Exploitation of error correlation in a large analysis validation: GlobCurrent case study

TL;DR

This paper develops a measurement model that accounts for error correlation in ocean current data, improving the assessment of shared variance between in situ observations and gridded analyses over a multi-year period.

Contribution

It introduces a novel error correlation model based on Fuller’s concept, enabling better variance partitioning and understanding of shared and unshared errors in ocean current measurements.

Findings

Shared error magnitude is comparable to unshared error.

Signal variance is small, limiting agreement measures.

Autoregressive models help estimate error parameters.

Abstract

An assessment of variance in ocean current signal and noise shared by in situ observations (drifters) and a large gridded analysis (GlobCurrent) is sought as a function of day of the year for 1993-2015 and across a broad spectrum of current speed. Regardless of the division of collocations, it is difficult to claim that any synoptic assessment can be based on independent observations. Instead, a measurement model that departs from ordinary linear regression by accommodating error correlation is proposed. The interpretation of independence is explored by applying Fuller's (1987) concept of equation and measurement error to a division of error into shared (correlated) and unshared (uncorrelated) components, respectively. The resulting division of variance in the new model favours noise. Ocean current shared (equation) error is of comparable magnitude to unshared (measurement) error and the latter is, for GlobCurrent and drifters respectively, comparable to ordinary and reverse linear regression. Although signal variance appears to be small, its utility as a measure of agreement between two variates is highlighted. Sparse collocations that sample a dense grid permit a first order autoregressive form of measurement model to be considered, including parameterizations of analysis-in situ error cross-correlation and analysis temporal error autocorrelation. The former (cross-correlation) is an equation error term that accommodates error shared by both GlobCurrent and drifters. The latter (autocorrelation) facilitates an identification and retrieval of all model parameters. Solutions are sought using a prescribed calibration between GlobCurrent and drifters (by variance matching). Because the true current variance of GlobCurrent and drifters is small, signal to noise ratio is near zero at best. This is particularly evident for moderate current speed and meridional current component.