Showing papers on "Haze published in 2012"

Atmospheric aerosol compositions in China: spatial/temporal variability, chemical signature, regional haze distribution and comparisons with global aerosols

Abstract: . From 2006 to 2007, the daily concentrations of major inorganic water-soluble constituents, mineral aerosol, organic carbon (OC) and elemental carbon (EC) in ambient PM10 samples were investigated from 16 urban, rural and remote sites in various regions of China, and were compared with global aerosol measurements. A large difference between urban and rural chemical species was found, normally with 1.5 to 2.5 factors higher in urban than in rural sites. Optically-scattering aerosols, such as sulfate (~16%), OC (~15%), nitrate (~7%), ammonium (~5%) and mineral aerosol (~35%) in most circumstance, are majorities of the total aerosols, indicating a dominant scattering feature of aerosols in China. Of the total OC, ~55%–60% can be attributed to the formation of the secondary organic carbon (SOC). The absorbing aerosol EC only accounts for ~3.5% of the total PM10. Seasonally, maximum concentrations of most aerosol species were found in winter while mineral aerosol peaks in spring. In addition to the regular seasonal maximum, secondary peaks were found for sulfate and ammonium in summer and for OC and EC in May and June. This can be considered as a typical seasonal pattern in various aerosol components in China. Aerosol acidity was normally neutral in most of urban areas, but becomes some acidic in rural areas. Based on the surface visibility observations from 681 meteorological stations in China between 1957 and 2005, four major haze areas are identified with similar visibility changes, namely, (1) Hua Bei Plain in N. China, and the Guanzhong Plain; (2) E. China with the main body in the Yangtze River Delta area; (3) S. China with most areas of Guangdong and the Pearl River Delta area; (4) The Si Chuan Basin in S.W. China. The degradation of visibility in these areas is linked with the emission changes and high PM concentrations. Such quantitative chemical characterization of aerosols is essential in assessing their role in atmospheric chemistry and weather-climate effects, and in validating atmospheric models.

A bistable organic-rich atmosphere on the Neoarchaean Earth

Abstract: It has been hypothesized that, before widespread oxygenation about 2.45 billion years ago, the Earth’s atmosphere contained an organic haze similar to that on Titan. However, these theoretical predictions have not been substantiated by geological evidence. Here we use multiproxy geochemical analyses of sediments from the 2.65–2.5-billion-year-old Ghaap Group, in South Africa, to reconstruct ocean and atmospheric chemistry during this time. We find evidence for oxygen production in microbial mats and localized oxygenation of surface waters. Carbon and sulphur isotopes indicate that this oxygen production occurred under a reduced atmosphere that was periodically rich in methane, consistent with the prediction of a hydrocarbon haze. We use a photochemical model to corroborate our geochemical data. Our simulations predict transitions between two stable atmospheric states, one with organic haze and the other haze-free. The transitions are presumably governed by variations in the amount of biological methane production during the Archaean eon. We find that the isotopic signatures we observe are evident in other data sets from this period and conclude that methane was an important component of the atmosphere throughout the Archaean. Before the rise of oxygen, the atmosphere of the early Earth may have consisted of an organic haze. Geochemical data and modelling suggest that from 2.65 to 2.5 Gyr ago, several transitions between hazy and haze-free atmospheric conditions occurred, potentially linked to variations in biogenic methane production.

Satellite observation of regional haze pollution over the North China Plain

Abstract: [1] Haze clouds often form over the North China Plain (NCP) of eastern China, where large amounts of aerosol particles and their precursors are emitted. To obtain general insights into regional pollution, a large-scale, long-term study was conducted using A-Train satellite observations, ground measurements, and meteorological data. Contrary to previous analyses, most of the haze clouds appeared to form abruptly (within 2–3 h). Case studies show that natural sources contribute significantly to the formation of regional haze. Dust plumes can mix with local pollutants, causing smog clouds to form abruptly, while moist airflows can cause widespread haze-fog pollution. The combined observations revealed highly inhomogeneous haze clouds, in terms of both vertical and horizontal distribution, leading to clear discrepancies between site measurements near the surface and satellite observations at the top of the atmosphere. Surprisingly, prevailing dust plumes, which are closely connected with the haze clouds, were observed in winter. Airborne dust and water vapor transported from outside the region are the main drivers of regional haze over the NCP. Accumulation of local pollutants also leads to common occurrences of urban smog; however, the occurrence of most haze clouds shows no obvious correlation with local pollution. Local- and regional-scale haze pollution are common over the NCP, but they have differing formation mechanisms, and contrasting chemical and physical properties. The present findings improve our understanding of heavy pollution over eastern China and its links to climate.

