Monitoring of the Eyjafjallajökull volcanic aerosol plume over the Iberian Peninsula by means of four EARLINET lidar stations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors performed intensively over the Iberian Peninsula (IP) during the eruption of the Eyjafjallajokull volcano (Iceland) in April-May 2010.
Abstract: . Lidar and sun-photometer measurements were performed intensively over the Iberian Peninsula (IP) during the eruption of the Eyjafjallajokull volcano (Iceland) in April–May 2010. The volcanic plume reached all the IP stations for the first time on 5 May 2010. A thorough study of the event was conducted for the period 5–8 May. Firstly, the spatial and temporal evolution of the plume was described by means of lidar and sun-photometer measurements supported with backtrajectories. The volcanic aerosol layers observed over the IP were rather thin (
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TL;DR: The European Aerosol Research Lidar Network (EARLINET) as mentioned in this paper was founded as a research project for establishing a quantitative, comprehensive, and statistically significant database for the horizontal, vertical, and tempo-ral distribution of aerosols on a continental scale.
Abstract: The European Aerosol Research Lidar Network, EARLINET, was founded in 2000 as a research project for establishing a quantitative, comprehensive, and statistically significant database for the horizontal, vertical, and tempo- ral distribution of aerosols on a continental scale. Since then EARLINET has continued to provide the most extensive col- lection of ground-based data for the aerosol vertical distribu- tion over Europe. This paper gives an overview of the network's main de- velopments since 2000 and introduces the dedicated EAR- LINET special issue, which reports on the present innova- tive and comprehensive technical solutions and scientific re- sults related to the use of advanced lidar remote sensing tech- niques for the study of aerosol properties as developed within the network in the last 13 years. Since 2000, EARLINET has developed greatly in terms of number of stations and spatial distribution: from 17 sta- tions in 10 countries in 2000 to 27 stations in 16 countries in 2013. EARLINET has developed greatly also in terms of technological advances with the spread of advanced multi- wavelength Raman lidar stations in Europe. The develop- ments for the quality assurance strategy, the optimization of instruments and data processing, and the dissemination of data have contributed to a significant improvement of the net- work towards a more sustainable observing system, with an increase in the observing capability and a reduction of oper- ational costs. Consequently, EARLINET data have already been ex- tensively used for many climatological studies, long-range transport events, Saharan dust outbreaks, plumes from vol- canic eruptions, and for model evaluation and satellite data validation and integration. Future plans are aimed at continuous measurements and near-real-time data delivery in close cooperation with other ground-based networks, such as in the ACTRIS (Aerosols, Clouds, and Trace gases Research InfraStructure Network) www.actris.net, and with the modeling and satellite commu- nity, linking the research community with the operational world, with the aim of establishing of the atmospheric part of the European component of the integrated global observ- ing system.
417 citations
Leibniz Association1, European Space Agency2, Finnish Meteorological Institute3, National University of Ireland, Galway4, University of Hertfordshire5, Stockholm University6, National Institute of Environmental Research7, University of Warsaw8, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki9, Leipzig University10, The Energy and Resources Institute11, Deutscher Wetterdienst12, University of Leeds13, University of São Paulo14, Federal University of São Paulo15, North-West University16, Stellenbosch University17, Sun Yat-sen University18, Cyprus University of Technology19, University of Magallanes20
TL;DR: PollyNET as mentioned in this paper consists of portable, remote-controlled multiwavelength-polarization-Raman lidars (Polly) for automated and continuous 24/7 observations of clouds and aerosols.
Abstract: . A global vertically resolved aerosol data set covering more than 10 years of observations at more than 20 measurement sites distributed from 63° N to 52° S and 72° W to 124° E has been achieved within the Raman and polarization lidar network PollyNET. This network consists of portable, remote-controlled multiwavelength-polarization-Raman lidars (Polly) for automated and continuous 24/7 observations of clouds and aerosols. PollyNET is an independent, voluntary, and scientific network. All Polly lidars feature a standardized instrument design with different capabilities ranging from single wavelength to multiwavelength systems, and now apply unified calibration, quality control, and data analysis. The observations are processed in near-real time without manual intervention, and are presented online at http://polly.tropos.de/ . The paper gives an overview of the observations on four continents and two research vessels obtained with eight Polly systems. The specific aerosol types at these locations (mineral dust, smoke, dust-smoke and other dusty mixtures, urban haze, and volcanic ash) are identified by their Angstrom exponent, lidar ratio, and depolarization ratio. The vertical aerosol distribution at the PollyNET locations is discussed on the basis of more than 55 000 automatically retrieved 30 min particle backscatter coefficient profiles at 532 nm as this operating wavelength is available for all Polly lidar systems. A seasonal analysis of measurements at selected sites revealed typical and extraordinary aerosol conditions as well as seasonal differences. These studies show the potential of PollyNET to support the establishment of a global aerosol climatology that covers the entire troposphere.
