Retrieval of ozone profiles from OMPS limb scattering observations

Science.gov (United States)

Arosio, Carlo; Rozanov, Alexei; Malinina, Elizaveta; Eichmann, Kai-Uwe; von Clarmann, Thomas; Burrows, John P.

2018-04-01

This study describes a retrieval algorithm developed at the University of Bremen to obtain vertical profiles of ozone from limb observations performed by the Ozone Mapper and Profiler Suite (OMPS). This algorithm is based on the technique originally developed for use with data from the SCanning Imaging Absorption spectroMeter for Atmospheric CHartographY (SCIAMACHY) instrument. As both instruments make limb measurements of the scattered solar radiation in the ultraviolet (UV) and visible (Vis) spectral ranges, an underlying objective of the study is to obtain consolidated and consistent ozone profiles from the two satellites and to produce a combined data set. The retrieval algorithm uses radiances in the UV and Vis wavelength ranges normalized to the radiance at an upper tangent height to obtain ozone concentrations in the altitude range of 12-60 km. Measurements at altitudes contaminated by clouds in the instrument field of view are identified and filtered out. An independent aerosol retrieval is performed beforehand and its results are used to account for the stratospheric aerosol load in the ozone inversion. The typical vertical resolution of the retrieved profiles varies from ˜ 2.5 km at lower altitudes ( passive satellite observations or measured in situ by balloon-borne sondes. Between 20 and 60 km, OMPS ozone profiles typically agree with data from the Microwave Limb Sounder (MLS) v4.2 within 5-10 %, whereas in the lower altitude range the bias becomes larger, especially in the tropics. The comparison of OMPS profiles with ozonesonde measurements shows differences within ±5 % between 13 and 30 km at northern middle and high latitudes. At southern middle and high latitudes, an agreement within 5-7 % is also achieved in the same altitude range. An unexpected bias of approximately 10-20 % is detected in the lower tropical stratosphere. The processing of the 2013 data set using the same retrieval settings and its validation against ozonesondes reveals a much

Ground-based lidar and microwave radiometry synergy for high vertical resolution absolute humidity profiling

Science.gov (United States)

Barrera-Verdejo, María; Crewell, Susanne; Löhnert, Ulrich; Orlandi, Emiliano; Di Girolamo, Paolo

2016-08-01

Continuous monitoring of atmospheric humidity profiles is important for many applications, e.g., assessment of atmospheric stability and cloud formation. Nowadays there are a wide variety of ground-based sensors for atmospheric humidity profiling. Unfortunately there is no single instrument able to provide a measurement with complete vertical coverage, high vertical and temporal resolution and good performance under all weather conditions, simultaneously. For example, Raman lidar (RL) measurements can provide water vapor with a high vertical resolution, albeit with limited vertical coverage, due to sunlight contamination and the presence of clouds. Microwave radiometers (MWRs) receive water vapor information throughout the troposphere, though their vertical resolution is poor. In this work, we present an MWR and RL system synergy, which aims to overcome the specific sensor limitations. The retrieval algorithm combining these two instruments is an optimal estimation method (OEM), which allows for an uncertainty analysis of the retrieved profiles. The OEM combines measurements and a priori information, taking the uncertainty of both into account. The measurement vector consists of a set of MWR brightness temperatures and RL water vapor profiles. The method is applied to a 2-month field campaign around Jülich (Germany), focusing on clear sky periods. Different experiments are performed to analyze the improvements achieved via the synergy compared to the individual retrievals. When applying the combined retrieval, on average the theoretically determined absolute humidity uncertainty is reduced above the last usable lidar range by a factor of ˜ 2 with respect to the case where only RL measurements are used. The analysis in terms of degrees of freedom per signal reveal that most information is gained above the usable lidar range, especially important during daytime when the lidar vertical coverage is limited. The retrieved profiles are further evaluated using

Microphysical retrievals from simultaneous polarimetric and profiling radar observations

