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Science Meetings

Validation of Aquarius Sea Surface Salinity Data With In Situ Measurements from the SPURS Field Experiment
Chao, Y., Zhang, H., Centurioni, L., Farrar, T., Fratantoni, D., and Hodges, B. (12-Nov-14)

In situ measurements collected from the SPURS (Salinity Processes in the Upper Ocean Regional Study) field experiment during September 2012 - October 2013 are used to quantify the mismatches between the sea surface salinity (SSS) as retrieved from the Aquarius L-band radiometer and Argo profiling floats. What is the SSS variability within the 7-day Aquarius satellite orbit repeat cycle? What is the SSS variability within the three Aquarius footprints? What is the vertical stratification between salinity measured by the Aquarius L-band radiometer at about 1 cm and measurements by in situ sensors/platforms at various depths from 1 cm to 10 m Using the multiple independent in situ measurements, the accuracy for the Aquarius retrieved SSS in the SPURS region is assessed, and compared to the accuracy assessed by the standard Argo profiling float. Using the four independent data types, we can select any three data types to perform triple-point analysis to derive the weekly Aquarius error in the range of 0.13 to 0.14 psu, which is already smaller the allocated monthly error of 0.16 psu.