Signature of atmospheric stability upon sea surface on microwave radiometer data at 10.7 and 19.35 GHz. Comparisons with double scale model simulations

Studies the dependence of sea surface brightness temperatures on atmospheric stability. We used data measured by the TRMM microwave radiometer (TMI), at 10.7 and 19.35 GHz. These measurements are collocated with meteorological analyses of the ECMWF model. The stability parameter is (z/L), where z is the height at which wind speed is evaluated (10 m in this study), and L is the Monin-Obukhov length. Significant variations with stability are evidenced, depending on the SST and the surface wind range. The major result is that a significant decrease of the brightness temperatures with stability is observed, in agreement with model simulations.