Aerosol Distributions and Transport over Southern Morocco from Ground-Based and Satellite Observations (2004–2020)
Tristan Millet,Hassan Bencherif,Aziza Bounhir,Nelson Bègue,Kévin Lamy,Marion Ranaivombola,Zouhair Benkhaldoun,Thierry Portafaix,Valentin Duflot +8 more
TLDR
In this paper , the optical properties of aerosols on daily and seasonal scales with the use of the aerosol optical depth (AOD) and Angström exponent (AE) data retrieved from AErosol RObotic NETwork (AERONET) and collected at four stations in Southern Morocco.Abstract:
The present study investigates the optical properties of aerosols on daily and seasonal scales with the use of the aerosol optical depth (AOD) and Angström exponent (AE) data retrieved from AErosol RObotic NETwork (AERONET) and collected at four stations in Southern Morocco—Saada (31.63° N; 8.16° W), Ouarzazate (30.93° N; 6.91° W), Oukaïmeden (31.21° N; 7.86° W) and Ras-El-Aïn (31.67° N; 7.60° W). An evaluation of the aerosol volumetric size distribution (AVSD) is also obtained for Saada and Ouarzazate. An AOD inter-comparison is performed between AERONET data and satellite sensors (MODerate resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer—MODIS), as well as assimilation products (Modern-Era Retrospective analysis for Research and Applications, version 2 (MERRA-2) and Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service (CAMS)), by the means of a linear regression. Regardless of site location and elevation, the results show the prevalence of the annual cycle of AOD, with a maximum in summer and a minimum in winter. In association with this seasonal variation, the variations in AE and AVSD showed an increase in coarse mode over Ouarzazate and Saada during summer (July to August), underlining that Southern Morocco is prone to the regular transport of desert dust on a seasonal basis. The inter-comparison reveals that the MERRA-2 dataset is slightly more appropriate for the study region, since it shows correlation coefficients (r) ranging from 0.758 to 0.844 and intercepts ranging from 0.021 to 0.070, depending on the study site. The statistical analysis of the back-trajectories simulated by the HYbrid Single Particle Lagrangian Integrated Trajectory (HYSPLIT) model were consistent with the observations and confirmed the dominance of desert dust aerosols during the summer over the study region. On the other hand, the winter season reveals a predominance of anthropogenic and oceanic aerosols originating from the north and the west of the study site.read more
Citations
More filters
Journal ArticleDOI
Aerosol Optical Properties and Types over Southern Africa and Reunion Island Determined from Ground-Based and Satellite Observations over a 13-Year Period (2008-2021)
Marion Ranaivombola,Nelson Bègue,Hassan Bencherif,Tristan Millet,Venkataraman Sivakumar,Valentin Duflot,Alexandre Baron,Nkanyiso Mbatha,Stuart Piketh,Paola Formenti,Philippe Goloub +10 more
TL;DR: In this article , the authors examined 13 years of aerosol optical characteristics and types over Southern Africa and Reunion Island using AERONET sun photometers and MODIS observations, and found that a high aerosols optical depth and Angström exponent are associated with two predominant types of aerosols (biomass burning/urban industrial and mixed type) throughout the spring season.
Journal ArticleDOI
Exploring the Spatiotemporal Variation in Light-Absorbing Aerosols and Its Relationship with Meteorology over the Hindukush-Himalaya-Karakoram Region
TL;DR: In this paper , the authors investigated the impact of light-absorbing aerosols on the Hindukush-Karakoram-Himalaya region in northern Pakistan from 2001 to 2021 using spatiotemporal variation in absorbing surface mass concentration retrieved from Modern-Era Retrospective analysis for Research and Applications.
Journal ArticleDOI
Variation of Aerosol Optical Properties over Cluj-Napoca, Romania, Based on 10 Years of AERONET Data and MODIS MAIAC AOD Product
Stefanie Horatiu,Andrei Radovici,Alexandru Mereuță,Viorel Arghiuş,Horia Camarasan,D.T. Costin,Camelia Botezan,Nicolae Ajtai +7 more
TL;DR: In this paper , the seasonality of aerosols in the Cluj-Napoca area was analyzed using the CIMEL sun photometer, part of the aerosol robotic network (AERONET).
References
More filters
Journal ArticleDOI
AERONET-a federated instrument network and data archive for aerosol Characterization
Brent N. Holben,Thomas F. Eck,Ilya Slutsker,Didier Tanré,J. P. Buis,Alberto Setzer,Eric Vermote,John A. Reagan,Yoram J. Kaufman,Teruyuki Nakajima,François Lavenu,I. Jankowiak,Alexander Smirnov +12 more
TL;DR: The operation and philosophy of the monitoring system, the precision and accuracy of the measuring radiometers, a brief description of the processing system, and access to the database are discussed.
Journal ArticleDOI
The Modern-Era Retrospective Analysis for Research and Applications, Version 2 (MERRA-2)
Ronald Gelaro,Will McCarty,Max J. Suarez,Max J. Suarez,Ricardo Todling,Andrea Molod,Lawrence L. Takacs,Cynthia A. Randles,Cynthia A. Randles,Anton Darmenov,Michael G. Bosilovich,Rolf H. Reichle,Krzysztof Wargan,Lawrence Coy,Richard I. Cullather,Richard I. Cullather,Clara S. Draper,Clara S. Draper,Santha Akella,V. Buchard,V. Buchard,Austin Conaty,Arlindo da Silva,Wei Gu,Gi-Kong Kim,Randal D. Koster,Robert A. Lucchesi,Dagmar Merkova,J. E. Nielsen,Gary Partyka,Steven Pawson,William M. Putman,Michele M. Rienecker,Siegfried D. Schubert,Meta Sienkiewicz,Bin Zhao,Bin Zhao +36 more
TL;DR: An overview of the MERRA-2 system and various performance metrics is provided, including the assimilation of aerosol observations, several improvements to the representation of the stratosphere including ozone, and improved representations of cryospheric processes.
An Overview of the HYSPLIT_4 Modelling System for Trajectories, Dispersion, and Deposition
TL;DR: The HYSPLIT_4 (HYbrid Single-Particle Lagrangian Integrated Trajectory) model is designed for quick response to atmospheric emergencies, diagnostic case studies, or climatological analyses using previously gridded meteorological data.
Journal ArticleDOI
A flexible inversion algorithm for retrieval of aerosol optical properties from Sun and sky radiance measurements
Oleg Dubovik,Michael D. King +1 more
TL;DR: The developed algorithm is adapted for the retrieval of aerosol properties from measurements made by ground-based Sun-sky scanning radiometers used in the Aerosol Robotic Network (AERONET) and allows a choice of normal or lognormal noise assumptions.
Journal ArticleDOI
The Collection 6 MODIS aerosol products over land and ocean
Robert C. Levy,Shana Mattoo,L. A. Munchak,Lorraine A. Remer,Andrew M. Sayer,Andrew M. Sayer,Falguni Patadia,Falguni Patadia,N. C. Hsu +8 more
TL;DR: The Collection 6 (C6) algorithm as mentioned in this paper was proposed to retrieve aerosol optical depth (AOD) and aerosol size parameters from MODIS-observed spectral reflectance.