bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Co-benefits of global and regional greenhouse gas mitigation on U.S. air quality in 2050
Authors: Zhang Yuqiang , Bowden Jared H. , Adelman Zachariah , Naik Vaishali , Horowitz Larry W. , Smith Steven J. , West J. Jason
Published: January 2016

Abstract. Policies to mitigate greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions will not only slow climate change, but can also have ancillary benefits of improved air quality. Here we examine the co-benefits of both global and regional GHG mitigation on U.S. air quality in 2050 at fine resolution, using dynamical downscaling methods, building on a previous global co-benefits study (West et al., 2013). The co-benefits for U.S. air quality are quantified via two mechanisms: through reductions in co-emitted air pollutants from the same sources, and by slowing climate change and its influence on air quality, following West et al. (2013). Additionally, we separate the total co-benefits into contributions from domestic GHG mitigation versus mitigation in foreign countries. We use the WRF model to dynamically downscale future global climate to the regional scale, the SMOKE program to directly process global anthropogenic emissions into the regional domain, and we provide dynamical boundary conditions from global simulations to the regional CMAQ model. The total co-benefits of global GHG mitigation from the RCP4.5 scenario compared with its reference are estimated to be higher in the eastern U.S. (ranging from 0.6–1.0 μg m-3) than the west (0–0.4 μg m-3) for PM2.5, with an average of 0.47 μg m-3 over U.S.; for O3, the total co-benefits are more uniform at 2–5 ppb with U.S. average of 3.55 ppb. Comparing the two mechanisms of co-benefits, we find that reductions of co-emitted air pollutants have a much greater influence on both PM2.5 (96 % of the total co-benefits) and O3 (89 % of the total) than the second co-benefits mechanism via slowing climate change, consistent with West et al. (2013). GHG mitigation from foreign countries contributes more to the U.S. O3 reduction (76 % of the total) than that from domestic GHG mitigation only (24 %), highlighting the importance of global methane reductions and the intercontinental transport of air pollutants. For PM2.5, the benefits of domestic GHG control are greater (74 % of total). Since foreign contributions to the co-benefits are comparable to that from the domestic reductions, especially for O3, previous studies that focus on local or regional co-benefits may greatly underestimate the total co-benefits of global GHG reductions. We conclude that the U.S. can gain significantly greater domestic air quality co-benefits by engaging with other nations to control GHGs.
Changes in the shape of cloud ice water content vertical structure due to aerosol variations
Authors: Massie Steven T. , Delanoe Julien , Bardeen Charles  G.
Published: January 2016

Abstract. Changes in the shape of cloud ice water content vertical structure due to aerosol variations are calculated in the Tropics during 2007–2010 based upon an analysis of DARDAR ice water content (IWC) profiles for deep convective clouds. DARDAR profiles are a joint retrieval of CloudSat-CALIPSO data. Our analysis is performed for 12 separate regions over land and ocean, and carried out applying Moderate-Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) aerosol optical depth (AOD) fields that attempt to correct for 3D cloud adjacency effects. The 3D cloud adjacency effects have a small impact upon our calculations of aerosol-cloud indirect effects. IWC profiles are averaged for three AOD bins individually for the 12 regions. The IWC average profiles are also normalized to unity at 5 km altitude in order to study changes in the shape of the average IWC profiles as AOD increases. Derivatives of the IWC average profiles, and derivatives of the IWC shape profiles, in percent change per 0.1 change in MODIS AOD units, are calculated separately for each region. Means of altitude-specific probability distribution functions, which include both ocean and land IWC shape regional derivatives, are modest, near 5 %, and positive to the 2σ level between 11 and 15 km altitude.
Implementation of the Bessel's method for solar eclipses prediction in the WRF-ARW model
Authors: Montornès A. , Codina B. , Zack J. W. , Sola Y.
Published: January 2016

Abstract. Solar eclipses are predictable astronomical events that abruptly reduce the incoming solar radiation into the Earth's atmosphere, which frequently result in non-negligible changes in meteorological fields. The meteorological impacts of these events have been analyzed in many studies since the late 1960s. The recent growth in the solar energy industry has greatly increased the interest in adding additional detail to the modeling of solar radiation variations in Numerical Weather Prediction (NWP) models for use in solar resource assessment and forecasting applications. The recent partial and total solar eclipses that occurred in USA (October 23, 2014) and Europe (March 20, 2015), respectively, are showing the necessity for including these astronomical events on the current solar parameterizations, beyond the purely meteorological interest. Although some studies added solar eclipse episodes within NWP codes in the 1990s and 2000s, they used eclipse parameterizations designed for a particular case of study. In contrast to these earlier implementations, this paper documents a new package for the Weather Research and Forecasting – Advanced Research (WRF-ARW) model that can simulate any partial, total or hybrid solar eclipse for the period 1950 to 2050 and is also extensible to a longer period. The algorithm computes analytically the trajectory of the Moon's shadow and the degree of obscuration of the solar disk at each grid-point of the domain based on the Bessel's method and the Five Millennium Catalog of Solar Eclipses provided by NASA, with a negligible computational time. Then, the incoming radiation is modified accordingly at each grid-point of the domain. This contribution is divided in two parts. First, we present a description of the implementation of the Bessel's method within the WRF-ARW model together with a validation for the period 1950-2050 of all solar eclipse trajectories with respect to NASA values. Second, we analyze the model response in four total solar eclipse episodes: 1994-11-03 (South America), 1999-08-11 (Europe), 2006-03-29 (North Africa) and 2009-07-22 (Eastern Asia). The second part includes a validation of the simulated global horizontal irradiance (GHI) with measurement data from selected Baseline Surface Radiation Network sites within the area affected by each event as well as an analysis of the impact of the GHI changes in surface temperature and wind speed.
Aerosol optical, microphysical and radiative properties at three regional background insular sites in the western Mediterranean Basin
Authors: Sicard M. , Barragan R. , Dulac F. , Alados-Arboledas L. , Mallet M.
Published: January 2016

