Search Results
CADEX and beyond: Installation of a new PollyXT site in Dushanbe
2019, Engelmann, Ronny, Hofer, Julian, Makhmudov, Abduvosit N., Baars, Holger, Hanbuch, Karsten, Ansmann, Albert, Abdullaev, Sabur F., Macke, Andreas, Althausen, Dietrich
During the 18-month Central Asian Dust Experiment we conducted continuous lidar measurements at the Physical Technical Institute of the Academy of Sciences of Tajikistan in Dushanbe between 2015 and 2016. Mineral dust plumes from various source regions have been observed and characterized in terms of their occurrence, and their optical and microphysical properties with the Raman lidar PollyXT. Currently a new container-based lidar system is constructed which will be installed for continuous long-term measurements in Dushanbe. © 2019 The Authors, published by EDP Sciences.
Vertical profiles of dust and other aerosol types above a coastal site
2019, Althausen, Dietrich, Mewes, Silke, Heese, Birgit, Hofer, Julian, Schechner, Yoav, Aides, Amit, Holodovsky, Vadim
Monthly mean vertical profiles of aerosol type occurrences are determined from multiwavelength Raman and polarization lidar measurements above Haifa, Israel, in 2017. This contribution presents the applied methods and threshold values. The results are discussed for one example, May 2017. This month shows more often large, non-spherical particles in lofted layers than within the planetary boundary layer. Small particles are observed at higher altitudes only when they are observed in lower altitudes, too. © 2019 The Authors, published by EDP Sciences.
Transport of mineral dust and its impact on climate
2018, Schepanski, Kerstin
Mineral dust plays a pivotal role in the Earth’s system. Dust modulates the global energy budget directly via its interactions with radiation and indirectly via its influence on cloud and precipitation formation processes. Dust is a micro-nutrient and fertilizer for ecosystems due to its mineralogical composition and thus impacts on the global carbon cycle. Hence, dust aerosol is an essential part of weather and climate. Dust suspended in the air is determined by the atmospheric dust cycle: Dust sources and emission processes define the amount of dust entrained into the atmosphere. Atmospheric mixing and circulation carry plumes of dust to remote places. Ultimately, dust particles are removed from the atmosphere by deposition processes such as gravitational settling and rain wash out. During its residence time, dust interacts with and thus modulates the atmosphere resulting into changes such as in surface temperature, wind, clouds, and precipitation rates. There are still uncertainties regarding individual dust interactions and their relevance. Dust modulates key processes that are inevitably influencing the Earth energy budget. Dust transport allows for these interactions and at the same time, the intermittency of dust transport introduces additional fluctuations into a complex and challenging system.
The regime of Aerosol Optical Depth and Ångström exponent over Central and South Asia
2019, Floutsi, Athina Avgousta, Korras Carraca, Marios Bruno, Matsoukas, Christos, Hatzianastassiou, Nikos, Biskos, George
Central and South Asia are regions of particular interest for studying atmospheric aerosols, being among the largest sources of desert dust aerosols globally. In this study we use the newest collection (C061) of MODIS-Aqua aerosol optical depth (AOD) at 550 nm and Ångström exponent (a) at 412/470 nm over the 15-year period between 2002 and 2017, providing the longest analyzed dataset for this region. According to our results, during spring and summer, high aerosol load (AOD up to 1.2) consisting of coarse desert dust particles, as indicated by a values as low as 0.15, is observed over the Taklamakan, Thar and Registan deserts and the region between the Aral and Caspian seas. The dust load is much lower during winter and autumn (lower AOD and higher a values compared to the other seasons). The interannual variation of AOD and a suggests that the dust load exhibits large decreasing trends (AOD slopes down to-0.22, a slopes up to 0.47 decade-1) over the Thar desert and large increasing trends between the Aral and Caspian seas (AOD and a slopes up to 0.23 decade-1 and down to-0.61 decade-1, respectively.) The AOD data are evaluated against AERONET surface-based measurements. Generally, MODIS and AERONET data are in good agreement with a correlation coefficient (R) equal to 0.835. © 2019 The Authors, published by EDP Sciences.
Modelling mineral dust in the Central Asian region
2019, Heinold, Bernd, Tegen, Ina
In Central Asia, climate and air quality are largely affected by local and long-travelled mineral dust. For the last century, the area has experienced severe land-use changes and water exploitation producing new dust sources. Today global warming causes rapid shrinking of mountain glaciers with yet unknow consequences for dust and its climate effects. Despite the importance for a growing population, only little is known about sources, transport pathways and properties of Central Asian dust. A transport study with a global aerosol-climate model is undertaken to investigate the life cycle of mineral dust in Central Asia for the period of a remote-sensing campaign in Tajikistan in 2015-2016. An initial evaluation with sun photometer measurements shows reasonable agreement for the average amount of dust, but a significant weakness of the model in reproducing the seasonality of local dust with maximum activity in summer. Source apportionment reveals a major contribution from Arabia throughout the year in accordance with observations. In the model, local sources mainly contribute in spring and autumn while summer-time dust production is underestimated. The results underline the importance of considering long-range transport and, locally, a detailed representation of atmospheric dynamics and surface characteristics for modelling dust in Central Asia. © 2019 The Authors, published by EDP Sciences.
Lidar/radar approach to quantify the dust impact on ice nucleation in mid and high level clouds
2019, Ansmann, Albert, Mamouri, Rodanthi-Elisavet, Bühl, Johannes, Seifert, Patric, Engelmann, Ronny, Nisantzi, Agyro, Hofer, Julian, Baars, Holger
We present the first attempt of a closure experiment regarding the relationship between ice nucleating particle concentration (INPC) and ice crystal number concentration (ICNC), solely based on active remote sensing. The approach combines aerosol and cloud observations with polarization lidar, Doppler lidar, and cloud radar. Several field campaigns were conducted on the island of Cyprus in the Eastern Mediterranean from 2015-2018 to study heterogeneous ice formation in altocumulus and cirrus layers embedded in Saharan dust. A case study observed on 10 April 2017 is discussed in this contribution. © 2019 The Authors, published by EDP Sciences.
A multiwavelength study of the Stingray Nebula; properties of the nebula, central star, and dust
2016, Otsuka, Masaaki, Parthasarathy, Mudumba, Tajitsu, Akito, Hubrig, Swetlana
We performed a detail chemical abundance analysis and photo-ionization modeling of the Stingray Nebula (Hen3-1357, Parthasarathy et al. 1993[1]) to more characterize this PN. We calculated nine elemental abundances using collisionally excited lines (CELs) and recombination lines (RLs). The RL C/O ratio indicates that this PN is O-rich, which is supported by the detection of the broad amorphous silicate features at 9 and 18 μm By photo-ionization modeling, we investigated properties of the central star and derived the gas and dust masses. The nebular elemental abundances, the core-mass of the central star, and the gas mass are in agreement with the AGB model for the initially 1.5 M⊙ stars with the Z = 0.008.