192 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the polarization lidar photometer networking (POLIPHON) method introduced to separate coarse-mode and fine-mode particle properties of Eyjafjallajokull volcanic aerosols in 2010 is extended to cover Saharan dust events as well.
Abstract: . The polarization lidar photometer networking (POLIPHON) method introduced to separate coarse-mode and fine-mode particle properties of Eyjafjallajokull volcanic aerosols in 2010 is extended to cover Saharan dust events as well. Furthermore, new volcanic dust observations performed after the Grimsvotn volcanic eruptions in 2011 are presented. The retrieval of particle mass concentrations requires mass-specific extinction coefficients. Therefore, a review of recently published mass-specific extinction coefficients for Saharan dust and volcanic dust is given. Case studies of four different scenarios corroborate the applicability of the profiling technique: (a) Saharan dust outbreak to central Europe, (b) Saharan dust plume mixed with biomass-burning smoke over Cape Verde, and volcanic aerosol layers originating from (c) the Eyjafjallajokull eruptions in 2010 and (d) the Grimsvotn eruptions in 2011. Strong differences in the vertical aerosol layering, aerosol mixing, and optical properties are observed for the different volcanic events.
130 citations
Leibniz Institute for Neurobiology1, Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute2, University of Granada3, National Academy of Sciences of Belarus4, Polytechnic University of Catalonia5, Paris Diderot University6, Pierre-and-Marie-Curie University7, Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich8, Finnish Meteorological Institute9, Karlsruhe Institute of Technology10, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences11, German Aerospace Center12, University of L'Aquila13, Max Planck Society14, Deutscher Wetterdienst15, National Technical University of Athens16, University College Cork17, Polish Academy of Sciences18, University of Évora19, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne20, Norwegian Institute for Air Research21, Stockholm University22
TL;DR: In this article, the authors show the four-dimensional (4-D) distribution of the Eyjafjallajokull volcanic cloud in the troposphere over Europe as observed by EARLINET during the entire volcanic event (15 April-26 May 2010).
Abstract: . The eruption of the Icelandic volcano Eyjafjallajokull in April–May 2010 represents a "natural experiment" to study the impact of volcanic emissions on a continental scale. For the first time, quantitative data about the presence, altitude, and layering of the volcanic cloud, in conjunction with optical information, are available for most parts of Europe derived from the observations by the European Aerosol Research Lidar NETwork (EARLINET). Based on multi-wavelength Raman lidar systems, EARLINET is the only instrument worldwide that is able to provide dense time series of high-quality optical data to be used for aerosol typing and for the retrieval of particle microphysical properties as a function of altitude. In this work we show the four-dimensional (4-D) distribution of the Eyjafjallajokull volcanic cloud in the troposphere over Europe as observed by EARLINET during the entire volcanic event (15 April–26 May 2010). All optical properties directly measured (backscatter, extinction, and particle linear depolarization ratio) are stored in the EARLINET database available at http://www.earlinet.org . A specific relational database providing the volcanic mask over Europe, realized ad hoc for this specific event, has been developed and is available on request at http://www.earlinet.org . During the first days after the eruption, volcanic particles were detected over Central Europe within a wide range of altitudes, from the upper troposphere down to the local planetary boundary layer (PBL). After 19 April 2010, volcanic particles were detected over southern and south-eastern Europe. During the first half of May (5–15 May), material emitted by the Eyjafjallajokull volcano was detected over Spain and Portugal and then over the Mediterranean and the Balkans. The last observations of the event were recorded until 25 May in Central Europe and in the Eastern Mediterranean area. The 4-D distribution of volcanic aerosol layering and optical properties on European scale reported here provides an unprecedented data set for evaluating satellite data and aerosol dispersion models for this kind of volcanic events.
91 citations
University of Maryland, Baltimore County1, Langley Research Center2, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration3, Goddard Space Flight Center4, University of Granada5, Polytechnic University of Catalonia6, Centre national de la recherche scientifique7, Chinese Academy of Sciences8, Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur9
TL;DR: In this article, the authors report on ground-based lidar observations of the same event from every continent in the Northern Hemisphere, taking advantage of the synergy between global lidar networks such as EARLINET, MPLNET and NDACC with independent lidar groups and satellite CALIPSO.
Abstract: Nabro volcano (13.37°N, 41.70°E) in Eritrea erupted on 13 June 2011 generating a layer of sulfate aerosols that persisted in the stratosphere for months. For the first time we report on ground-based lidar observations of the same event from every continent in the Northern Hemisphere, taking advantage of the synergy between global lidar networks such as EARLINET, MPLNET and NDACC with independent lidar groups and satellite CALIPSO to track the evolution of the stratospheric aerosol layer in various parts of the globe. The globally averaged aerosol optical depth (AOD) due to the stratospheric volcanic aerosol layers was of the order of 0.018 ± 0.009 at 532 nm, ranging from 0.003 to 0.04. Compared to the total column AOD from the available collocated AERONET stations, the stratospheric contribution varied from 2% to 23% at 532 nm.