Abstract. In the framework of the ChArMEx (the Chemistry-Aerosol Mediterranean Experiment, http://charmex.lsce.ipsl.fr/) program, the seasonal variability of the aerosol optical, microphysical and radiative properties is examined in two regional background insular sites in the western Mediterranean Basin (WMB): Ersa (Corsica Island, France) and Palma de Mallorca (Mallorca Island, Spain). A third site in Alborán (Alborán Island, Spain) with only a few months of data is considered for exploring the possible Northeast–Southwest (NE–SW) gradient of the aforementioned aerosol properties. The dataset is exclusively composed of AERONET (Aerosol Robotic Network; http://aeronet.gsfc.nasa.gov/) products during a four-year period (2011–2014). AERONET fluxes are validated with ground- and satellite-based flux measurements. To the best of our knowledge this is the first time that AERONET fluxes are validated at the top of the atmosphere. Products such as the aerosol optical depth (AOD), the fraction fine mode to total AOD, the particle size distribution, the sphericity, the radiative forcing and the radiative forcing efficiency show a clear annual cycle. The main drivers of the observed annual cycles are mineral dust outbreaks in summer and the transport of European continental aerosols in spring. A NE–SW gradient is observed on 6 parameters (3 extensive and 3 intensive) out of the 18 discussed in the paper. The NE–SW gradient of the AOD, the Ångström exponent, the coarse mode volume concentration, the sphericity and the radiative forcing at the surface are related to mineral dust outbreaks, while the NE–SW gradient of the coarse mode volume median radius is related to the decreasing influence of European continental aerosols along the NE–SW axis. The fact that two thirds of the parameters discussed in the paper do not present a NE–SW gradient is partly explained by two relevant findings: (1) a homogeneous spatial distribution of the fine particle loads over the three sites in spite of the distances between the sites and the differences in local sources, and (2) low values and the absence of spectral dependency of the absorption found in the southwesternmost site.
Impact of molecular structure on secondary organic aerosol formation from aromatic hydrocarbon photooxidation under low NOx conditions
Authors: Li L. , Tang P. , Nakao S. , Cocker III D. R.
Published: January 2016

Abstract. The molecular structure of volatile organic compounds (VOC) determines their oxidation pathway, directly impacting secondary organic aerosol (SOA) formation. This study comprehensively investigates the impact of molecular structure on SOA formation from the photooxidation of twelve different eight to nine carbon aromatic hydrocarbons under low NOx conditions. The effects of the alkyl substitute number, location, carbon chain length and branching structure on the photooxidation of aromatic hydrocarbons are demonstrated by analyzing SOA yield, chemical composition and physical properties. Aromatic hydrocarbons, categorized into five groups, show a yield order of ortho (o-xylene and o-ethyltoluene) > one substitute (ethylbenzene, propylbenzene and isopropylbenzene) > meta (m-xylene and m-ethyltoluene) > three substitute (trimethylbenzenes) > para (p-xylene and p-ethyltoluene). SOA yields of aromatic hydrocarbon photooxidation do not monotonically decrease when increasing alkyl substitute number. The ortho position promotes SOA formation while the para position suppresses aromatic oxidation and SOA formation. Observed SOA chemical composition and volatility confirm that higher yield is associated with further oxidation. SOA chemical composition also suggests that aromatic oxidation increases with increasing alkyl substitute chain length and branching structure. Further, carbon dilution theory developed by Li et al. (2015a) is extended in this study to serve as a standard method to determine the extent of oxidation of an alkyl substituted aromatic hydrocarbon.
Derivation of physical and optical properties of midlatitude cirrus ice crystals for a size-resolved cloud microphysics model
Authors: Fridlind A. M. , Atlas R. , van Diedenhoven B. , Um J. , McFarquhar G. M. , Ackerman A. S. , Moyer E. J. , Lawson R. P.
Published: January 2016

Abstract. Single-crystal images collected in mid-latitude cirrus are analyzed to provide internally consistent ice physical and optical properties for a size-resolved cloud microphysics model, including single-particle mass, projected area, fall speed, capacitance, single-scattering albedo, and asymmetry parameter. Using measurements gathered during two flights through a widespread synoptic cirrus shield, bullet rosettes are found to be the dominant identifiable habit among ice crystals with maximum dimension (Dmax) greater than 100 μm. Properties are therefore first derived for bullet rosettes based on measurements of arm lengths and widths, then for aggregates of bullet rosettes and for unclassified (irregular) crystals. Derived bullet rosette masses are substantially greater than reported in existing literature, whereas measured projected areas are similar or lesser, resulting in factors of 1.5–2 greater fall speeds, and, in the limit of large Dmax, near-infrared single-scattering albedo and asymmetry parameter (g) greater by ~ 0.2 and 0.05, respectively. A model that includes commonly imaged side plane growth on bullet rosettes exhibits relatively little difference in microphysical and optical properties aside from ~ 0.05 increase in mid-visible g primarily attributable to plate aspect ratio. In parcel simulations, ice size distribution and g are sensitive to assumed ice properties.
A novel technique including GPS radio occultation for detecting and monitoring volcanic clouds
Authors: Biondi Riccardo , Steiner Andrea , Kirchengast Gottfried , Brenot Hugues , Rieckh Therese
Published: January 2016

