IGF::OT::IGF RESEARCH TO FURTHER EXTEND AND PMPROVE OCEAN PRODUCTS DATASET BY UTILIZING OBSERVATIONS FROM THE MICROWAVE IMAGER THAT WILL BE FLOWN BY THE GLOBAL PRECIPITATION MISSION. MICROWAVE REMOTE SENSING FROM SPACE PROVIDES ONE OF THE BEST MEANS TO STUDY CLIMATE VARIABILITY OVER THE OCEANS. SATELLITE MICROWAVE ALTIMETERS, SCATTEROMETERS, AND IMAGING RADIOMETERS EACH PROVIDE A UNIQUE SET OF CLIMATE MEASUREMENTS. IN PARTICULAR, THE MICROWAVE IMAGER (MI) MEASURES A SUITE OF ESSENTIAL CLIMATE VARIABLES, INCLUDING SEA-SURFACE TEMPERATURE (SST), NEAR-SURFACE WIND, TOTAL WATER VAPOR, TOTAL CLOUD WATER, AND SURFACE RAIN RATE. WE REFER TO THIS COLLECTION OF OVER-OCEAN RETRIEVALS AS THE OCEAN PRODUCTS (OP) DATASET. THE OP DATASET EXTENDS BACK TO 1987, WITH THE LAUNCH OF THE FIRST SPECIAL SENSOR MICROWAVE IMAGER (SSM/I). SINCE THEN, MANY MORE MIS HAVE LAUNCHED, AND A 27-YEAR OP TIME SERIES NOW EXISTS. THE SPECIFIC OBJECTIVE OF THIS PROPOSED INVESTIGATION IS TO FURTHER EXTEND AND IMPROVE THE OP DATASET BY UTILIZING OBSERVATIONS FROM THE MICROWAVE IMAGER THAT WILL BE FLOWN BY THE GLOBAL PRECIPITATION MISSION (GPM). GMI WILL LIKELY BE THE BEST CALIBRATED MI TO DATE DUE TO ITS ON-BOARD DUAL CALIBRATION SYSTEM. IN ADDITION, ITS SPATIAL RESOLUTION IS A FACTOR OF TWO BETTER THAN ITS PREDECESSOR, TMI. FURTHERMORE, WE ARE PROPOSING AN ADVANCED TECHNIQUE FOR REMOVING LAND CONTAMINATION SO THAT RELIABLE OP RETRIEVALS CAN BE OBTAINED IN THE COASTAL SEAS. GIVEN THE EXTENDED LIFETIMES REALIZED BY MOST MIS. GML WILL LIKELY EXTEND THE OP TIME SERIES INTO THE NEXT DECADE. WE EXPECT THAT THIS INVESTIGATION WILL IMPROVE OUR UNDERSTANDING OF CLIMATE VARIABILITY OVER THE OCEANS, PARTICULARLY WITH RESPECT TO THE COUPLING OF THE OCEANS AND ATMOSPHERE. THE REPRESENTATION OF THE EXCHANGE OF MOMENTUM AND ENERGY BETWEEN THE OCEANS AND ATMOSPHERE IS A SIGNIFICANT CHALLENGE FOR CURRENT CLIMATE MODELS. THIS INVESTIGATION WILL ALSO PROVIDE MORE INFORMATION ON DIURNAL VARIABILITY OVER THE OCEANS. DUE TO ITS INCLINED ORBIT, GMI SAMPLES THE ENTIRE 24-HOUR DIURNAL CYCLE. FURTHER SCIENTIFIC AND SOCIETAL BENEFITS WILL BE DERIVED BY EXTENDING THE OP RETRIEVALS INTO COASTAL AREAS. WITH A LARGE PORTION OF THE WORLD'S POPULATION WORKING AND LIVING IN COASTAL REGIONS, ANY ADDITIONAL SATELLITE OBSERVATIONS OF COASTAL WEATHER AND CLIMATE WILL BE BENEFICIAL.