HR: 1340h
AN: SF23A-0031    [Abstracts]
TI: The Amma-Sat Database
AU: * Ramage, K
EM: Karim.Ramage@lmd.polytechnique.fr
AF: LMD/IPSL/CNRS, Ecole Polytechnique RD 36, Palaiseau Cedex, 91128 France
AU: Desbois, M
EM: Michel.Desbois@lmd.polytechnique.fr
AF: LMD/IPSL/CNRS, Ecole Polytechnique RD 36, Palaiseau Cedex, 91128 France
AU: Eymard, L
EM: Laurence.Eymard@lodyc.jussieu.fr
AF: LODYC/IPSL, Tour 14-15 - 2Šme ‚tage - BoŒte 100 4, place Jussieu, PARIS Cedex 05, 75252 France
AB: The African Monsoon Multidisciplinary Analysis project is a French initiative, which aims at identifying and analysing in details the multidisciplinary and multi-scales processes that lead to a better understanding of the physical mechanisms linked to the African Monsoon. The main components of the African Monsoon are: Atmospheric Dynamics, the Continental Water Cycle, Atmospheric Chemistry, Oceanic and Continental Surface Conditions. Satellites contribute to various objectives of the project both for process analysis and for large scale-long term studies: some series of satellites (METEOSAT, NOAA,.) have been flown for more than 20 years, ensuring a good quality monitoring of some of the West African atmosphere and surface characteristics. Moreover, several recent missions, and several projects will strongly improve and complement this survey. The AMMA project offers an opportunity to develop the exploitation of satellite data and to make collaboration between specialist and non-specialist users. In this purpose databases are being developed to collect all past and future satellite data related to the African Monsoon. It will then be possible to compare different types of data from different resolution, to validate satellite data with in situ measurements or numerical simulations. AMMA-SAT database main goal is to offer an easy access to satellite data to the AMMA scientific community. The database contains geophysical products estimated from operational or research algorithms and covering the different components of the AMMA project. Nevertheless, the choice has been made to group data within pertinent scales rather than within their thematic. In this purpose, five regions of interest where defined to extract the data: An area covering Tropical Atlantic and Africa for large scale studies, an area covering West Africa for mesoscale studies and three local areas surrounding sites of in situ observations. Within each of these regions satellite data are projected on a regular grid with a spatial resolution compatible with the spatial variability of the geophysical parameter. Data are stored in NetCDF files to facilitate their use. Satellite products can be selected using several spatial and temporal criteria and ordered through a web interface developed in PHP-MySQL. More common means of access are also available such as direct FTP or NFS access for identified users. A Live Access Server allows quick visualization of the data. A meta-data catalogue based on the Directory Interchange Format manages the documentation of each satellite product. The database is currently under development, but some products are already available. The database will be complete by the end of 2005.
DE: 3300 METEOROLOGY AND ATMOSPHERIC DYNAMICS
SC: Special Focus: Advances in Data Acquisition, Management, Analysis and Display [SF]
MN: 2004 AGU Fall Meeting