Typical Types and Formation Mechanisms of Haze in an Eastern Asia Megacity, Shanghai

Abstract: . An intensive aerosol and gases campaign was performed at Shanghai in the Yangtze River Delta region over Eastern China from late March to early June 2009. This study provided a complementary picture of typical haze types and the formation mechanisms in megacities over China by using a synergy of ground-based monitoring, satellite and lidar observations. During the whole study period, several extreme low visibility periods were observed with distinct characteristics, and three typical haze types were identified, i.e. secondary inorganic pollution, dust, and biomass burning. Sulfate, nitrate and ammonium accounted for a major part of PM2.5 mass during the secondary inorganic pollution, and the good correlation between SO2/NOx/CO and PM2.5 indicated that coal burning and vehicle emission were the major sources. Large-scale regions with high AOD (aerosol optical depths) and low Angstrom exponent were detected by remote-sensing observation during the dust pollution episode, and this episode corresponded to coarse particles rich in mineral components such as Al and Ca contributing 76.8% to TSP. The relatively low Ca/Al ratio of 0.75 along with the air mass backward trajectory analysis suggested the dust source was from Gobi Desert. Typical tracers for biomass burning from satellite observation (column CO and HCHO) and from ground measurement (CO, particulate K+, OC, and EC) were greatly enhanced during the biomass burning pollution episode. The exclusive linear correlation between CO and PM2.5 corroborated that organic aerosol dominated aerosol chemistry during biomass burning, and the high concentration and enrichment degree of arsenic (As) could be also partly derived from biomass burning. Aerosol optical profile observed by lidar demonstrated that aerosol was mainly constrained below the boundary layer and comprised of spheric aerosol (depolarization ratio

Planck Intermediate Results. IX. Detection of the Galactic haze with Planck

Abstract: Using precise full-sky observations from Planck, and applying several methods of component separation, we identify and characterize the emission from the Galactic "haze" at microwave wavelengths. The haze is a distinct component of diffuse Galactic emission, roughly centered on the Galactic centre, and extends to |b| ~35 deg in Galactic latitude and |l| ~15 deg in longitude. By combining the Planck data with observations from the WMAP we are able to determine the spectrum of this emission to high accuracy, unhindered by the large systematic biases present in previous analyses. The derived spectrum is consistent with power-law emission with a spectral index of -2.55 +/- 0.05, thus excluding free-free emission as the source and instead favouring hard-spectrum synchrotron radiation from an electron population with a spectrum (number density per energy) dN/dE ~ E^-2.1. At Galactic latitudes |b|<30 deg, the microwave haze morphology is consistent with that of the Fermi gamma-ray "haze" or "bubbles," indicating that we have a multi-wavelength view of a distinct component of our Galaxy. Given both the very hard spectrum and the extended nature of the emission, it is highly unlikely that the haze electrons result from supernova shocks in the Galactic disk. Instead, a new mechanism for cosmic-ray acceleration in the centre of our Galaxy is implied.

Probing the haze in the atmosphere of HD 189733b with HST/WFC3 transmission spectroscopy

Abstract: We present Hubble Space Telescope near-infrared transmission spectroscopy of the transiting exoplanet HD 189733b, using Wide Field Camera 3. This consists of time-series spectra of two transits, used to measure the wavelength dependence of the planetary radius. These observations aim to test whether the Rayleigh scattering haze detected at optical wavelengths extends into the near-infrared, or if it becomes transparent leaving molecular features to dominate the transmission spectrum. Due to saturation and non-linearity affecting the brightest (central) pixels of the spectrum, light curves were extracted from the blue and red ends of the spectra only, corresponding to wavelength ranges of 1.099-1.168 um and 1.521-1.693 um, respectively, for the first visit, and 1.082-1.128 um and 1.514-1.671 um for the second. The light curves were fitted using a Gaussian process model to account for instrumental systematics whilst simultaneously fitting for the transit parameters. This gives values of the planet-to-star radius ratio for the blue and red light curves of 0.15650\pm0.00048 and 0.15634\pm0.00032, respectively, for visit one and 0.15716\pm0.00078 and 0.15630\pm0.00037 for visit 2 (using a quadratic limb darkening law). The planet-to-star radius ratios measured in both visits are consistent, and we see no evidence for the drop in absorption expected if the haze that is observed in the optical becomes transparent in the infrared. This tentatively suggests that the haze dominates the transmission spectrum of HD 189733b into near-infrared wavelengths, although more robust observations are required to provide conclusive evidence.