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M. P. Morris

2009-12-01

Full Text Available The character of precipitation detected at the surface is the final product of many microphysical interactions in the cloud above, the combined effects of which may be characterized by the observed drop size distribution (DSD. This necessitates accurate retrieval of the DSD from remote sensing data, especially radar as it offers large areal coverage, high spatial resolution, and rigorous quality control and testing. Combined instrument observations with a UHF wind profiler, an S-band polarimetric weather radar, and a video disdrometer are analyzed for two squall line events occuring during the calendar year 2007. UHF profiler Doppler velocity spectra are used to estimate the DSD aloft, and are complemented by DSDs retrieved from an exponential model applied to polarimetric data. Ground truth is provided by the disdrometer. A complicating factor in the retrieval from UHF profiler spectra is the presence of ambient air motion, which can be corrected using the method proposed by Teshiba et al. (2009, in which a comparison between idealized Doppler spectra calculated from the DSDs retrieved from KOUN and those retrieved from contaminated wind profiler spectra is performed. It is found that DSDs measured using the distrometer at the surface and estimated using the wind profiler and polarimetric weather radar generally showed good agreement. The DSD retrievals using the wind profiler were improved when the estimates of the vertical wind were included into the analysis, thus supporting the method of Teshiba et al. (2009. Furthermore, the the study presents a method of investigating the time and height structure of DSDs.

Vertical profiles of urban aerosol complex refractive index in the frame of ESQUIF airborne measurements

Science.gov (United States)

Raut, J.-C.; Chazette, P.

2008-02-01

A synergy between lidar, sunphotometer and in situ measurements has been applied to airborne observations performed during the Etude et Simulation de la QUalité de l'air en Ile-de-France (ESQUIF), enabling the retrieval of vertical profiles for the aerosol complex refractive index (ACRI) and single-scattering albedo with a vertical resolution of 200 m over Paris area. The averaged value over the entire planetary boundary layer (PBL) for the ACRI is close to 1.51(±0.02)-i0.017(±0.003) at 532 nm. The single-scattering albedo of the corresponding aerosols is found to be ~0.9 at the same wavelength. A good agreement is found with previous studies for urban aerosols. A comparison of vertical profiles of ACRI with simulations combining in situ measurements and relative humidity (RH) profiles has highlighted a modification in aerosol optical properties linked to their history and the origin of the air mass. The determination of ACRI in the atmospheric column enabled to retrieve vertical profiles of extinction coefficient in accordance with lidar profiles measurements.

Retrieval of ozone profiles from OMPS limb scattering observations

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C. Arosio

2018-04-01

Full Text Available This study describes a retrieval algorithm developed at the University of Bremen to obtain vertical profiles of ozone from limb observations performed by the Ozone Mapper and Profiler Suite (OMPS. This algorithm is based on the technique originally developed for use with data from the SCanning Imaging Absorption spectroMeter for Atmospheric CHartographY (SCIAMACHY instrument. As both instruments make limb measurements of the scattered solar radiation in the ultraviolet (UV and visible (Vis spectral ranges, an underlying objective of the study is to obtain consolidated and consistent ozone profiles from the two satellites and to produce a combined data set. The retrieval algorithm uses radiances in the UV and Vis wavelength ranges normalized to the radiance at an upper tangent height to obtain ozone concentrations in the altitude range of 12–60 km. Measurements at altitudes contaminated by clouds in the instrument field of view are identified and filtered out. An independent aerosol retrieval is performed beforehand and its results are used to account for the stratospheric aerosol load in the ozone inversion. The typical vertical resolution of the retrieved profiles varies from  ∼  2.5 km at lower altitudes ( < 30 km to  ∼  1.5 km (about 45 km and becomes coarser at upper altitudes. The retrieval errors resulting from the measurement noise are estimated to be 1–4 % above 25 km, increasing to 10–30 % in the upper troposphere. OMPS data are processed for the whole of 2016. The results are compared with the NASA product and validated against profiles derived from passive satellite observations or measured in situ by balloon-borne sondes. Between 20 and 60 km, OMPS ozone profiles typically agree with data from the Microwave Limb Sounder (MLS v4.2 within 5–10 %, whereas in the lower altitude range the bias becomes larger, especially in the tropics. The comparison of OMPS profiles with ozonesonde

Greenhouse gas profiling by infrared-laser and microwave occultation: retrieval algorithm and demonstration results from end-to-end simulations

