BackForwardInstrument:  MTVZA-OK (optical) 

Instrument details
Acronym MTVZA-OK (optical)
Full name Combined Microwave-Optical Imaging/Sounding Radiometer (optical component)
Purpose Cloud, aerosol and vegetation observation
Short description 5-channel VIS/NIR/MWIR radiometer [see detailed characteristics below]
Background Part of a combined MW imaging radiometer and VIS/IR imager
Scanning Technique Conical, 55.4° viewing angle, 21 scan/min (19 km/scan), parallel lines by using linear array detectors; swath 2000 km
Resolution 1.1 km
Coverage / Cycle Nearly-global each day
Mass Power Data Rate

 

Providing Agency NSAU
Instrument Maturity Flown on an R&D satellite
Utilization Period: 2005 to 2006
Last update: 2017-03-27
Detailed characteristics

Central wavelength

Spectral interval

SNR or NEΔT @ specified input

0.41 µm

0.37-0.45 µm

8.1 @ 0.5 % albedo

0.51 µm

0.45-0.51 µm

8.1 @ 0.5 % albedo

0.63 µm

0.58-0.68 µm

8.1 @ 0.5 % albedo

0.73 µm

0.68-0.78 µm

8.1 @ 0.5 % albedo

3.74 µm

3.55-3.93 µm

0.2 K @ 300 K

Satellites this instrument is flying on

Note: a red tag indicates satellites no longer operational, a green tag indicates operational satellites, a blue tag indicates future satellites

Instrument classification
  • Earth observation instrument
  • Passive optical radiometer or spectrometer
  • Moderate resolution optical imager
WIGOS Subcomponents
  • Subcomponent 1
  • VIS/IR imagery; realisation of a Day/Night band [in SSO]
  • VIS/IR imager [in SSO]
Mission objectives
Primary mission objectives
  • Cloud cover
  • Cloud optical depth
  • Cloud top height
  • Cloud type
Evaluation of Measurements

The following list indicates which measurements can typically be retrieved from this category of instrument. To see a full Gap Analysis by Variable, click on the respective variable.

Note: table can be sorted by clicking on the column headers
Note: * Primary mission objective.
VariableRelevance for measuring this variableOperational limitationsExplanation
Biomass5 - marginalCloud sensitive.. Index only.. Daylight only.VIS and NIR channels. Biomass inferred from NDVI
Cloud cover*5 - marginalNo specific limitation.MWIR channel(s)
Cloud drop effective radius3 - highAt cloud top.. Daylight only.VIS, NIR and MWIR channels (for differentiation)
Cloud ice effective radius3 - highAt cloud top.. Daylight only.VIS, NIR and MWIR channels (for differentiation)
Cloud optical depth*4 - fairLow-density cloud only.. Daylight only.VIS and NIR channels
Cloud top height*5 - marginalDaylight only.NIR channels to estimate the total-column O2 above the cloud top as measured around 760 nm
Cloud type*5 - marginalDaylight only.VIS and NIR channels
Downward short-wave irradiance at Earth surface5 - marginalCloud sensitive.. Highly indirect.VIS and NIR channels
Earth surface albedo5 - marginalCloud sensitive.VIS channels
Fire fractional cover4 - fairCloud sensitive.. No specific limitation.. Coarse spatial resolution.VIS and MWIR channels
Fire radiative power4 - fairCloud sensitive.. Coarse spatial resolution.MWIR channels
Fire temperature4 - fairCloud sensitive.. Coarse spatial resolution.MWIR channels
Fraction of Absorbed PAR (FAPAR)4 - fairCloud sensitive.VIS channels including Red at 700 nm
Land surface temperature4 - fairCloud sensitive.. Affected by sunlight.MWIR window channel(s) (high sensitivity to high temperature, cloud impact reduction)
Leaf Area Index (LAI)4 - fairCloud sensitive.. Daylight only.VIS and NIR channels. LAI inferred from NDVI
Normalised Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI)3 - highCloud sensitive.VIS and NIR channels
Photosynthetically Active Radiation (PAR)4 - fairCloud sensitive.VIS channels, range undersampled
Sea surface temperature4 - fairCloud sensitive.. Affected by sunlight.MWIR window channel(s) around 3.7 micrometers (cloud impact reduction)
Short-wave cloud reflectance5 - marginalNo specific limitation.VIS and NIR channels
Snow cover4 - fairCloud sensitive.. Daylight only.VIS and NIR channels
Soil moisture at surface4 - fairCloud sensitive.. Index only.VIS and MWIR window channels. Soil moisture inferred from thermal inertia
Upward short-wave irradiance at TOA5 - marginalSpectral interpolation needed.. Information on BRDF needed.VIS and NIR channels
Aerosol volcanic ash3 - highCloud sensitive.. Daylight only.VIS and NIR channels including 760 nm for high-level ashes
Aerosol volcanic ash Total Column3 - highCloud sensitive.. Daylight only.VIS and NIR channels including 760 nm for high-level ashes
Sea-ice cover4 - fairCloud sensitive.VIS, NIR (for contour enhancement) and MWIR channels