Description
The data set contains monthly averaged 3-hour global fields of sixlongwave (LW) surface and Top of Atmosphere (TOA) radiative parameters derivedwith the Longwave algorithm of the NASA World Climate Research Programme/GlobalEnergy and Water-Cycle Experiment (WCRP/GEWEX) Surface Radiation Budget (SRB)Project.There are a total of six parameters in these files as follows:1. TOA Upward Clear-Sky Flux/Clear-sky Outgoing Longwave Radiation (OLR) (clr_lw_toa_up)2. Surface Clear-sky Upward Longwave Flux (clr_lw_sfc_up)3. Surface Clear-sky Downward Longwave Flux (clr_lw_sfc_dn)4. TOA All-Sky Upward Longwave Flux/OLR (lw_toa_up)5. Surface All-Sky Upward Longwave Flux (lw_sfc_up)6. Surface All-Sky Downward Longwave Flux (lw_sfc_dn)These parameters are derived originally on a 3-hourly temporal resolution (i.e.,a global instantaneous gridded field every 3 hours). The 3-hourly values areused to compute monthly averages separately for each of the 8 UT hours (00, 03,06, 09, 12, 15, 18, and 21 UT). The current version of the datasets isidentified as Release 3.1.The GEWEX LW algorithm uses the Fu et al. (1997) thermal infrared radiativetransfer code requiring atmospheric profile information, cloud, and surfaceproperties. The sources for these inputs are briefly described below. Adetailed description of the algorithm is currently being prepared forpublication.