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V. Proschek

2011-10-01

Full Text Available Measuring greenhouse gas (GHG profiles with global coverage and high accuracy and vertical resolution in the upper troposphere and lower stratosphere (UTLS is key for improved monitoring of GHG concentrations in the free atmosphere. In this respect a new satellite mission concept adding an infrared-laser part to the already well studied microwave occultation technique exploits the joint propagation of infrared-laser and microwave signals between Low Earth Orbit (LEO satellites. This synergetic combination, referred to as LEO-LEO microwave and infrared-laser occultation (LMIO method, enables to retrieve thermodynamic profiles (pressure, temperature, humidity and accurate altitude levels from the microwave signals and GHG profiles from the simultaneously measured infrared-laser signals. However, due to the novelty of the LMIO method, a retrieval algorithm for GHG profiling is not yet available. Here we introduce such an algorithm for retrieving GHGs from LEO-LEO infrared-laser occultation (LIO data, applied as a second step after retrieving thermodynamic profiles from LEO-LEO microwave occultation (LMO data. We thoroughly describe the LIO retrieval algorithm and unveil the synergy with the LMO-retrieved pressure, temperature, and altitude information. We furthermore demonstrate the effective independence of the GHG retrieval results from background (a priori information in discussing demonstration results from LMIO end-to-end simulations for a representative set of GHG profiles, including carbon dioxide (CO₂, water vapor (H₂O, methane (CH₄, and ozone (O₃. The GHGs except for ozone are well retrieved throughout the UTLS, while ozone is well retrieved from about 10 km to 15 km upwards, since the ozone layer resides in the lower stratosphere. The GHG retrieval errors are generally smaller than 1% to 3% r.m.s., at a vertical resolution of about 1 km. The retrieved profiles also appear unbiased, which points

The impact of aerosol vertical distribution on aerosol optical depth retrieval using CALIPSO and MODIS data: Case study over dust and smoke regions

Science.gov (United States)

Wu, Yerong; de Graaf, Martin; Menenti, Massimo

2017-08-01

Global quantitative aerosol information has been derived from MODerate Resolution Imaging SpectroRadiometer (MODIS) observations for decades since early 2000 and widely used for air quality and climate change research. However, the operational MODIS Aerosol Optical Depth (AOD) products Collection 6 (C6) can still be biased, because of uncertainty in assumed aerosol optical properties and aerosol vertical distribution. This study investigates the impact of aerosol vertical distribution on the AOD retrieval. We developed a new algorithm by considering dynamic vertical profiles, which is an adaptation of MODIS C6 Dark Target (C6_DT) algorithm over land. The new algorithm makes use of the aerosol vertical profile extracted from Cloud-Aerosol Lidar and Infrared Pathfinder Satellite Observation (CALIPSO) measurements to generate an accurate top of the atmosphere (TOA) reflectance for the AOD retrieval, where the profile is assumed to be a single layer and represented as a Gaussian function with the mean height as single variable. To test the impact, a comparison was made between MODIS DT and Aerosol Robotic Network (AERONET) AOD, over dust and smoke regions. The results show that the aerosol vertical distribution has a strong impact on the AOD retrieval. The assumed aerosol layers close to the ground can negatively bias the retrievals in C6_DT. Regarding the evaluated smoke and dust layers, the new algorithm can improve the retrieval by reducing the negative biases by 3-5%.

Impact of NO2 Profile Shape in OMI Tropospheric NO2 Retrievals

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Lamsal, Lok; Krotkov, Nickolay A.; Pickering, K.; Schwartz, W. H.; Celarier, E. A.; Bucsela, E. J.; Gleason, J. F.; Philip, S.; Nowlan, C.; Martin, R. V.;

A self-adapting and altitude-dependent regularization method for atmospheric profile retrievals

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M. Ridolfi

2009-03-01

Full Text Available MIPAS is a Fourier transform spectrometer, operating onboard of the ENVISAT satellite since July 2002. The online retrieval algorithm produces geolocated profiles of temperature and of volume mixing ratios of six key atmospheric constituents: H₂O, O₃, HNO₃, CH₄, N₂O and NO₂. In the validation phase, oscillations beyond the error bars were observed in several profiles, particularly in CH₄ and N₂O.

To tackle this problem, a Tikhonov regularization scheme has been implemented in the retrieval algorithm. The applied regularization is however rather weak in order to preserve the vertical resolution of the profiles.

In this paper we present a self-adapting and altitude-dependent regularization approach that detects whether the analyzed observations contain information about small-scale profile features, and determines the strength of the regularization accordingly. The objective of the method is to smooth out artificial oscillations as much as possible, while preserving the fine detail features of the profile when related information is detected in the observations.

The proposed method is checked for self consistency, its performance is tested on MIPAS observations and compared with that of some other regularization schemes available in the literature. In all the considered cases the proposed scheme achieves a good performance, thanks to its altitude dependence and to the constraints employed, which are specific of the inversion problem under consideration. The proposed method is generally applicable to iterative Gauss-Newton algorithms for the retrieval of vertical distribution profiles from atmospheric remote sounding measurements.

Vertical Profiles of Aerosol Optical Properties Over Central Illinois and Comparison with Surface and Satellite Measurements

Science.gov (United States)

Sheridan P. J.; Andrews, E.; Ogren, J A.; Tackett, J. L.; Winker, D. M.