Abstract. The volcanic cloud top altitude and the atmospheric thermal structure after volcanic eruptions are studied using Global Positioning System (GPS) Radio Occultation (RO) profiles co-located with independent radiometric measurements of ash and SO2 clouds. We use the GPS RO data to detect volcanic clouds and to analyze their impact on climate in terms of temperature changes. We selected about 1300 GPS RO profiles co-located with two representative eruptions (Puyehue 2011, Nabro 2011) and found that an anomaly technique recently developed for detecting cloud tops of convective systems can also be applied to volcanic clouds. Analyzing the atmospheric thermal structure after the eruptions, we found clear cooling signatures of volcanic cloud tops in the upper troposphere for the Puyehue case. The impact of Nabro lasted for several months, suggesting that the cloud reached the stratosphere, where a significant warming occurred. The results are encouraging for future routine use of RO data for monitoring volcanic clouds.
Sensitivity to grid resolution in the ability of a chemical transport model to simulate observed oxidant chemistry under high-isoprene conditions
Authors: Yu Karen , Jacob Daniel J. , Fisher Jenny A. , Kim Patrick S. , Marais Eloise A. , Miller Christopher C. , Travis Katherine R. , Zhu Lei , Yantosca Robert M. , Sulprizio Melissa P. , Cohen Ron C. , Dibb Jack E. , Fried Alan , Mikoviny Tomas , Ryerson Thomas B. , Wennberg Paul O. , Wisthaler Armin
Published: January 2016

Abstract. Formation of ozone and organic aerosol in continental atmospheres depends on whether isoprene emitted by vegetation is oxidized by the high-NOx pathway (where peroxy radicals react with NO) or by low-NOx pathways (where peroxy radicals react by alternate channels, mostly with HO2). We used mixed layer observations from the SEAC4RS aircraft campaign over the Southeast US to test the ability of the GEOS-Chem chemical transport model at different grid resolutions (0.25° × 0.3125°, 2° × 2.5°, 4° × 5°) to simulate this chemistry under high-isoprene, variable-NOx conditions. Observations of isoprene and NOx over the Southeast US show a negative correlation, reflecting in part the spatial segregation of emissions; this negative correlation is captured in the model at 0.25° × 0.3125° resolution but not at coarser resolutions. As a result, less isoprene oxidation takes place by the high-NOx pathway in the model at 0.25° × 0.3125° resolution (54 %) than at coarser resolution (59 %). The cumulative probability distribution functions (CDFs) of NOx, isoprene, and ozone concentrations show little difference across model resolutions and good agreement with observations, while formaldehyde is overestimated at coarse resolution because excessive isoprene oxidation takes place by the high-NOx pathway (which has high formaldehyde yield). Correlations of simulated vs. observed concentrations do not improve with grid resolution because finer modes of variability are intrinsically more difficult to capture. Higher model resolution leads to decreased conversion of NOx to organic nitrates and increased conversion to nitric acid, with total reactive nitrogen oxides (NOy) changing little across model resolutions. In the lower free troposphere, model output is similarly insensitive to grid resolution, indicating that the effect on export of ozone and NOx is small. The overall low sensitivity of modeled concentrations to grid resolution implies that coarse resolution is adequate when modeling regional boundary layer chemistry for global applications.
Effect of tropical cyclones on the Stratosphere-Troposphere Exchange observed using satellite observations over north Indian Ocean
Authors: Venkat Ratnam M. , Ravindra Babu S. , Das S. S. , Basha Ghouse , Krishnamurthy B. V. , Venkateswararao B.
Published: January 2016

Abstract. Tropical cyclones play an important role in modifying the tropopause structure and dynamics as well as stratosphere-troposphere exchange (STE) process in the Upper Troposphere and Lower Stratosphere (UTLS) region. In the present study, the impact of cyclones that occurred over the North Indian Ocean during 2007–2013 on the STE process is quantified using satellite observations. Tropopause characteristics during cyclones are obtained from the Global Positioning System (GPS) Radio Occultation (RO) measurements and ozone and water vapor concentrations in UTLS region are obtained from Aura-Microwave Limb Sounder (MLS) satellite observations. The effect of cyclones on the tropopause parameters is observed to be more prominent within 500 km from the centre of cyclone. In our earlier study we have observed decrease (increase) in the tropopause altitude (temperature) up to 0.6 km (3 K) and the convective outflow level increased up to 2 km. This change leads to a total increase in the tropical tropopause layer (TTL) thickness of 3 km within the 500 km from the centre of cyclone. Interestingly, an enhancement in the ozone mixing ratio in the upper troposphere is clearly noticed within 500 km from cyclone centre whereas the enhancement in the water vapor in the lower stratosphere is more significant on south-east side extending from 500–1000 km away from the cyclone centre. We estimated the cross-tropopause mass flux for different intensities of cyclones and found that the mean flux from stratosphere to troposphere for cyclonic stroms is 0.05 ± 0.29 × 10−3 kg m−2 and for very severe cyclonic stroms it is 0.5 ± 1.07 × 10−3 kg m−2. More downward flux is noticed in the north-west and south-west side of the cyclone centre. These results indicate that the cyclones have significant impact in effecting the tropopause structure, ozone and water vapour budget and consequentially the STE in the UTLS region.
Impact of geographic variations of convective and dehydration center on stratospheric water vapor over the Asian monsoon region
Authors: Zhang K. , Fu R. , Wang T. , Liu Y.
Published: January 2016

