Vertical distribution of aerosols over the east coast of India inferred from airborne LIDAR measurements
The information on altitude distribution of aerosols in the atmosphere is essential in assessing the impact of aerosol warming on thermal structure and stability of the atmosphere. In addition, aerosol altitude distribution is needed to address complex problems such as the radiative interaction...
| Main Authors: | , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Copernicus Publications
2009-11-01
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| Series: | Annales Geophysicae |
| Online Access: | https://www.ann-geophys.net/27/4157/2009/angeo-27-4157-2009.pdf |
| _version_ | 1828358220505153536 |
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| author | S. K. Satheesh S. K. Satheesh V. Vinoj S. Suresh Babu K. Krishna Moorthy V. S. Nair |
| author_facet | S. K. Satheesh S. K. Satheesh V. Vinoj S. Suresh Babu K. Krishna Moorthy V. S. Nair |
| author_sort | S. K. Satheesh |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | The information on altitude distribution of
aerosols in the atmosphere is essential in assessing the impact of aerosol
warming on thermal structure and stability of the atmosphere. In addition,
aerosol altitude distribution is needed to address complex problems such as
the radiative interaction of aerosols in the presence of clouds. With this
objective, an extensive, multi-institutional and multi-platform field
experiment (ICARB-Integrated Campaign for Aerosols, gases and Radiation
Budget) was carried out under the Geosphere Biosphere Programme of the
Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO-GBP) over continental India and
adjoining oceans during March to May 2006. Here, we present airborne LIDAR
measurements carried out over the east Coast of the India during the ICARB
field campaign. An increase in aerosol extinction (scattering + absorption)
was observed from the surface upwards with a maximum around 2 to 4 km.
Aerosol extinction at higher atmospheric layers (>2 km) was two to three
times larger compared to that of the surface. A large fraction (75–85%)
of aerosol column optical depth was contributed by aerosols located above 1 km.
The aerosol layer heights (defined in this paper as the height at which
the gradient in extinction coefficient changes sign) showed a gradual
decrease with an increase in the offshore distance. A large fraction
(60–75%) of aerosol was found located above clouds indicating enhanced
aerosol absorption above clouds. Our study implies that a detailed
statistical evaluation of the temporal frequency and spatial extent of
elevated aerosol layers is necessary to assess their significance to the
climate. This is feasible using data from space-borne lidars such as
CALIPSO, which fly in formation with other satellites like MODIS AQUA and
MISR, as part of the A-Train constellation. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-14T03:25:45Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-d87e60526b86470ead5f73663d6f362d |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 0992-7689 1432-0576 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-14T03:25:45Z |
| publishDate | 2009-11-01 |
| publisher | Copernicus Publications |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Annales Geophysicae |
| spelling | doaj.art-d87e60526b86470ead5f73663d6f362d2022-12-22T02:15:10ZengCopernicus PublicationsAnnales Geophysicae0992-76891432-05762009-11-01274157416910.5194/angeo-27-4157-2009Vertical distribution of aerosols over the east coast of India inferred from airborne LIDAR measurementsS. K. Satheesh0S. K. Satheesh1V. Vinoj2S. Suresh Babu3K. Krishna Moorthy4V. S. Nair5Centre for Atmospheric & Oceanic Sciences, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore 560 012, IndiaDivecha Centre for Climate Change, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore 560 012, IndiaCentre for Atmospheric & Oceanic Sciences, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore 560 012, IndiaSpace Physics Laboratory, Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre, Thiruvananthapuram 695022, IndiaSpace Physics Laboratory, Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre, Thiruvananthapuram 695022, IndiaSpace Physics Laboratory, Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre, Thiruvananthapuram 695022, IndiaThe information on altitude distribution of aerosols in the atmosphere is essential in assessing the impact of aerosol warming on thermal structure and stability of the atmosphere. In addition, aerosol altitude distribution is needed to address complex problems such as the radiative interaction of aerosols in the presence of clouds. With this objective, an extensive, multi-institutional and multi-platform field experiment (ICARB-Integrated Campaign for Aerosols, gases and Radiation Budget) was carried out under the Geosphere Biosphere Programme of the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO-GBP) over continental India and adjoining oceans during March to May 2006. Here, we present airborne LIDAR measurements carried out over the east Coast of the India during the ICARB field campaign. An increase in aerosol extinction (scattering + absorption) was observed from the surface upwards with a maximum around 2 to 4 km. Aerosol extinction at higher atmospheric layers (>2 km) was two to three times larger compared to that of the surface. A large fraction (75–85%) of aerosol column optical depth was contributed by aerosols located above 1 km. The aerosol layer heights (defined in this paper as the height at which the gradient in extinction coefficient changes sign) showed a gradual decrease with an increase in the offshore distance. A large fraction (60–75%) of aerosol was found located above clouds indicating enhanced aerosol absorption above clouds. Our study implies that a detailed statistical evaluation of the temporal frequency and spatial extent of elevated aerosol layers is necessary to assess their significance to the climate. This is feasible using data from space-borne lidars such as CALIPSO, which fly in formation with other satellites like MODIS AQUA and MISR, as part of the A-Train constellation.https://www.ann-geophys.net/27/4157/2009/angeo-27-4157-2009.pdf |
| spellingShingle | S. K. Satheesh S. K. Satheesh V. Vinoj S. Suresh Babu K. Krishna Moorthy V. S. Nair Vertical distribution of aerosols over the east coast of India inferred from airborne LIDAR measurements Annales Geophysicae |
| title | Vertical distribution of aerosols over the east coast of India inferred from airborne LIDAR measurements |
| title_full | Vertical distribution of aerosols over the east coast of India inferred from airborne LIDAR measurements |
| title_fullStr | Vertical distribution of aerosols over the east coast of India inferred from airborne LIDAR measurements |
| title_full_unstemmed | Vertical distribution of aerosols over the east coast of India inferred from airborne LIDAR measurements |
| title_short | Vertical distribution of aerosols over the east coast of India inferred from airborne LIDAR measurements |
| title_sort | vertical distribution of aerosols over the east coast of india inferred from airborne lidar measurements |
| url | https://www.ann-geophys.net/27/4157/2009/angeo-27-4157-2009.pdf |
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