2012-01-01

Between June 2006 and September 2009, an instrumented light aircraft measured over 400 vertical profiles of aerosol and trace gas properties over eastern and central Illinois. The primary objectives of this program were to (1) measure the in situ aerosol properties and determine their vertical and temporal variability and (2) relate these aircraft measurements to concurrent surface and satellite measurements. Underflights of the CALIPSO satellite show reasonable agreement in a majority of retrieved profiles between aircraft-measured extinction at 532 nm (adjusted to ambient relative humidity) and CALIPSO-retrieved extinction, and suggest that routine aircraft profiling programs can be used to better understand and validate satellite retrieval algorithms. CALIPSO tended to overestimate the aerosol extinction at this location in some boundary layer flight segments when scattered or broken clouds were present, which could be related to problems with CALIPSO cloud screening methods. The in situ aircraft-collected aerosol data suggest extinction thresholds for the likelihood of aerosol layers being detected by the CALIOP lidar. These statistical data offer guidance as to the likelihood of CALIPSO's ability to retrieve aerosol extinction at various locations around the globe.

A Remote Sensing Approach to Estimate Vertical Profile Classes of Phytoplankton in a Eutrophic Lake

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Kun Xue

2015-10-01

Full Text Available The extension and frequency of algal blooms in surface waters can be monitored using remote sensing techniques, yet knowledge of their vertical distribution is fundamental to determine total phytoplankton biomass and understanding temporal variability of surface conditions and the underwater light field. However, different vertical distribution classes of phytoplankton may occur in complex inland lakes. Identification of the vertical profile classes of phytoplankton becomes the key and first step to estimate its vertical profile. The vertical distribution profile of phytoplankton is based on a weighted integral of reflected light from all depths and is difficult to determine by reflectance data alone. In this study, four Chla vertical profile classes (vertically uniform, Gaussian, exponential and hyperbolic were found to occur in three in situ vertical surveys (28 May, 19–24 July and 10–12 October in a shallow eutrophic lake, Lake Chaohu. We developed and validated a classification and regression tree (CART to determine vertical phytoplankton biomass profile classes. This was based on an algal bloom index (Normalized Difference algal Bloom Index, NDBI applied to both in situ remote sensing reflectance (Rrs and MODIS Rayleigh-corrected reflectance (Rrc data in combination with data of local wind speed. The results show the potential of retrieving Chla vertical profiles information from integrated information sources following a decision tree approach.

STRAT: an automated algorithm to retrieve the vertical structure of the atmosphere from single channel lidar data

OpenAIRE

Morille, Yohann; Haeffelin, Martial; Drobinski, Philippe; Pelon, Jacques

2007-01-01

International audience; Today several lidar networks around the world provide large data sets that are extremely valuable for aerosol and cloud research. Retrieval of atmospheric constituent properties from lidar profiles requires detailed analysis of spatial and temporal variations of the signal. This paper presents an algorithm called STRAT (STRucture of the ATmosphere) designed to retrieve the vertical distribution of cloud and aerosol layers in the boundary layer and through the free trop...

Two-dimensional characterization of atmospheric profile retrievals from limb sounding observations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Worden, J.R.; Bowman, K.W.; Jones, D.B.

2004-01-01

Limb sounders measure atmospheric radiation that is dependent on atmospheric temperature and constituents that have a radial and angular distribution in Earth-centered coordinates. In order to evaluate the sensitivity of a limb retrieval to radial and angular distributions of trace gas concentrations, we perform and characterize one-dimensional (vertical) and two-dimensional (radial and angular) atmospheric profile retrievals. Our simulated atmosphere for these retrievals is a distribution of carbon monoxide (CO), which represents a plume off the coast of south-east Asia. Both the one-dimensional (1D) and two-dimensional (2D) limb retrievals are characterized by evaluating their averaging kernels and error covariances on a radial and angular grid that spans the plume. We apply this 2D characterization of a limb retrieval to a comparison of the 2D retrieval with the 1D (vertical) retrieval. By characterizing a limb retrieval in two dimensions the location of the air mass where the retrievals are most sensitive can be determined. For this test case the retrievals are most sensitive to the CO concentrations about 2 deg.latitude in front of the tangent point locations. We find the information content for the 2D retrieval is an order of magnitude larger and the degrees of freedom is about a factor of two larger than that of the 1D retrieval primarily because the 2D retrieval can estimate angular distributions of CO concentrations. This 2D characterization allows the radial and angular resolution as well as the degrees of freedom and information content to be computed for these limb retrievals. We also use the 2D averaging kernel to develop a strategy for validation of a limb retrieval with an in situ measurement

