Optimal Use of High Resolution Infrared Sounder Channels in Atmospheric Profile Retrieval

Due to correlations among high resolution infrared sounder radiances and retrieval computation efficiency, it is prudent to use a set of statistically less correlated channels which not only retains the majority of measurement infor-mation but also yields the most accurate atmospheric profile retrievals. The statistical procedure of these channels se-lection is described in the paper. The use of optimal selected channels simulated for the measurements of AIRS (Atmospheric InfRared Sounder) in the statistical / physical retrieval is discussed. Simulated AIRS inversion results demonstrate the advantages of using optimal channel set that produce the accurate and stable retrieval solution.