Abstract. The Asian monsoon region is the most prominent moisture center of lower stratospheric (LS) water vapor during boreal summer. Previous studies have suggested that the transport of water vapor to the Asian monsoon LS is controlled by dehydration temperatures and convection mainly over the Bay of Bengal and Southeast Asia. However, there is a clear geographic variation of convection associated with the seasonal and intra-seasonal variations of the Asian monsoon circulation, and the relative influence of such a geographic variation of convection vs. the variation of local dehydration temperatures on water vapor transport is still not clear. Using the Aura Microwave Limb Sounder (MLS) satellite observations and a domain-filling forward trajectory model, we show that almost half of the seasonal water vapor increase in the Asian monsoon LS are attributable to the geographic variations of convection and resultant variations of dehydration center, comparable to the influence of the local dehydration temperature increase. In particular, dehydration temperatures are coldest over the southeast and warmest over the northwest within the Asian monsoon region. Although convective center is located over the southeastern Asia, an anomalous increase of convection over the northwestern Asian monsoon region increases the local diabatic heating in the tropopause layer and air mass entering the LS that is dehydrated at relatively warm er temperatures. The warmer dehydration temperatures allow anomalously moist air enters the LS and then moves eastward along the northern frank of the monsoon anticyclonic flow, leading to wet anomalies in the LS over the Asian monsoon region. Likewise, when convection increases over the southeastern Asian monsoon region, dry anomalies appear in the LS. On seasonal scale, this feature is associated with the march of the monsoon circulation, convection and diabatic heating towards the northwestern Asia monsoon from June to August, leading to an increasing fraction of the air mass to be dehydrated at warmer temperatures over the nort hwestern Asian monsoon region. Work presented here confirms the dominant role of temper atures and also emphasizes that one should take the geographic variations of dehydration center into consideration when studying water vapor variations in the LS, as it is linked to changes of convection and large-scale circulation.
Separation of biospheric and fossil fuel fluxes of CO2 by atmospheric inversion of CO2 and 14CO2 measurements: Observation System Simulations
Authors: Basu Sourish , Miller John Bharat , Lehman Scott
Published: January 2016

Abstract. National annual total CO2 emissions from combustion of fossil fuels are likely known to within 5–10 % for most developed countries. However, uncertainties are inevitably larger (by unknown amounts) for emission estimates at regional and monthly scales, or for developing countries. Given recent international efforts to establish emission reduction targets, independent determination and verification of regional and national scale fossil fuel CO2 emissions are likely to become increasingly important. Here, we take advantage of the fact that precise measurements of 14C in CO2 provide a largely unbiased tracer for recently added fossil fuel derived CO2 in the atmosphere and present an atmospheric inversion technique to jointly assimilate observations of CO2 and 14CO2 in order to simultaneously estimate fossil fuel emissions and biospheric exchange fluxes of CO2. Using this method in a set of Observation System Simulation Experiments (OSSEs), we show that given the coverage of 14CO2 measurements available in 2010 (969 over North America, 1063 globally), we can recover the US national total fossil fuel emission to better than 1 % for the year and to within 5 % for most months. Increasing the number of 14CO2 observations to ∼ 5,000 per year over North America, as recently recommended by the National Academy of Science (NAS) (Pacala et al., 2010), we recover monthly emissions to within 5 % for all months for the US as a whole and also for smaller, highly emissive regions over which the specified data coverage is relatively dense, such as for the New England states or the NY-NJ-PA tri-state area. This result suggests that, given continued improvement in state-of-the art transport models, a measurement program similar in scale to that recommended by the NAS can provide for independent verification of bottom-up inventories of fossil fuel CO2 at the regional and national scale. In addition, we show that the dual tracer inversion framework can detect and minimize biases in estimates of the biospheric flux that would otherwise arise in a traditional CO2-only inversion when prescribing fixed but inaccurate fossil fuel fluxes.
A new method for estimating aerosol mass flux in the urban surface layer by LAS
Authors: Yuan R. M. , Luo T. , Sun J. N. , Liu H. , Fu Y. F. , Wang Z.
Published: January 2016

