PATMOS-x Version 6.0: 40 Years of Merged AVHRR and HIRS Global Cloud Data

Abstract

Abstract A new version of the PATMOS-x multidecadal cloud record, version 6.0, has been produced and is available from the NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information. A description of the processes and methods used for generating the dataset are presented, with a focus on the differences between version 6.0 and the previous version of PATMOS-x, version 5.3. The new version appears both to be more stable, with less intersatellite variability, and to have more consistent polar cloud detection, phase distribution, and cloud-top height distribution when compared against the MODIS EOS record. Improvements in consistency and performance are attributed to the addition of multidimensional variables for cloud detection, constraining cloud retrievals to radiometric bands available throughout the record, and the addition of data from the HIRS instrument. Significance Statement The PATMOS-x project produces multidecadal cloudiness records from polar-orbiting satellites. Version 6.0 combines imager and sounder data from 15 satellites and shows significant improvements in accuracy and stability.