Probing the haze in the atmosphere of HD 189733b with Hubble Space Telescope/WFC3 transmission spectroscopy

Abstract: We present Hubble Space Telescope near-infrared transmission spectroscopy of the transiting exoplanet HD 189733b, using the Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3). This consists of time series spectra of two transits, used to measure the wavelength dependence of the planetary radius. These observations aim to test whether the Rayleigh scattering haze detected at optical wavelengths extends into the near-infrared, or if it becomes transparent leaving molecular features to dominate the transmission spectrum. Due to saturation and non-linearity affecting the brightest (central) pixels of the spectrum, light curves were extracted from the blue and red ends of the spectra only, corresponding to wavelength ranges of 1.099–1.168 and 1.521–1.693µm, respectively, for the first visit, and 1.082–1.128 and 1.514–1.671µ mf or the second. The light curves were fitted using a Gaussian process model to account for instrumental systematics whilst simultaneously fitting for the transit parameters. This gives values of the planet-to-star radius ratio for the blue and red light curves of 0.156 50 ± 0.000 48 and 0.156 34 ± 0.000 32, respectively, for visit 1 and 0.157 16 ± 0.000 78 and 0.156 30 ± 0.000 37 for visit 2 (using a quadratic limb-darkening law). The planet-to-star radius ratios measured in both visits are consistent, and we see no evidence for the drop in absorption expected if the haze that is observed in the optical becomes transparent in the infrared. This tentatively suggests that the haze dominates the transmission spectrum of HD 189733b into near-infrared wavelengths, although more robust observations are required to provide conclusive evidence.

Carbonaceous and Secondary Inorganic Aerosols during Wintertime Fog and Haze over Urban Sites in the Indo-Gangetic Plain

Abstract: The chemical composition of total suspended particulate (TSP) matter and secondary aerosol formation have been studied during wintertime fog and haze events from urban sites (Allahabad and Hisar) in the Indo-Gangetic Plain. The atmospheric abundances of elemental carbon (EC), organic carbon (OC), water-soluble OC (WSOC) suggest that organic matter is a major component of TSP, followed by concentrations of sulphate and nitrate under varying meteorological conditions. The concentrations of EC, OC, and WSOC show a nearly 30% increase during fog and haze events at Allahabad and a marginal increase at Hisar; whereas inorganic constituents (NH4+, NO3− and SO42−) are 2–3 times higher than those during clear days at both the locations. The sulphur and nitrogen oxidation ratios (SOR and NOR) also exhibit significant increases suggesting possible enhancement of secondary formation of SO42− and NO3− during fog and haze events. The significant correlation between NH4+–SO42− (R2 = 0.66, n = 61) and an NH4+/SO42− equivalent ratio ≥ 1 during fog-haze conditions suggest near-complete neutralization of sulphuric acid by ammonia. In contrast, NH4+/SO42− equivalent ratios are less than 1 during normal days suggesting an NH3-deficient environment and the possible association of SO42− with mineral dust for neutralization. Secondary inorganic aerosol formation and their hygroscopic growth can have significant impact on atmospheric chemistry, air-quality and visibility impairment during fog-haze events over northern India.

Theoretical transit spectra for gj 1214b and other "super-earths"

Abstract: We present new calculations of transit spectra of super-Earths that allow for atmospheres with arbitrary proportions of common molecular species and haze. We test this method with generic spectra, reproducing the expected systematics and absorption features, then apply it to the nearby super-Earth GJ 1214b, which has produced conflicting observational data, leaving the questions of a hydrogen-rich versus hydrogen-poor atmosphere and the water content of the atmosphere ambiguous. We present representative transit spectra for a range of classes of atmosphere models for GJ 1214b. Our analysis supports a hydrogen-rich atmosphere with a cloud or haze layer, although a hydrogen-poor model with 10% water is not ruled out. Several classes of models are ruled out, however, including hydrogen-rich atmospheres with no haze, hydrogen-rich atmospheres with a haze of ~0.01 μm tholin particles, and hydrogen-poor atmospheres with major sources of absorption other than water. We propose an observational test to distinguish hydrogen-rich from hydrogen-poor atmospheres. Finally, we provide a library of theoretical transit spectra for super-Earths with a broad range of parameters to facilitate future comparison with anticipated data.

