Glossary

Given below in alphabetical order are general terms and definitions.

A

ACRIM
Active Cavity Radiometer Irradiance Monitor

ADEOS
Advanced Earth Observation Satellite -2, Japan

AFD
Automated File Distributor (Communication server at DWD)

AGCM
Atmospheric Global Circulation Model

ADM
Angular Distribution Model

AIRS
Atmospheric Infrared Sounder

AMSR (ADEOS-2)
Advanced Microwave Scanning Radiometer (Advanced Earth Observation Satellite-2, Japan)

AMSR-E (EOS-PM-1)
Advanced Microwave Scanning Radiometer-E (Earth Observing System-Post Meridiem Platform)

AMSU
Advanced Microwave Sounding Unit

AOML
Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory

ASCAT
Advanced Scatterometer proposed for METOP/EPS (Meteorological Operational Satellite European Polar System)

ATOVS
Advanced Tiros Operation Vertical Sounder

AVHRR
Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer

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B

BRDF
Bi-directional Reflectivity Function

BSH
Bundesamt für Seeschifffahrt und Hydrographie

BSRN
Basis Surface Radiation Network

BUFR
Binary Universal Form for the Representation of Meteorological Data

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C

CAC
Climate Analysis Center SST/Sea Ice Climatology (Washington)

CCM
Coupled Circulation Model

CDO
Climate Data Operators

CDS
Cloud Detection System

CERES
Clouds and the Earth's Radiant Energy System

CFC
Fractional cloud cover

CLARA
CM SAF cLoud, Albedo and surface Radiation dataset from AVHRR data

CLIWANET
CLoud LIquid WAter NETwork

CM SAF
The Satellite Application Facility on Climate Monitoring (CM SAF) is dedicated to the high-quality long-term monitoring of the climate system's state and variability, partly on the regional level. It supports the analysis and diagnosis of climate parameters in order to detect and understand changes in the climate system. The SAF furthermore serves the modelling of the atmospheric system as well as planning and management purposes.

CORDEX
COordinated Regional climate Downscaling Experiment

COT
Optical depth

CPH
Cloud phase

CTH
Cloud top height

CTT
Cloud top temperature

CTY
Cloud type

CWP
Cloud water path

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D

DADF
Data Acquisition and Dissemination Facility

DIARAD
Differential Absolute Radiometer

DOI
Digital Object Identifier

DKRZ
Deutsches Klima-RechenZentrum (German Climate Computing Center)

DLR
Deutsches Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt

DVD
Digital Versatile Disc

DWD
Deutscher Wetterdienst

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E

ECMWF
European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasting

EPS
European polar system

ERB
Earth Radiation Budget

ERBE
Earth Radiation Budget Experiment

ERS-2
European Remote-sensing Satellite - 2

ESA PSS 05
European Space Agency Software Engineering Standards

EUMETSAT
European Organisation for the Exploitation of Meteorological Satellites

EUREF
EUropäisches REFerenznetz

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F

FMI
Finnish Meteorological Institute

FTP
File Transfer Protocol

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G

GERB
Global Earth Radiation Budget

GEWEX
Global Energy and Water cycle EXperiment

GISST
Globally complete historical Sea Surfac Temperature and sea ice concentration (run by UK MET Office)

GME
Global Modell Extended (global NWP model to be used operationally at DWD in 2000)

GOES
Global Observation Earth Satellite

GRAS-SAF
Global navigation satellite Receiver Atmospheric Sounder-SAF

GTS
Global Telecommunication System

GUI
Graphical User Interface

GvaP
GEWEX water Vapour Programme

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H

HDF5
Hierarchical Data Format, Version 5

HCP
Humidity Composite Product

HLW
HCP-Layered Water Vapour

HSH
HCP-Specific Humidity

HTW
HCP-Total Water Vapour

HRIS
High Resolution Infrared Sounder

HRIT
High Rate Information Transmission

HRUS
High Rate User Stations

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I

IASI
Infrared Atmospheric Sounding Interferometer

ICD
Interface Control Document

ICDS
Improve Cloud Detection System

ISCCP
International Satellite Cloud Climatology Project

IR
InfraRed

ISO
Internal State of the Ocean

ISS
International Space Station

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K

KNMI
Royal Dutch Meteorological Institute

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L

LPW
Layer Precipitable Water

LRIT
Low Rate Image Transfer

LUT
LookUp Table (data from RTMs)

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M

MAP
Merged Atlantic Product (by O&SI-SAF)

METEOSAT
geostationary METeorological SATellite operated by EUMETSAT

MeteoSwiss
Federal Office of Meteorology and Climatology MeteoSwiss

METOP
METeorological Operational satellite

MHS
Microwave Humidity Sounder

MMI
Man-Machine-Interface

MPEF
Meteorological Products Extraction Facility

MSG
Meteosat Second Generation

MSGGS
MSG Ground Segment

MTH
Middle Tropospheric Humidity

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N

NCEP
National Center for Environmental Prediction

NetCDF
Network Common Data Format

NMS
National Meteorological Service

NOAA
National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration

NRT
Near Real Time

NWC-SAF
Nowcasting SAF

NWP
Numerical Weather Prediction

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O

O3SAF
Ozone Satellite Application Facility

OGCM
Ocean Global Circulation Model

OFL
Off-line

OGE
Operation Ground Equipment of GOES satellites

O&SI-SAF
Ocean and Sea-ice Satellite Application Facility

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P

PGE
Product Generation Element

PICARD
French microsatellite

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Q

QuikSCAT
NASA's Quick Scatterometer replacing the failed NSCAT onboard ADEOS

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R

RADR
Requirement analysis and Architectural Design Review

RMIB
Royal Meteorological Institute of Belgium

RTM
Radiation Transfer Model

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S

SZA
Solar Zenith Angle

SMHI
Swedish Meteorological and Hydrological Institute

SSM/I
Special Sensor Microwave/Imager

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T

TBC
To be confirmed

TBD
To be defined/determined

TET
Emitted thermal radiative flux at the top of the atmosphere

TIM
Total Irradiance Monitor

TIS
Incoming solar radiative flux at the top of the atmosphere

TM
Task Manager for the CM SAF application

TPW
Total Precipitable Water

TRS
Reflected solar radiative flux at the top of the atmosphere

TOA
Top of the Atmosphere

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U

UARS
Upper Atmospheric Research Satellite

UB/IUP
University of Bremen, Institut für Umweltphysik

UHD
User Help Desk

UMARF
Unified Meteorological Archive & Retrieval Facility

UMRS
UMARF Requirements Specification

URD
User Requirement Document

USGS
United States Geological Survey

UTH
Upper Tropospheric Humidity

UV
Ultra Violet

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V

VIRGO
Variability of solar Irradiance and Gravity Oscillations

VIS
Visible

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W

WHP
SAC WOCE Hydrographic Programme Special Analysis Center (Hamburg)

WindSat
Satellite Based Wind Speed and Direction System

WMO
World Meteorological Organization

WP
Work Package in the CM SAF

WWW
World Wide Web

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X

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Y

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Z

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