A hybrid Eddington single scattering radiative transfer model for computing radiances from thermally emitting atmospheres

A novel radiative transfer model for a scattering layer ina plane-parallel thermally emitting atmosphere is described. The model is designed for computing radiances in iterative remote-sensing methods where computational efficiency is of utmost importance. The model combines a single-scatter method with the standard Eddington's second approximation technique, which is required for higher-order scattering. The single-scattering model uses tabulated scattering properties. The accuracy of the hybrid model, relative to an exact doubling-adding model, is compared with three other approximate methods (nonscattering, single-scattering, and Eddington). Brightness temperature errors for simulated ice and water clouds are shown for various particle size distributions in both microwave (1-50 cm(-1)) and infrared (300-3000 cm(-1)) parts of the spectrum. As indicated by a root-mean-square measure of brightness temperature error over outgoing directions, the hybrid model is a significant improvement over the standard Eddington model in the regions of the infrared where scattering is important. Computer source code (written in FORTRAN) for implementing the hybrid scattering model is available from the authors. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.