L L., Owen, B., and Sausen, R.: Aviation and global climate change in the 21st century, Atmos. Environ., 43, 3520–3537, doi:10.1016/j.atmosenv.2009.04.024, 2009. Lee, T F.: Jet contrail identification using the AVHRR infrared split window, J. Appl. Meteorol., 28, 993–995, 1989. Mannstein, H., Meyer, R., and Wendling, P.: Operational Detection of Contrails from NOAA-AVHRR-Data, Int. J. Remote Sens., 20, 1641–1660, 1999. Meyer, R., Mannstein, H., Meerkoetter, R., Schumann, U., and Wendling, P.: Regional radiative forcing by line-shaped contrails derived from satellite data, J. Geophys. Res., 107(D10), 4104, doi:10.1029/2001JD000426, 2002. Meyer, R., Buell, R., Leiter, C., Mannstein, H., Marquart, S., Oki, T., and Wendling, P.: Contrail observations over Southern and Eastern Asia in NOAA/AVHRR data and comparisons to contrail simulations in a GCM, Int. J. Remote Sens., 28, 2049–2069, 2007. Minnis, P., Ayers, J K., Palikonda, R., and Phan, D.: Contrails, Cirrus Trends, and Climate, J. Climate, 17, 1671–1685, 2004. Minnis, P., Palikonda, R., Walter, B J., Ayers, J K., and Mannstein, H.: Contrail properties over the eastern North Pacific from AVHRR data, Meteor. Z., 14, 515–523, 2005. Palikonda, R., Minnis, P., Duda, D P., and Mannstein, H.: Contrail coverage derived from 2001 AVHRR data over the continental United States of America and surrounding areas, Meteor. Z., 14, 515–523, 2005. Ponater, M., Marquart, S., and Sausen, R.: Contrails in a comprehensive global climate model: parameterization and radiative forcing results, J. Geophys. Res, 107(D13), 4164, doi:10.1029/2001JD000429, 2002. Sassen, K.: Contrail-Cirrus and Their Potential for Regional Climate Change, B. Am. Meteorol. Soc., 78, 1885–1903, 1997. Schroeder, F., Kaercher, B., Duroure, C., Stroem, K., Petzold, A., Gayet, J F., Strauss, B., Wendling, P., and Borrmann, S.: On the Transition of Contrails into Cirrus Clouds, J. Atmos. Sci., 57, 464–480, 2000. Schumann, U.: Formation, properties and climatic effects of contrails, C. R. Physique, 6, 549–565, 2005. Stark, J.-L., Murtagh, R., and Bijaoui, A.: Image Processing and Data Analysis. The multiscale approach, Cambridge University Press, 1998.