Variational Inversion of the SSM/I Observations during the ASTEX Campaign

Given the prospect of direct assimilation of satellite microwave radiances within numerical weather prediction (NWP) schemes, this study proposes to test a nonlinear inversion for retrieving geophysical parameters from Special Sensor Microwave/Imager (SSM/I) measurements using NWP forecasts as a priori information. The inversion method relies upon an accurate analysis of the radiative transfer and simultaneously retrieves the surface wind speed, the integrated water vapor, and the cloud liquid water.