Abstract. Atmospheric aerosol has a great influence on human health and the natural environment as well as the weather and climate system. Therefore, atmospheric aerosol has attracted significant attention from the society as a whole. Despite consistent research efforts, there are still uncertainties in our understanding of its effects due to poor knowledge of aerosol vertical transport caused by our limited measurement capability of aerosol mass vertical transport flux. In this paper, a new method for measuring atmospheric aerosol vertical transport flux is developed based on the similarity theory of surface layer. The theoretical results show that aerosol mass flux can be linked to the real and imaginary parts of the atmospheric equivalent refractive index structure parameter (AERISP), and the ratio of aerosol mass concentration to the imaginary part of the atmospheric equivalent refractive index (AERI). The real and imaginary parts of AERISP can be measured based on the light propagation theory. The ratio of aerosol mass concentration to the imaginary part of AERI can be measured based on the measurements of aerosol mass concentration and visibility. The observational results show that aerosol vertical transport flux varies diurnally and is related to the aerosol spatial distribution. The maximum aerosol flux during the experimental period in Hefei City was 0.017 mgm−2s−1, and the mean value was 0.004 mgm−2s−1. The new method offers an effective way to study aerosol vertical transport over complex environments.
The impact of the ozone effective temperature on satellite validation using the Dobson spectrophotometer network
Authors: Koukouli M. E. , Zara M. , Lerot C. , Fragkos K. , Balis D. S. , van Roozendael M.
Published: January 2016

Abstract. The main aim of the paper is to demonstrate an approach for post-processing of the Dobson spectrophotometers total ozone columns [TOCs] in order to compensate for their known stratospheric effective temperature (Teff) dependency and its resulting effect on the usage of the Dobson TOCs for satellite TOCs validation. The Dobson observations employed are those routinely submitted to the World Ozone and UV Data Centre (WOUDC) of the World Meteorological Organization whereas the effective temperatures have been extracted from two sources: the European Space Agency, ESA, Ozone Climate Change Initiative, Ozone-CCI, GODFIT version 3 (GOME-type Direct FITting) algorithm applied to the GOME2/MetopA, GOME2A, observations as well as the one derived from the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF) outputs. Both temperature sources are evaluated utilizing co-located Ozonesonde measurements also retrieved from the WOUDC database. Both GODFIT_v3 and ECMWF Teffs are found to be unbiased against the ozonesonde observations and to agree with high correlation coefficients, especially for latitudes characterized by high seasonal variability in Teff. The validation analysis shows that, when applying the GODFIT_v3 effective temperatures in order to post-process the Dobson TOC, the mean difference between Dobson and GOME2A GODFIT_v3 TOCs moves from 0.63 ± 0.66 to 0.26 ± 0.46 % in the Northern Hemisphere and from 1.25 ± 1.20 to 0.80 ± 0.71 % in the Southern Hemisphere. The existing solar zenith angle dependency of the differences has been smoothed out, with near-zero dependency up to the 60 to 65° bin and the highest deviation decreasing from 2.38 ± 6.6 to 1.37 ± 6.4 % for the 80 to 85° bin. We conclude that the global scale validation of satellite TOCs against collocated Dobson measurements benefits from a post-correction using suitably estimated Teffs.
Intercomparison of aerosol extinction profiles retrieved from MAX-DOAS measurements
Authors: Frieß U. , Klein Baltink H. , Beirle S. , Clèmer K. , Hendrick F. , Henzing B. , Irie H. , de Leeuw G. , Li A. , Moerman M. M. , van Roozendael M. , Shaiganfar R. , Wagner T. , Wang Y. , Xie P. , Yilmaz S. , Zieger P.
Published: January 2016

Abstract. A first direct intercomparison of aerosol vertical profiles from Multi-Axis Differential Optical Absorption Spectroscopy (MAX-DOAS) observations, performed during the Cabauw Intercomparison Campaign of Nitrogen Dioxide measuring Instruments (CINDI) in summer 2009, is presented. Five out of 14 participants of the CINDI campaign reported aerosol extinction profiles and aerosol optical thickness (AOT) as deduced from observations of differential slant column densities of the oxygen collision complex (O4) at different elevation angles. Aerosol vertical profiles and AOT are compared to backscatter profiles from a ceilometer instrument and to sun photometer measurements, respectively. Furthermore, the near-surface aerosol extinction coefficient is compared to in-situ measurements of a humidity controlled nephelometer and dry aerosol absorption measurements. The participants of this intercomparison exercise use different approaches for the retrieval of aerosol information, including the retrieval of the full vertical profile using optimal estimation and a parametrised approach with a prescribed profile shape. Despite these large conceptual differences, and also differences in the wavelength of the observed O4 absorption band, good agreement in terms of the vertical structure of aerosols within the boundary layer is achieved between the aerosol extinction profiles retrieved by the different groups and the backscatter profiles observed by the ceilometer instrument. AOT from MAX-DOAS and sun photometer show a good correlation (R > 0.8), but all participants systematically underestimate the AOT. Substantial differences between the near-surface aerosol extinction from MAX-DOAS and from the humidified nephelometer remain largely unresolved.
A development of cloud top height retrieval using thermal infrared spectra observed with GOSAT and comparison with CALIPSO data
Authors: Someya Y. , Imasu R. , Saitoh N. , Ota Y. , Shiomi K.
Published: January 2016

