Solar zenith angle-based calibration of Himawari-8 land surface temperature for correcting diurnal retrieval error characteristics

The geostationary Himawari-8 satellite offers a unique opportunity to monitor sub-daily thermal dynamics over Asia and Oceania, and several operational land surface temperature (LST) retrieval algorithms have been developed for this purpose. However, studies have reported inconsistency between LST data obtained from geostationary and polar-orbiting platforms, particularly for daytime LST, which can arise from variations in viewing geometries and inherent differences in sensor types and LST algorithms. Despite this, previous research has primarily focused on analysing the directionality of LST without thoroughly exploring systematic differences between platforms. Hence, we presented a Solar Zenith Angle-based Calibration (SZAC) method to harmonise the daytime component of a split-window retrieved Himawari-8 LST (referred to here as the baseline) with the MODerate-resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) LST. SZAC describes the spatial heterogeneity and magnitude of diurnal LST discrepancies from different platforms, which is anticipated to complement typical directionality analyses. We evaluated the harmonised LST data, referred to as the Australian National University LST with SZAC (ANUSZAC), against MODIS LST and the Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) LST, as well as in-situ LST from the OzFlux network. Two peer Himawari-8 LST products from Chiba University and the Copernicus Global Land Service were also collected for comparison. The median daytime bias of ANUSZAC LST against Terra-MODIS LST, Aqua-MODIS LST and VIIRS LST was 1.52 K, 0.98 K and −0.63 K, respectively, which demonstrated improved performance compared to baseline (5.37 K, 4.85 K and 3.02 K, respectively) and Chiba LST (3.71 K, 2.90 K and 1.07 K, respectively). All four Himawari-8 LST products showed comparable performance of unbiased root mean squared error (ubRMSE), ranging from 2.47 to 3.07 K, compared to LST from polar-orbiting platforms. In the evaluation against in-situ LST, the mean values of bias (ubRMSE) of baseline, Chiba, Copernicus and ANUSZAC LST during daytime were 4.23 K (3.74 K), 2.16 K (3.62 K), 1.73 K (3.31 K) and 1.41 K (3.24 K), respectively, based on 171,289 hourly samples from 20 OzFlux sites across Australia between 01/Jan/2016 and 31/Dec/2020. In summary, the SZAC method offers a promising approach to enhance the reliability of geostationary LST retrievals by incorporating the spatiotemporal characteristics observed by accurate polar-orbiting LST data. SZAC can also reduce LST angular effects due to its capability of quantifying spatial inhomogeneity of surface heat dynamics. Furthermore, it is possible to implement SZAC using LST data acquired by geostationary satellites in other regions, e.g., Europe, Africa and Americas. This could improve our understanding of the error characteristics of coincident imageries from geostationary and polar-orbiting platforms, allowing for targeted refinements and global harmonisations to further enhance applicability.