Abstract
The use of the “degrees of freedom for signal” is proposed as a design criteria for comparing different designs for satellite and other measuring systems. It is also proposed that certain eigensequence plots be examined at the design stage along with appropriate estimates of the parameter λ playing the role of noise to signal ratio. The degrees of freedom for signal and eigensequence plots may be determined using presently available prior information in the spectral domain along with a description of the system, and simulated data for estimating λ. This study extends work by previous investigators. Implicit is an approach to combining direct and indirect measurements of atmospheric temperature in a spectral forecast model.
