Estimation of Total Precipitable Water in East Asia Using the MODIS Satellite Data

Estimation of Total Precipitable Water in East Asia Using the MODIS Satellite Data

In this study. the amounts of the total precipitable water (TPW) in both global and regional scale are estimated from the MODIS instrument, which is on-board the EOS satellites, Terra and Aqua. The estimation is made from the five near-infrared spectral bands, using a technique employing ratios of water- vapor absorbing channels centered at 0.905, 0.936, 0.940 ${\mu}{\textrm}{m}$ with atmospheric window channels at 0.865 and 1.240 ${\mu}{\textrm}{m}$. Through analyses of monthly and eight-days mean TPW, one can monitor characteristics of seasonal variations as well as amount and distribution (i.e., water resources) of TPW at both global and local regions. Long-term monitoring of TPW is essential to understand the regional variations of water resources in East Asia.