Abstract. An algorithm based on CO2 slicing, which has been used for cirrus cloud detection using thermal infrared data, was developed for high-resolution radiance spectra from satellites. The channels were reconstructed based on sensitivity height information of the original spectral channels to reduce the effects of measurement errors. The selections of the reconstructed channel pairs were optimized for several atmospheric profile patterns using simultaneous studies assuming cloudy sky. That algorithm was applied to data by the Greenhouse gases Observing SATellite (GOSAT). The results were compared with those obtained from space-borne lidar instrument onboard Cloud-Aerosol Lidar and Infrared Pathfinder Satellite Observations (CALIPSO). Monthly mean cloud amounts from the slicing generally agreed with those from CALIPSO observations despite some differences caused by surface temperature biases, optically very thin cirrus, multilayer structures of clouds, extremely low cloud tops, and specific atmospheric conditions. Comparison of coincident data showed good agreement except some cases and revealed that the improved slicing method is more accurate than the traditional slicing method. Results also imply that improved slicing can detect low-level clouds with cloud top heights as low as approximately 1.5 km.
A microbolometer-based far infrared radiometer to study thin ice clouds in the Arctic
Authors: Libois Q. , Proulx C. , Ivanescu L. , Coursol L. , Pelletier L. , Bouzid Y. , Barbero F. , Blanchet J.-P.
Published: January 2016

Abstract. A far infrared radiometer (FIRR) dedicated to measure radiation emitted by clear and cloudy atmospheres was developed as a breadboard for the Thin Ice Clouds in Far InfraRed Experiment (TICFIRE) satellite project. The FIRR detector is an array of 80×60 uncooled microbolometers coated with gold black to enhance the absorptivity and responsivity. A ﬁlter wheel is used to select atmospheric radiation in 9 spectral bands ranging from 8 to 50 µm. Calibrated radiances are obtained using two well-calibrated blackbodies. Images are acquired at a frame rate of 120 Hz, and temporally averaged to reduce electronic noise. A complete measurements sequence takes about 120 seconds. With a ﬁeld-of view of 6°, the FIRR is not intended to be an imager. Hence spatial average is computed over 193 illuminated pixels to increase the signal-to-noise ratio and consequently the detector resolution. This results in an improvement by a factor of 5 compared to individual pixel measurements. Another threefold increase in resolution is obtained using 193 non-illuminated pixels to remove correlated electronic noise, leading an overall resolution of approximately 0.015 W m–2 sr–1. Laboratory measurements performed on well known targets suggest an absolute accuracy close to 0.02 W m–2 sr–1, which ensures to retrieve atmospheric radiance with an accuracy better than 1%. Preliminary in situ experiments performed from the ground in winter and in summer on clear and cloudy atmospheres are compared to radiative transfer simulations. They point out the FIRR ability to detect clouds and changes in relative humidity of a few percent in various atmospheric conditions, paving the way for the development of new algorithms dedicated to ice cloud characterization and water vapor retrieval.
iFit: An intensity-based retrieval for SO2 and BrO from scattered sunlight ultraviolet volcanic plume absorption spectra
Authors: Burton M. R. , Sawyer G. M.
Published: January 2016

Abstract. iFit is a new intensity-based retrieval algorithm for direct fitting of measured UV spectra, specifically developed for use in volcanology. It has been designed with a focus on minimising processing of the measured spectra prior to analysis. Here, we report a detailed presentation of the iFit algorithm, and test it in 4 case studies, examining clear sky spectra, SO2 calibration cell experiments and volcanic SO2 and BrO retrievals from traverse measurements performed on Mt. Etna volcano, Italy. We show that the major source of fit error in the intensity fitting come from air mass factor independent solar spectrum errors, which are, however, easily characterised and removed by dividing the measured spectrum by a pre-calculated solar spectrum residual. Furthermore, we have quantified the magnitude of the flat spectrum in two spectrometers, and shown that this spectrum is strongly spectrometer dependent but temperature independent, opening the possibility for robust analysis and and BrO without the need for temperature stabilisation of quantification of both SO2 the spectrometer. We find that iFit can be robustly and easily applied to traverse measurements of volcanic plumes, producing bias-free profiles of SO2 , and high quality SO2 /BrO ratios without the need for clear sky background spectra. Fit residuals are typically pure instrumental noise when the residual solar spectrum is removed. We believe that the iFit approach, which avoids the need for a clear sky spectrum and which achieves noise-limited fits, is ideally suited to the automated analysis of spectra produced by networks of scanning UV spectrometers around volcanoes.
A two-dimensional Stockwell Transform for gravity wave analysis of AIRS measurements
Authors: Hindley N. P. , Smith N. D. , Wright C. J. , Mitchell N. J.
Published: January 2016

Abstract. Gravity waves play a critical role in the dynamics of the middle atmosphere due to their ability to transport energy and momentum from their sources to great heights. The accurate parametrization of gravity wave momentum ﬂux is of key importance to general circulation models. For the last decade, the nadir-viewing Atmospheric Infrared Sounder (AIRS) aboard NASA’s Aqua satellite has made global, two-dimensional (2-D) measurements of stratospheric radiances in which gravity waves can be detected. Current methods for gravity wave analysis of these data can introduce unwanted biases. Here, we present a new analysis method. Our method uses a 2-D Stockwell transform (2DST) to determine gravity wave horizontal wavelengths and directions in both directions simultaneously. We demonstrate that our method can accurately recover horizontal wavelengths and directions from a speciﬁed wave ﬁeld. We show that the use of an elliptical spectral windowing function in the 2DST, in place of a Gaussian, can dramatically improve the recovery of wave amplitude. We measure momentum ﬂux in two granules of AIRS measurements in two regions known to be intense hot spots of gravity wave activity: (i) the Drake Pas- sage/Antarctic Peninsula and (ii) the isolated mountainous island of South Georgia. We show that our 2DST method provides improved spatial localisation of key gravity wave properties over current methods. The added ﬂexibility offered by alternative spectral windowing functions and scaling parameters presented here extend the usefulness of our 2DST method to other areas of geophysical data analysis.
New methods for retrieval of chlorophyll red fluorescence from hyper-spectral satellite instruments: simulations and application to GOME-2 and SCIAMACHY
Authors: Joiner J. , Yoshida Y. , Guanter L. , Middleton E. M.
Published: January 2016

