Incorporation of cloud radiance effects into hyperspectral target detection

Clouds create uneven scattering and absorption in the atmosphere making calculations of sky radiance for spectral measurements or image simulation difficult. MODTRAN is capable of modeling transmission through a single overcast cloud layer but does not consider a partly cloudy sky or phase changes within a cloud. These conditions are prevalent in the real atmosphere and it is necessary to study the radiometric properties of varying cloud cover to further understand the phenomenology necessary for modeling more realistic sky environments. The study characterizes the variation and differences in global and diffuse irradiance and radiance measurements under varying sky conditions.