CIRIMS: Calibrated Infrared In situ Measurement System

There is a growing international consensus that sea surface temperature products derived from satellite-based infrared measurements should include ocean skin temperature. The skin temperature is most relevant to fluxes across the air-sea interface and it corresponds directly to the measured radiance. In order to achieve useful accuracy from a satellite-based measurement of skin temperature, widespread in situ skin temperature measurement will be necessary for operational calibration. A number of investigators have combined commercially available infrared thermometers with in situ calibration. The success achieved by these researchers has demonstrated the feasibility of developing an autonomous instrument that could be deployed on ships of opportunity to provide the coverage necessary for global validation of a satellite-derived skin temperature product. Here we report on the development of such an instrument that we call the Calibrated Infrared In situ Measurement System, or CIRIMS