Abstract. Global satellite measurements of solar-induced ﬂuorescence (SIF) from chlorophyll over land and ocean have proven useful for a number of different applications related to physiology, phenology, and productivity of plants and phytoplankton. Terrestrial chlorophyll ﬂuorescence is emitted throughout the red and far-red spectrum, producing two broad peaks near 683 and 736 nm. From ocean surfaces, phytoplankton ﬂuorescence emissions are entirely from the red region. Studies using satellite-derived SIF over land have focused almost exclusively on measurements in the far- red, since those are the most easily obtained with existing instrumentation. Here, we examine new ways to use existing hyper-spectral satellite data sets to retrieve red SIF over both land and ocean. Our approach offers noise reductions as compared with previously published solar line ﬁlling retrievals by making use of the oxygen (O2) γ-band that is not affected by SIF. The O2 γ-band in conjunction with solar Fraunhofer lines help to anchor the O2 B-band that provides additional information on red SIF. Biases due to instrumental artifacts that vary in time, space, and with instrument, must be addressed in order to obtain reasonable results. The satellite instruments that we use were designed to make atmospheric trace- gas measurements and are therefore not optimal for observing SIF; they have coarse spatial resolution and only moderate spectral resolution (∼0.5 nm). Nevertheless, these instruments offer a unique opportunity to compare red and far-red terrestrial SIF at regional spatial scales. Our eight year record of red SIF observations over land with the Global Ozone Monitoring Instrument 2 (GOME-2) allows for the ﬁrst time reliable global mapping of monthly anomalies. These anomalies are shown to have similar spatio-temporal structure as those in the far-red, particularly for drought-prone regions. There is a somewhat larger percentage response in the red as compared with the far-red for these areas that are sensitive to soil moisture, although the differences are within the speciﬁed uncertainties that are dominated by systematic errors. We also demonstrate that high quality ocean ﬂuorescence line height retrievals can be achieved with GOME-2 and similar instruments by utilizing the full complement of radiance measurements that span the red SIF emission feature.
Approaches to radar reflectivity bias correction to improve rainfall estimation in Korea
Authors: You C.-H. , Kang M.-Y. , Lee D.-I. , Lee J.-T.
Published: January 2016

Abstract. Three methods for determining the reflectivity bias of single polarization radar using dual polarization radar reflectivity and disdrometer data (i.e., the equidistance line, overlapping area, and disdrometer methods) are proposed and evaluated for two low-pressure rainfall events that occurred over the Korean Peninsula on 25 August 2014 and 8 September 2012. Single polarization radar reflectivity was underestimated by more than 12 dB and 7 dB in the two rain events, respectively. All methods improved the accuracy of rainfall estimation, except for one case where DSDs were not observed, as the precipitation system did not pass through the disdrometer location. The use of these bias correction methods reduced the RMSE by as much as 50%. Overall, the most accurate rainfall estimates were obtained using the overlapping area method to correct radar reflectivity. A combination of all three methods would produce more accurate rainfall estimates, provided optimal values are determined for the domain size for the overlapping area method, the sample number threshold for the equidistance line method, and the reflectivity threshold for the disdrometer method.
Measuring Droplet Fall Speed with a High-Speed Camera: Indoor Accuracy and Potential Outdoor Applications
Authors: Yu C.-K. , Hsieh P.- R. , Yuter S. E. , Cheng L.- W. , Tsai C.- L. , Lin C.- Y. , Chen Y.
Published: January 2016

Abstract. The acquisition of accurate rain drop fall speed measurements outdoors in natural rain represents a long-standing and challenging issue in the meteorological community. Feasibility experiments were conducted to evaluate the indoor accuracy of fall speed measurements made with a high-speed camera and to evaluate its capability for outdoor applications. An indoor experiment operating in calm conditions showed that the high-speed imaging technique can provide fall speed measurements with a mean error of 4.1~9.7% compared to Gunn and Kinzer’s empirical fall speed-size relationship for typical sizes of rain and drizzle drops. Results obtained using the same apparatus outside in summer afternoon showers indicated larger, positive and negative velocity deviations compared to the indoor measurements. These observed deviations suggest that ambient flow and turbulence play a role in modifying drop fall speeds which can be quantified with future outdoor high-speed camera measurements. Because the fall speed measurements, as presented in this article, are analyzed on the basis of tracking individual, specific rain drops, sampling uncertainties commonly found in the widely adopted optical disdrometers can be significantly mitigated.
Furthering information from OH and HO2 +RO2 observations using a high resolution time of flight mass spectrometer
Authors: Mauldin III R. L. , Rissanen M. P. , Petäjä T. , Kulmala M.
Published: January 2016

