Stability of the Earth Radiation Budget Experiment Scanner Results for the First Two Years of Multiple-Satellite Operation

Abstract

Clear-sky albedos and outgoing longwave radiation (OLR) determined from Earth Radiation Budget Experiment (ERBE) scanners on board the earth radiation budget satellite and NOAA-9 spacecraft were analyzed for three target sites for the months February 1985?January 1987. The targets were oceans, deserts, and a multiscene site covering half the earth's surface. Year-to-year ratios of the monthly albedos and OLR were within the 0.98?1.02 range with a standard error of about 1%. The data indicate that ERBE scanner measurements were stable to within a few tenths of a percent for the two-year period.