MIPAS: an instrument for atmospheric and climate research

Abstract. MIPAS, the Michelson Interferometer for Passive Atmospheric Sounding, is a mid-infrared emission spectrometer which is part of the core payload of ENVISAT. It is a limb sounder, i.e. it scans across the horizon detecting atmospheric spectral radiances which are inverted to vertical temperature, trace species and cloud distributions. These data can be used for scientific investigations in various research fields including dynamics and chemistry in the altitude region between upper troposphere and lower thermosphere. The instrument is a well calibrated and characterized Fourier transform spectrometer which is able to detect many trace constituents simultaneously. The different concepts of retrieval…

• BF
  Bundesministerium für Bildung und Forschung
• NE
  Natural Environment Research Council