Nighttime haze removal using color transfer pre-processing and Dark Channel Prior

Abstract: Removing nighttime haze technique is an important and necessary procedure to avoid ill-condition visibility of human eyes. To increase the visibility of the scene, there are some existing methods for dehazing in the daytime. Specifically, these methods have a satisfactory dehazing quality in the daytime but most of them are not all successful in the nighttime. In this paper, the proposed method can be properly applied nighttime haze images even they have some ill-properties of low overall contrast, low overall brightness, and “blue shift” airlight color. The basic concept of proposed method is to use color transfer [7], refined Dark Channel Prior (DCP), and Bilateral Filter in Local Contrast Correction (BFLCC)[5]. Experimental results show that the proposed method has the reliable capabilities for removing nighttime haze and attractive for some applications such as computer vision, vehicle, aviation and national defense security.

A parameterization of low visibilities for hazy days in the North China Plain

Abstract: . Visibility degradation is a pervasive and urgent environmental problem in China. The occurrence of low visibility events is frequent in the North China Plain, where the aerosol loading is quite high and aerosols are strongly hygroscopic. A parameterization of light extinction (Kex) for low visibilities on hazy days is proposed in this paper, based on visibility, relative humidity (RH), aerosol hygroscopic growth factors and particle number size distributions measured during the Haze in China (HaChi) Project. Observational results show that a high aerosol volume concentration is responsible for low visibility at RH 90%, decrease of visibility is mainly influenced by the increase of RH. The parameterization of Kex is developed on the basis of aerosol volume concentrations and RH, taking into accounts the sensitivity of visibility to the two factors and the availability of corresponding data. The extinction coefficients calculated with the parameterization schemes agree well with the directly measured values.

On the effects of clouds and hazes in the atmospheres of hot Jupiters: semi‐analytical temperature–pressure profiles

Abstract: Motivated by the work of Guillot, we present a semi-analytical formalism for calculating the temperature–pressure profiles in hot Jovian atmospheres which includes the effects of clouds/hazes and collision-induced absorption. Using the dual-band approximation, we assume that stellar irradiation and thermal emission from the hot Jupiter occur at distinct wavelengths (‘shortwave’ versus ‘longwave’). For a purely absorbing cloud/haze, we demonstrate its dual effect of cooling and warming the upper and lower atmosphere, respectively, which modifies, in a non-trivial manner, the condition for whether a temperature inversion is present in the upper atmosphere. The warming effect becomes more pronounced as the cloud/haze deck resides at greater depths. If it sits below the shortwave photosphere, the warming effect becomes either more subdued or ceases altogether. If shortwave scattering is present, its dual effect is to warm and cool the upper and lower atmospheres, respectively, thus counteracting the effects of enhanced longwave absorption by the cloud/haze. We make a tentative comparison of a four-parameter model to the temperature–pressure data points inferred from the observations of HD 189733b and estimate that its Bond albedo is approximately 10 per cent. Besides their utility in developing physical intuition, our semi-analytical models are a guide for the parameter space exploration of hot Jovian atmospheres via three-dimensional simulations of atmospheric circulation.

Active upper-atmosphere chemistry and dynamics from polar circulation reversal on Titan

Abstract: Saturn's moon Titan has a nitrogen atmosphere comparable to Earth's, with a surface pressure of 1.4 bar. Numerical models reproduce the tropospheric conditions very well but have trouble explaining the observed middle-atmosphere temperatures, composition and winds. The top of the middle-atmosphere circulation has been thought to lie at an altitude of 450 to 500 kilometres, where there is a layer of haze that appears to be separated from the main haze deck. This 'detached' haze was previously explained as being due to the colocation of peak haze production and the limit of dynamical transport by the circulation's upper branch. Herewe report a build-up of trace gases over the south pole approximately two years after observing the 2009 post-equinox circulation reversal, from which we conclude that middle-atmosphere circulation must extend to an altitude of at least 600 kilometres. The primary drivers of this circulation are summer-hemisphere heating of haze by absorption of solar radiation and winter-hemisphere cooling due to infrared emission by haze and trace gases; our results therefore imply that these effects are important well into the thermosphere (altitudes higher than 500 kilometres). This requires both active upper-atmosphere chemistry, consistent with the detection of high-complexity molecules and ions at altitudes greater than 950 kilometres, and an alternative explanation for the detached haze, such as a transition in haze particle growth from monomers to fractal structures.

