Scientific aspects of the Earth clouds, Aerosols, and Radiation Explorer (EarthCARE) mission

In recent years remote sensing of cloud, aerosol, precipitation, and radiation has benefited greatly from simultaneous application of multiple sensors. For example, combinations of passive radiometers with active sensors such as lidar or radar have proved to be invaluable for their ability to retrieve profiles of cloud macrophysical and microphysical properties. This is amply illustrated by results from both surface sites, such as the US-DoE's …