Norwegian initiative for EarthCARE Validation of Aerosol uncertainties and Radiation products in the Arctic (NEVAR)

The “Norwegian initiative for EarthCARE Validation of Aerosol uncertainties and Radiation products in the Arctic” (NEVAR) project aims at supporting the geophysical validation of the EarthCARE data products.

The EarthCARE (Earth Clouds Aerosols and Radiation Explorer) mission is developed by the European Space Agency (ESA) in collaboration with the Japanese Space Agency (JAXA).

Its main goal is improving the understanding of cloud-aerosol-radiation interactions and Earth radiative balance, so that they can be modelled with better reliability in climate and in numerical weather prediction models.

EarthCARE will carry four instruments:

• ATLID (Atmospheric Lidar),
• BBR (Broad-Band Radiometer),
• CPR (Cloud Profiling Radar) and
• MSI (Multi-Spectral Imager)

and will provide numerous data products, namely forty-four ESA products and eleven JAXA products. The launch is expected for April 2024.

For an overview of the EarthCARE mission see:

• Illingworth et al., (2015), or
• https://earth.esa.int/eogateway/missions/earthcare.

The NEVAR project was kicked-off 11 November 2022. It aims at supporting the geophysical validation of the EarthCARE data products. It is split in two phases:

1. Preparatory support activities, which start now and lasting for 18 months, and
2. EarthCARE validation activities, which will be kicked-off 9 months before launch and will end three years after launch.

The main goals and objectives of the NEVAR proposal:

• To inventory instrumental and institutional capabilities in Arctic countries, and to engage these in the validation of EarthCARE.
• To contribute to the formulation of best practice validation protocols for aerosol and cloud profiles.
• To perform a global assessment of aerosol and uncertainty products from EarthCARE.
• To evaluate radiation products for selected location in the Arctic.