Steve Miller head shot

Director’s Office

CIRA Fellow

Professor Steven Miller

Director of CIRA and Professor of Atmospheric Science

Steven.Miller@colostate.edu


Steven D. Miller, Ph.D.
Director, Cooperative Institute for Research in the Atmosphere (CIRA)
Professor, Atmospheric Science
1375 Campus Delivery
Fort Collins, CO 80523-1375

970-491-8037

CIRA Room 119, ACRC 106

Steven Miller received his BSc in Electrical and Computer Engineering from U.C. San Diego (1995), and MS (1997) and PhD (2000) in Atmospheric Science from Colorado State University. His areas of interest include satellite-based remote sensing of the Earth/atmosphere system from a wide assortment of sensor technologies including active/passive systems spanning the optical to microwave portions of the electromagnetic spectrum. From 2000 to 2007, he worked at the Naval Research Laboratory in Monterey, CA in the Satellite Meteorological Applications Section, where he developed numerous value-added satellite imagery tools for operational users (including mineral dust, snow cover, cloud optical properties, low cloud/fog, fire, thin cirrus, deep convection, natural color, contrail, volcanic ash, and nighttime low-light applications). His mineral dust detection algorithms for MODIS and SeaWiFS were among the first to exploit blue-band absorption properties. In 2005, Dr. Miller published the first satellite detection of a widespread bioluminescence phenomenon (the ‘Milky Sea’) using the DSMP Operational Linescan System.  This was followed in 2021 by new detections by the next-generation Day/Night Band low-light sensor. Dr. Miller joined CIRA in 2007 as a Research Scientist and Deputy Director. In 2021 he joined the Faculty of CSU’s Department of Atmospheric Science, where he serves as Professor and Director of CIRA.  He continues work in developing satellite techniques geared toward operational end-users.

Suomi National Polar-orbiting Partnership (S-NPP) Research – Monday, October 11 2021

The Suomi National Polar-orbiting Partnership (S-NPP) satellite, precursor to the Joint Polar Satellite System (JPSS) constellation, includes a special low-light sensor (the Day/Night Band) as part of the Visible/Infrared Imager/Radiometer Suite (VIIRS).  The DNB is capable of detecting extremely low levels of visible light. For the first time, we are able to use calibrated measurements of moonlight in a way that is analogous to daytime visible channels, providing a paradigm shift to nighttime remote sensing applications (heretofore relegated to limited infrared-based techniques). To realize the full potential of moonlight observations by the Day/Night Band, one must know the highly variable incoming lunar irradiance. Unlike sunlight, moonlight is highly variable over the ~28 day lunar cycle. Recent work toward characterizing this signal, involving detailed Sun/Earth/Moon geometry prediction, spectrally resolved lunar albedo, non-linear phase function, and underpinning radiative transfer theory will provide the tools needed for developers to exploit the Day/Night Band quantitatively for numerous atmospheric and surface applications.

Teams:

Publications

Publications:

  • Trends in satellite-based ocean parameters through integrated time series decomposition and spectral analysis: I. chlorophyll, sea surface temperature, and sea level anomaly
  • Trends in satellite-based ocean parameters with time series decomposition: II. NOAA/NCEI blended seawinds
  • Passive remote sensing of altitude and optical depth of dust plumes using the oxygen A and B bands: first results from EPIC/DSCOVR at Lagrange-1 point
  • Cloud base height estimation from VIIRS. Part I: Operational algorithm validation against CloudSat
  • Detection of mixed-phase clouds from shortwave and thermal infrared satellite observations. In C. Andronache (Ed.)
  • Cloud base height estimation from VIIRS. Part II: A statistical algorithm based on A-Train satellite data
  • DEBRA – A Dynamic Enhancement with Background Reduction Algorithm: Overview and Application to Satellite-Based Dust Storm Detection
  • Suomi NPP VIIRS/DNB imagery of nightglow gravity waves from various sources over China
  • Satellite remote sensing of cloud vertical structure. In S. Liang (Ed.)
  • Tropical Cyclone Characterization via Nocturnal Low-Light Visible Illumination
  • GHOST: A Satellite Mission Concept for Persistent Monitoring of Stratospheric Gravity Waves Induced by Severe Storms
  • Mesospheric Bore Observations using Suomi-NPP VIIRS DNB during 2013-2017
  • NASA’s Black Marble Standard Product Suite
  • The Dark Side of Hurricane Matthew-Unique Perspectives from the Day/Night Band
  • Tracking oceanic nonlinear internal waves in the Indonesian seas from geostationary orbit
  • The Great Slave Lake PyroCb of 5 August 2014: Observations, simulations, comparisons with regular convection, and impact on UTLS water vapor
  • Building the SUN4CAST System: Improvements in Solar Power Forecasting
  • Observations of lower tropospheric water vapor structures in GOES-16 ABI Imagery
  • Characterization and application of artificial light sources for nighttime aerosol optical depth retrievals using the Visible Infrared Imager Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) Day/Night Band
  • Dynamical Coupling Between Hurricane Matthew and the Middle to Upper Atmosphere via Gravity Waves
  • Detecting layer height of smoke aerosols over vegetated land and water surfaces via oxygen absorption bands: Hourly results from EPIC/DSCOVR satellite in deep space
  • The influence of simulated surface dust lofting and atmospheric loading on radiative forcing
  • Satellite-based detection of daytime supercooled liquid-topped mixed-phase clouds over the Southern Ocean using the Advanced Himawari Imager
  • A Tale of Two Dust Storms: Analysis of a Complex Dust Event in the Middle East
  • Remote sensing of night lights: a review and an outlook for the future
  • Correcting Himawari-8 Advanced Himawari Imager data for the production of vivid true colour imagery.
  • Preliminary dual-satellite observations of atmospheric gravity waves in airglow
  • Development of a nighttime shortwave radiative transfer model for remote sensing of nocturnal aerosols and fires from VIIRS
  • Assessing the Stability of Surface Lights for use in Retrievals of Nocturnal Atmospheric Parameters
  • Evaluating geostationary lightning mapper flash rates within intense convective storms
  • Environmental Controls on Tropical Sea Breeze Convection and Resulting Aerosol Redistribution
  • GeoColor: A Blending Technique for Satellite Imagery
  • Towards objective identification and tracking of convective outflow boundaries in next-generation geostationary satellite imagery
  • Satellite Imagery and Products of the 16-17 February 2020 Saharan Air Layer Dust Event over the Eastern Atlantic: Impacts of Water Vapor on Dust Detection and Morphology
  • Honing in on bioluminescent milky seas from space
  • Quantifying uncertainties in nighttime light retrievals from Suomi-NPP and NOAA-20 VIIRS Day/Night Band data
  • The Newly Operational VIIRS Cloud Cover/Layers and Base
  • Estimating Three-Dimensional Cloud Structure via Statistically Blended Satellite Observations
  • A dynamic scaling algorithm for the optimized digital display of VIIRS Day/Night Band imagery
  • Utilization of the Suomi National Polar-Orbiting Partnership (NPP) Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) Day/Night Band for Arctic Ship Tracking and Fisheries Management
  • An Automated Mobile Phone Photo Relay and Display Concept Applicable to Operational Severe Weather Monitoring
  • Training Effects on Emergency Management Activation Response