A model-based approach to correcting spectral irradiance data using an upward-looking airborne sensor (CASI ILS)

Abstract

A number of aircraft sensors have the facility to measure spectral downwelling irradiance using a sensor mounted on the roof of the aircraft, but these data are rarely used for atmospheric correction. Part of the problem is that the attitude of the airborne platform is always changing during flight, even in stable conditions, so that direct use of data from an incident light sensor (ILS) can introduce errors into atmospheric correction methods. The continual motion of the ILS is used here to advantage, as a means to fit a sky radiance distribution model developed by Brunger and Hooper (1993) to data from the Itres Instruments CASI ILS. The inclination of the ILS sensor, due to changing aircraft attitude, is considered as the slope plane in the model. The selected model coefficients correspond to parameterised atmospheric conditions and represent atmospheric transmission and the proportion of direct:diffuse flux. The method was used to correct CASI ILS data acquired over a site in southern England. Comparison with spectral irradiance measured simultaneously on the ground shows that the method reduced the variability of the ILS data and also compensated for the effect of different flight directions. The sky radiance distribution at sensor level is also calculated by the model, and shows the characteristics of the sky conditions at the time of each flight.

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