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EARLINET instrument intercomparison campaigns: Overview on strategy and results
2016, Wandinger, Ulla, Freudenthaler, Volker, Baars, Holger, Amodeo, Aldo, Engelmann, Ronny, Mattis, Ina, Groß, Silke, Pappalardo, Gelsomina, Giunta, Aldo, D'Amico, Giuseppe, Chaikovsky, Anatoli, Osipenko, Fiodor, Slesar, Alexander, Nicolae, Doina, Belegante, Livio, Talianu, Camelia, Serikov, Ilya, Linné, Holger, Jansen, Friedhelm, Apituley, Arnoud, Wilson, Keith M., de Graaf, Martin, Trickl, Thomas, Giehl, Helmut, Adam, Mariana, Comerón, Adolfo, Muñoz-Porcar, Constantino, Rocadenbosch, Francesc, Sicard, Michaël, Tomás, Sergio, Lange, Diego, Kumar, Dhiraj, Pujadas, Manuel, Molero, Francisco, Fernández, Alfonso J., Alados-Arboledas, Lucas, Bravo-Aranda, Juan Antonio, Navas-Guzmán, Francisco, Guerrero-Rascado, Juan Luis, Granados-Muñoz, María José, Preißler, Jana, Wagner, Frank, Gausa, Michael, Grigorov, Ivan, Stoyanov, Dimitar, Iarlori, Marco, Rizi, Vincenco, Spinelli, Nicola, Boselli, Antonella, Wang, Xuan, Feudo, Teresa Lo, Perrone, Maria Rita, De Tomas, Ferdinando, Burlizzi, Pasquale
This paper introduces the recent European Aerosol Research Lidar Network (EARLINET) quality-assurance efforts at instrument level. Within two dedicated campaigns and five single-site intercomparison activities, 21 EARLINET systems from 18 EARLINET stations were intercompared between 2009 and 2013. A comprehensive strategy for campaign setup and data evaluation has been established. Eleven systems from nine EARLINET stations participated in the EARLINET Lidar Intercomparison 2009 (EARLI09). In this campaign, three reference systems were qualified which served as traveling standards thereafter. EARLINET systems from nine other stations have been compared against these reference systems since 2009. We present and discuss comparisons at signal and at product level from all campaigns for more than 100 individual measurement channels at the wavelengths of 355, 387, 532, and 607 nm. It is shown that in most cases, a very good agreement of the compared systems with the respective reference is obtained. Mean signal deviations in predefined height ranges are typically below ±2 %. Particle backscatter and extinction coefficients agree within ±2 × 10−4 km−1 sr−1 and ± 0.01 km−1, respectively, in most cases. For systems or channels that showed larger discrepancies, an in-depth analysis of deficiencies was performed and technical solutions and upgrades were proposed and realized. The intercomparisons have reinforced confidence in the EARLINET data quality and allowed us to draw conclusions on necessary system improvements for some instruments and to identify major challenges that need to be tackled in the future.
An overview of the first decade of PollyNET: An emerging network of automated Raman-polarization lidars for continuous aerosol profiling
2016, Baars, Holger, Kanitz, Thomas, Engelmann, Ronny, Althausen, Dietrich, Heese, Birgit, Komppula, Mika, Preißler, Jana, Tesche, Matthias, Ansmann, Albert, Wandinger, Ulla, Lim, Jae-Hyun, Ahn, Joon Young, Stachlewska, Iwona S., Amiridis, Vassilis, Marinou, Eleni, Seifert, Patric, Hofer, Julian, Skupin, Annett, Schneider, Florian, Bohlmann, Stephanie, Foth, Andreas, Bley, Sebastian, Pfüller, Anne, Giannakaki, Eleni, Lihavainen, Heikki, Viisanen, Yrjö, Hooda, Rakesh Kumar, Pereira, Sérgio Nepomuceno, Bortol, Daniele, Wagner, Frank, Mattis, Ina, Janicka, Lucja, Markowicz, Krzysztof M., Achtert, Peggy, Artaxo, Paulo, Pauliquevis, Theotonio, Souza, Rodrigo A.F., Sharma, Ved Prakesh, van Zyl, Pieter Gideon, Beukes, Johan Paul, Sun, Junying, Rohwer, Erich G., Deng, Ruru, Mamouri, Rodanthi-Elisavet, Zamorano, Felix
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 Ångström 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.
Properties of dust aerosol particles transported to Portugal from the Sahara desert
2017, Wagner, Frank, Bortoli, Daniele, Pereira, Sérgio, Costa, Maria João, Silva, Ana Maria, Weinzierl, Bernadett, Esselborn, Michael, Petzold, Andreas, Rasp, Kathi, Heinold, Bernd, Tegen, Ina
Aerosol properties of mineral particles in the far field of an African desert dust outbreak were investigated that brought Saharan dust over the Mediterranean in different layers to Portugal. The measurements were performed inside the project Desert Aerosols over Portugal (DARPO) which was linked to the Saharan Mineral Dust Experiment (SAMUM). The maximum particle mass concentration was about 150μgm−3 and the corresponding scattering coefficient was 130Mm−1 which results in a mass scattering efficiency of 0.87m2 g−1. The aerosol optical depth reached values up to 0.53 and the lidar ratio was between 45 and 50 in the whole dust loaded column. A comparison between particle size distributions and refractive indices derived from different instruments and models showed a general good agreement but some minor differences could also be observed. Measurements as well as calculations with a particle transport model suggest that there is a relatively higher concentration of very large particles in the upper region of the dust layer than on the surface which is likely connected with meteorological conditions at the observational site ( Évora, Portugal).