Visualizing Earth's Radiation Budget using NOAA Satellite Data

Instructor: Rebekah Esmaili (bekah@umd.edu)

Goal: To lean how to read, display, and interpret satellite data, such as the Shortwave Radiation Budget, using Python!

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Running this tutorial

Recommended:

You do not need Python installed to work through this example. Click:

Need help with Binder? Video tutorial on YouTube.

If you really want to run on your own computer:

• If you wish to run the examples locally, I recommend installing Anaconda. If you are having trouble with your installation, contact the instructor before the course or use binder.

• Need help installing Anaconda? Video tutorial on YouTube.

• Download the contents of the GitHub repository to your computer.

• Launch Jupyter Notebooks from the Anaconda Navigator. This will open a window in your default browser. Navigate to the folder that contains the notebooks (*.ipynb) and click on the tutorial for the day.

• New to Jupyter? Here's a video tutorial on YouTube.

• Additional packages:

  • Launch the Anaconda Prompt (Windows) or Terminal (MacOS/Linux). Then copy/paste and hit enter:

    conda install -c conda-forge cartopy
    

    Here's the full list of additional packages you'll need:

    • h5netcdf
    • cartopy
    • s3fs
    • xarray

  • If there are no errors, then you are set-up!

  • Alternatively, if you are familiar with environments, you can use the environments.yml to install the necessary packages. You can do this in the terminal using:

  conda env create -f environment.yml
  

  Then, switch to the new environment (conda activate python-workshop) once the installation is complete.

I do not recommend:

• Using Python on a remote server for this tutorial (I cannot help troubleshoot)
• Using your operating system's Python or a shared Python installations unless you are advanced!

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Learning Resources

• Project Pythia has some great resources for learning Python
• Learn more about Python for Atmosphere and Ocean Scientists using Software Carpentry lesson plans.
• I have a longer workshop, Python for Earth Sciences with Rebekah, that was presented at the AGU 2022 Fall Meeting that is more beginner focused.
• Register for the short course at the 2023 AMS Annual Meeting! Virtual and in-person options available.
• Read my eBook Earth observation using Python : a practical programming guide which is available for free from the UMD library.