Covers research in two domains: remote sensing techniques and climate models. This book covers such diverse areas within satellite remote sensing techniques as aerosol loading of the atmosphere, characterization of the land surface, and soil moisture.

This book for the first time covers state-of-the-art research in two domains which are largely complementary, but which have until now not made optimum use of their complementarity: remote sensing techniques and climate models. The material presented in the book covers such diverse areas within satellite remote sensing techniques as aerosol loading of the atmosphere, characterization of the land surface (type and extent of vegetation, reflectivity of snow, land and vegetation), soil moisture, etc. Such parameters are important determinants of the climate system and its evolution, and are often poorly quantified in climate models; the advantage of remote sensing techniques, which have a global coverage, therefore becomes obvious for the climate modeling community. The book is primarily aimed at advanced academic research, at PhD or post-doctoral levels and beyond.

List of Contributors. Preface. A global vegetation index for Sea WiFS: Design and applications
N. Gobron, et al. Modeling sensible heat flux using estimates of soil and vegetation temperatures: the HEIFE and IMGRASS experiments
L. Jia, et al. Exploitation of Surface Albedo Derived from the Meteosat Data to Characterise Land Surface Changes
B. Pinty, et al. Towards a Climatology of Australian Land Surface Albedo for use in Climate Models
I.F. Grant. Collacted surface and satellite observations as constraints for Earth radiation budget simulations with global climate models
M. Wild. How well do aerosol retrievals from satellites and representation in global circulation models match ground-based AERONET aerosol statistics
S. Kinne, et al. Remote Sensing of Snow and Characterization of Snow Albedo for Climate Simulations
A.W. Nolin, A. Frei. Using the Special Sensor Microwave Imager to Monitor Surface Wetness and Temperature
A. Basist, C. Williams. Snow Cover Fraction in a General Circulation Model
A. Roesch, et al. Boreal Forest Fire Regimes and Climate Change
B.J. Stocks, et al. Specification of surface characteristics for use in a high resolution regional climate model: on the role of glaciers in the swiss alps
S. Goyette, et al. Using Satellite Data Assimilation to Infer Global Soil Moisture Status and Vegetation Feedback to Climate
W. Knorr, J.-P. Schulz. The Use of Remotely-sensed Data for the Estimation of Energy Balance Components in a Mountainous Catchment Area
P.A. Brivio, et al. Integration of operationally available remote sensing and synoptic data for surface energy balance modelling and environmental application on the regional scale
S. Niemeyer, J. Vogt.