Theoretical Transit Spectra for GJ 1214b and Other "Super-Earths"

Abstract: We present new calculations of transit spectra of super-Earths that allow for atmospheres with arbitrary proportions of common molecular species and haze. We test this method with generic spectra, reproducing the expected systematics and absorption features, then apply it to the nearby super-Earth GJ 1214b, which has produced conflicting observational data, leaving the questions of a hydrogen-rich versus hydrogen-poor atmosphere and the water content of the atmosphere ambiguous. We present representative transit spectra for a range of classes of atmosphere models for GJ 1214b. Our analysis supports a hydrogen-rich atmosphere with a cloud or haze layer, although a hydrogen-poor model with less than 10% water is not ruled out. Several classes of models are ruled out, however, including hydrogen-rich atmospheres with no haze, hydrogen-rich atmospheres with a haze of about 0.01-micron tholin particles, and hydrogen-poor atmospheres with major sources of absorption other than water. We propose an observational test to distinguish hydrogen-rich from hydrogen-poor atmospheres. Finally, we provide a library of theoretical transit spectra for super-Earths with a broad range of parameters to facilitate future comparison with anticipated data.

Effect of Aerosols on Visibility and Radiation in Spring 2009 in Tianjin, China

Abstract: Meteorological and aerosol data were measured at the atmospheric boundary layer observation station in Tianjin, China, and were analyzed to study the effects of aerosol mass, composition, and size distributions on visibility and short-wave radiation flux. The results show that fine particles played important roles in controlling visibility in Tianjin. The major contributors to light extinction coefficients included sulfate (28.7%), particulate organic matter (27.6%), elemental carbon (19.2%), and nitrate (6.1%). In addition to the measurement of aerosol composition, the size distribution of aerosol number concentrations were also measured and classified between haze days and non-haze days during spring. The extinction characteristics of ambient aerosol in haze days and non-haze days were calculated using Mie theory model. The average extinction coefficient and scattering coefficient of atmospheric aerosols were 0.253 1/km and 0.213 1/km in non-haze days, while 0.767 1/km and 0.665 1/km in haze days. A radiation transmission model LOWTRAN7 is also applied in this study. The model calculated radiant flux densities in haze days and non-haze days, which showed a fairly agreement with the observation results, showing that the heavy aerosol loadings in Tianjin had significantly impact on atmospheric visibility and radiation fluxes.

Roles of proteins, polysaccharides, and phenolics in haze formation in white wine via reconstitution experiments.

Abstract: Residual proteins in finished wines can aggregate to form haze. To obtain insights into the mechanism of protein haze formation, a reconstitution approach was used to study the heat-induced aggrega...

A Last Look at the Microwave Haze/Bubbles with WMAP

Abstract: The microwave "haze" was first discovered with the initial release of the full sky data from the Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe (WMAP). It is diffuse emission toward the center of our Galaxy with spectral behavior that makes it difficult to categorize as any of the previously known emission mechanisms at those wavelengths. With now seven years of WMAP data publicly available, we have learned much about the nature of the haze, and with the release of data from the Fermi Gamma-Ray Space Telescope and the discovery of the gamma-ray haze/bubbles, we have had a spectacular confirmation of its existence at other wavelengths. As the WMAP mission winds down and the Planck mission prepares to release data, I take a last look at what WMAP has to tell us about the origin of this unique Galactic feature. Much like the gamma rays, the microwave haze/bubbles is/are elongated in latitude with respect to longitude by a factor of roughly two, and at high latitudes, the microwave emission cuts off sharply above ~35° (compared to ~50° in the gammas). The hard spectrum of electrons required to generate the microwave synchrotron is consistent with that required to generate gamma-ray emission via inverse Compton scattering, though it is likely that these signals result from distinct regions of the spectrum (~10 GeV for the microwaves and ~1 TeV for the gammas). While there is no evidence for significant haze polarization in the seven-year WMAP data, I demonstrate explicitly that it is unlikely such a signal would be detectable above the noise.

Visibility enhancement using an image filtering approach

Abstract: The misty, foggy, or hazy weather conditions lead to image color distortion and reduce the resolution and the contrast of the observed object in outdoor scene acquisition. In order to detect and remove haze, this article proposes a novel effective algorithm for visibility enhancement from a single gray or color image. Since it can be considered that the haze mainly concentrates in one component of the multilayer image, the haze-free image is reconstructed through haze layer estimation based on the image filtering approach using both low-rank technique and the overlap averaging scheme. By using parallel analysis with Monte Carlo simulation from the coarse atmospheric veil by the median filter, the refined smooth haze layer is acquired with both less texture and retaining depth changes. With the dark channel prior, the normalized transmission coefficient is calculated to restore fogless image. Experimental results show that the proposed algorithm is a simpler and efficient method for clarity improvement and contrast enhancement from a single foggy image. Moreover, it can be comparable with the state-of-the-art methods, and even has better results than them.

