Sea surface emissivity models at millimeter waves: validation from aircraft measurements at 89 and 157 GHz

Flying on board the C-130 aircraft of the UK Meteorological Office, the MARSS radiometer (Microwave Airborne Radiometer and Scanning System) provides observations at 89 and 157 GHz, to study the gaseous absorption and surface emissivity in these window channels. From three international measurement campaigns, the sea surface microwave signature is analysed. The sensitivity of the sea emissivity models is investigated for various parameters (wave spectrum, dielectric constant...). Emissivity models are compared and confronted to the radiometric observations.< <ETX xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">&gt;</ETX>