Abstract. An instrument has been developed which allows an entire suite of oxidation products (H2SO4 and Extremely Low Volatile Organic Compounds, ELVOCs) to be measured along with the concentrations of the key radical species OH and HO2 +RO2. The system combines the techniques for chemical conversion of OH or HO2 +RO2 into H2SO4 together with nitrate ion (NO3-) Chemical Ionization (CI) and Atmospheric Pressure interface - Time of Flight Mass Spectrometer (NO3- CI-APi-ToF) which has been previously used for the detection of ELVOCs and a few other oxygenated organic species. The system exhibits the same sensitivity towards OH or HO2 +RO2 as previous quadrupole chemical ionization (CIMS) measurements with limits of detection of ~2 x 105 and ~2 x 106 molecule cm-3 for OH and HO2+RO2 respectively. Unlike previous CIMS measurements, the use of a NO3- CI-APi-ToF allows the acquisition of the entire mass spectrum at high resolution with each measurement, allowing one to see how the organic species behave when the sample flow is perturbed with reagent gasses (SO2 or NO). While the combination of these measurements into one instrument is of great practical value, it is the combination of these data within the spectra obtained in each mode that extends the information far beyond the measurements themselves.
Validation of Aura MLS retrievals of temperature, water vapour and ozone in the upper troposphere and lower–middle stratosphere over the Tibetan Plateau during boreal summer
Authors: Yan X. L. , Wright J. S. , Zheng X. D. , Livesey N. , Vömel H. , Zhou X. J.
Published: January 2016

Abstract. We validate Aura Microwave Limb Sounder (MLS) version 3 (v3) and version 4 (v4) retrievals of summertime temperature, water vapour and ozone in the upper troposphere and lower–middle stratosphere (UTLS; 10–316 hPa) against balloon soundings collected during the Study of Ozone, Aerosols and Radiation over the Tibetan Plateau (SOAR-TP). Mean v3 and v4 profiles of temperature, water vapour and ozone in this region during the measurement campaigns are almost identical through most of the stratosphere (10–68 hPa), but differ in several respects in the upper troposphere and tropopause layer. Differences in v4 relative to v3 include slightly colder mean temperatures from 100–316 hPa, smaller mean water vapour mixing ratios in the upper troposphere (215–316 hPa), and a more vertically homogeneous profile of mean ozone mixing ratios below the climatological tropopause (100–316 hPa). These changes substantially improve agreement between ozonesondes and MLS ozone retrievals in the upper troposphere, but slightly worsen existing cold and dry biases in the upper troposphere. Aura MLS v3 and v4 temperature profiles contain significant cold biases relative to collocated temperature measurements in several layers of the lower–middle stratosphere (mean biases of −1.3 to −1.8 K centered at 10–12 hPa, 26–32 hPa and 68– 83 hPa) and in the upper troposphere (mean biases of approximately −2.3±0.3 K in v3 and −2.6±0.4 K in v4 between 147 and 261 hPa). MLS v3 and v4 profiles of water vapour volume mixing ratio generally compare well with collocated measurements, with a slight dry bias (v4: −8±4%) near 22–26 hPa, a slight wet bias (v4: +12±5%) near 68–83 hPa, and a more substantial dry bias (v4: −32±11%) in the upper troposphere (121–261 hPa). MLS v3 and v4 retrievals of ozone volume mixing ratio are biased high relative to collocated ozonesondes through most of the stratosphere (18–83 hPa), but are biased low at 100 hPa. The largest positive biases in ozone retrievals are located at 83 hPa (approximately +70%); this peak was not identified by earlier validations and may be regionally or seasonally specific. Ozone retrievals are substantially improved in v4 relative to v3, with smaller biases in the tropopause layer, reduced variance below 68 hPa, larger data yields, and smoother gradients in the vertical profile of ozone biases in the upper troposphere.
The STRatospheric Estimation Algorithm from Mainz (STREAM): Estimating stratospheric NO2 from nadir-viewing satellites by weighted convolution
Authors: Beirle S. , Hörmann C. , Jöckel P. , Penning de Vries M. , Pozzer A. , Sihler H. , Valks P. , Wagner T.
Published: January 2016

Abstract. Abstract. The STRatospheric Estimation Algorithm from Mainz (STREAM) determines stratospheric columns of NO2 which are needed for the retrieval of tropospheric columns from satellite observations. It is based on the total column measurements over clean, remote regions as well as over clouded scenes where the tropospheric column is effectively shielded. The contribution of individual satellite measurements to the stratospheric estimate is controlled by various weighting factors. STREAM is a ﬂexible and robust algorithm and does not require input from chemical transport models. It was developed as veriﬁcation algorithm for the upcoming satellite instrument TROPOMI, as complement to the operational stratospheric correction based on data assimilation. STREAM was successfully applied to the UV/vis satellite instruments GOME 1/2, SCIAMACHY, and OMI. It overcomes some of the artefacts of previous algorithms, as it is capable of reproducing gradients of stratospheric NO2, e.g. related to the polar vortex, and reduces interpolation errors over continents. Based on synthetic input data, the uncertainty of STREAM was quantiﬁed as about 0.1–0.2 × 1015 molecules cm−2, in accordance to the typical deviations between stratospheric estimates from different algorithms compared in this study.