73 citations
References
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01 Feb 2011
TL;DR: In this paper, a network of Spanish and Portuguese aerosol lidars (SPALINET) was created to support the EARLINET-ASOS European project, where six out of the ten systems have been successfully intercompared, seven elastic algorithms and six Raman algorithms have also been validated.
Abstract: espanolA fin de extender y reforzar las acciones de la red Europea EARLINET (financiada por el proyecto europeo EARLINET-ASOS), se creo una red hispano-portuguesa de lidares de aerosoles (SPALINET). En los tres primeros anos del proyecto seis de los 10 sistemas lidar han sido intercomparados con exito, siete algoritmos de inversion elastica han sido validados, asi como seis algoritmos de inversion Raman. En la actualidad la red esta estableciendo nuevos objetivos cientificos comunes a todos los miembros a fin de poder realizar medidas coordinadas. Este trabajo presenta el contexto cientifico y una descripcion de SPALINET, asi como los resultados de los tres primeros anos de actividad. EnglishTo extend and reinforce the action of the European network EARLINET (supported by the EARLINET-ASOS European project), a network of Spanish and Portuguese aerosol lidars (SPALINET) was created. In the first three years of the project six out of the ten systems have been successfully intercompared, seven elastic algorithms and six Raman algorithms have also been validated. Now the network focuses on future scientific objectives aiming at performing coordinated measurements. This paper presents the scientific context and a description of the network, as well as the results from the first three years of activity.
6 citations
TL;DR: The arrival of the volcanic ash plume of the Eyjafjallajokull eruption was observed over Greece almost one week after its major eruption (on April 14, 2010) with two multi-wavelength Raman lidar systems, members of the EARLINET======network.
Abstract: The arrival of the volcanic ash plume of the Eyjafjallajokull eruption was observed over Greece almost one week after its
major eruption (on April 14, 2010) with two multi-wavelength Raman lidar systems, members of the EARLINET
network. Intensive lidar measurements were performed throughout the event over Thessaloniki and Athens to derive the
optical properties of the ash aerosols in the troposphere. During April 21, 2010 two layers of volcanic ash were present
over Thessaloniki, one around 2.5 and one around 5 km height after circulating over central Europe. The first layer was
persistent but with variable thickness, while the thin layer observed at 5 km height disappeared after some hours. Later
on and at higher altitudes thin layers of ash were observed between 5 and 8 km, directly associated with the volcanic
eruption. The observed layer at around and 3 km was persistently observed till April 28. The volcanic ash was observed
over Athens, after passing over Southern Italy, during April and May 2010, in two height regions: between 6-10 km
height and between 4 km and the ground level. We found that this was directly linked to the maximum height of the
emitted volcanic ash. The most intensive period for ash presence over Athens was between April 21 and 23. In most
cases, ash layers were very well stratified in the form of filaments starting around 3-4 km down to 1.5 km height. Mixing
of ash with locally produced aerosols was frequently observed during the measuring period resulting to enhanced PM 10
concentrations at ground level. Volcanic ash was also observed during May 10-11 and 17-19, 2010, after being
transported over Spain and Northern Italy. Both over Athens and Thessaloniki Saharan dust particles were mixed with
volcanic ones on certain days of May 2010, which resulted to more complicated structures of the aerosol layers observed
over Greece.
6 citations
01 Jan 2010
TL;DR: In this article, an assessment of the model forecast for the Eyjafjalla volcanic event has been performed for the Iberian Peninsula, where the vertical profiles measured by a network of lidar instruments have been compared with the predictions provided by two models.
Abstract: An assessment of the model forecast for the Eyjafjalla volcanic event has been performed for the Iberian Peninsula. Vertical profiles measured by a network of lidar instruments have been compared with the predictions provided by two models. The event over the Iberian Peninsula, which occurred between the 5 th and 8 th of May, 2010, was reasonably well captured by both models, although some discrepancies in temporal and spatial accuracy respect to the lidar profiles are commented. The assessment is limited due to interference of th e lidar measurements by low clouds and rain.
2 citations
"Monitoring of the Eyjafjallajökull ..." refers methods in this paper
...In a preliminary study, Molero et al. (2010) made a simple comparison between model predictions such as EURAD (EURopean Air Pollution Dispersion, http://www.eurad.unikoeln.de/indexe.html) and FLEXPART (http://transport. nilu.no/flexpart) and vertical profiles obtained by four lidar systems over the…...
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