Chemical compositions of PM2.5 aerosol during haze periods in the mountainous city of Yong'an, China.

Abstract: Haze phenomena were found to have an increasing tendency in recent years in Yong'an, a mountainous industrial city located in the center part of Fujian Province, China. Atmospheric fine particles (PM2.5) in the urban area during haze periods in three seasons (spring, autumn and winter) from 2007 to 2008 were collected, and the mass concentrations and chemical compositions (seventeen elements, water soluble inorganic ions (WSIIs) and carbonaceous species) of PM2.5 were determined. PM2.5 mass concentrations did not show a distinct difference among the three seasons. The carbonaceous species organic carbon (OC) and elemental carbon (EC) constituted up to 19.2%-30.4% of the PM2.5 mass during sampling periods, while WSIIs made up 25.3%-52.5% of the PM2.5 mass. The major ions in PM2.5 were SO4(2-), NO3(-) and NH4(+), while the major elements were Si, K, Pb, Zn, Ca and Al. The experimental results (from data based on three haze periods with a 10-day sampling length for each period) showed that the crustal element species was the most abundant component of PM2.5 in spring, and the secondary ions species (5O4(2-), NO3(-), NH4(+), etc.) was the most abundant component in PM2.5 in autumn and winter. This indicated that dust was the primary pollution source for PM2.5 in spring and combustion and traffic emissions could be the main pollution sources for PM2.5 in autumn and winter. Generally, coal combustion and traffic emissions were considered to be the most prominent pollution sources for this city on haze days.

Regression Analyses between Recent Air Quality and Visibility Changes in Megacities at Four Haze Regions in China

Abstract: The Chinese government has put forward a series of aggressive control measures to tackle environmental problems, such as poor visibility, since the first year of its 11th five-year plan (2006-2010). Recently recorded visibility, air quality and meteorological data in four major megacities (Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Chengdu) in different haze regions (and climatic zones) of China were analyzed with the aim of evaluating the extent to which the control actions have affected these measures. The ambient concentrations of three major air pollutants (SO2, NO2 and PM10) in these cities all decreased in the years 2005-2009. However, improved visibility was observed only in Beijing and Guangzhou; it remained steady in Shanghai, and showed a decreasing trend in Chengdu. The results highlight the fact that the correlation between air quality and visibility is complex. Optimal empirical regression models were developed, based on measured air quality and meteorological parameter data, to better isolate possible causal correlations between visibility and air quality, as well as meteorological conditions. Our results show that the improvement in visibility in both Beijing and Guangzhou was mainly due to the reduced PM10 concentration. In Guangzhou, improved atmospheric visibility was also helped by a reduction in SO2 concentration in winter. In contrast, lower wind speed, together with possible changes in fine particle concentration and composition, could explain why no improvement in visibility trend was found in Shanghai or Chengdu.

Removal of haze and noise from a single image

Abstract: Images of outdoor scenes often contain degradation due to haze, resulting in contrast reduction and color fading. For many reasons one may need to remove these effects. Unfortunately, haze removal is a difficult problem due the inherent ambiguity between the haze and the underlying scene. Furthermore, all images contain some noise due to sensor (measurement) error that can be amplified in the haze removal process if ignored. A number of methods have been proposed for haze removal from images. Existing literature that has also addressed the issue of noise has relied on multiple images either for denoising prior to dehazing 1 or in the dehazing process itself. 2, 3 However, multiple images are not always available. Recent single image approaches, one of the most successful being the "dark channel prior", 4 have not yet considered the issue of noise. Accordingly, in this paper we propose two methods for removing both haze and noise from a single image. The first approach is to denoise the image prior to dehazing. This serial approach essentially treats haze and noise separately, and so a second approach is proposed to simultaneously denoise and dehaze using an iterative, adaptive, non-parametric regression method. Experimental results for both methods are then compared. Our findings show that when the noise level is precisely known a priori, simply denoising prior to dehazing performs well. When the noise level is not given, latent errors from either "under"-denoising or "over"-denoising can be amplified, and in this situation, the iterative approach can yield superior results.