Retrieval of nitrogen dioxide stratospheric profiles from ground-based zenith-sky UV-visible observations: validation of the technique through correlative comparisons

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F. Hendrick

2004-01-01

Full Text Available A retrieval algorithm based on the Optimal Estimation Method (OEM has been developed in order to provide vertical distributions of NO2 in the stratosphere from ground-based (GB zenith-sky UV-visible observations. It has been applied to observational data sets from the NDSC (Network for Detection of Stratospheric Change stations of Harestua (60° N, 10° E and Andøya (69° N, 16° E in Norway. The information content and retrieval errors have been analyzed following a formalism used for characterizing ozone profiles retrieved from solar infrared absorption spectra. In order to validate the technique, the retrieved NO2 vertical profiles and columns have been compared to correlative balloon and satellite observations. Such extensive validation of the profile and column retrievals was not reported in previously published work on the profiling from GB UV-visible measurements. A good agreement - generally better than 25% - has been found with the SAOZ (Système d'Analyse par Observations Zénithales and DOAS (Differential Optical Absorption Spectroscopy balloons. A similar agreement has been reached with correlative satellite data from the HALogen Occultation Experiment (HALOE and Polar Ozone and Aerosol Measurement (POAM III instruments above 25km of altitude. Below 25km, a systematic underestimation - by up to 40% in some cases - of both HALOE and POAM III profiles by our GB profile retrievals has been observed, pointing out more likely a limitation of both satellite instruments at these altitudes. We have concluded that our study strengthens our confidence in the reliability of the retrieval of vertical distribution information from GB UV-visible observations and offers new perspectives in the use of GB UV-visible network data for validation purposes.

PHL10/460: Cancerfacts.com - Vertical Portal with Newly Developed Health Profiler

OpenAIRE

Lenz, C; Brucksch, M

1999-01-01

Introduction Unlike general health portals such as WebMD and Drkoop.com that cover everything from the flu to heart disease, Silicon Valley-based cancerfacts.com is a so-called vertical portal. It covers only one small vertical niche of health care: cancer, and in particular, prostate cancer. As a value-added proprietary technology, the company offers its newly developed profile engine to health information retrievers. Methods Users are enabled to insert their specific medical information - r...

Information content of ozone retrieval algorithms

Science.gov (United States)

Rodgers, C.; Bhartia, P. K.; Chu, W. P.; Curran, R.; Deluisi, J.; Gille, J. C.; Hudson, R.; Mateer, C.; Rusch, D.; Thomas, R. J.

1989-01-01

The algorithms are characterized that were used for production processing by the major suppliers of ozone data to show quantitatively: how the retrieved profile is related to the actual profile (This characterizes the altitude range and vertical resolution of the data); the nature of systematic errors in the retrieved profiles, including their vertical structure and relation to uncertain instrumental parameters; how trends in the real ozone are reflected in trends in the retrieved ozone profile; and how trends in other quantities (both instrumental and atmospheric) might appear as trends in the ozone profile. No serious deficiencies were found in the algorithms used in generating the major available ozone data sets. As the measurements are all indirect in someway, and the retrieved profiles have different characteristics, data from different instruments are not directly comparable.

Retrieval of Vertical Aerosol and Trace Gas Distributions from Polarization Sensitive Multi-Axis Differential Optical Absorption Spectroscopy (MAX-DOAS)

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Tirpitz, Jan-Lukas; Friess, Udo; Platt, Ulrich

2017-04-01

An accurate knowledge of the vertical distribution of trace gases and aerosols is crucial for our understanding of the chemical and dynamical processes in the lower troposphere. Their accurate determination is typically only possible by means of laborious and expensive airborne in-situ measurements but in the recent decades, numerous promising ground-based remote sensing approaches have been developed. One of them is to infer vertical distributions from "Differential Optical Absorption Spectroscopy" (DOAS) measurements. DOAS is a technique to analyze UV- and visible radiation spectra of direct or scattered sunlight, which delivers information on different atmospheric parameters, integrated over the light path from space to the instrument. An appropriate set of DOAS measurements, recorded under different viewing directions (Multi-Axis DOAS) and thus different light path geometries, provides information on the atmospheric state. The vertical profiles of aerosol properties and trace gas concentrations can be retrieved from such a set by numerical inversion techniques, incorporating radiative transfer models. The information content of measured data is rarely sufficient for a well-constrained retrieval, particularly for atmospheric layers above 1 km. We showed in first simulations that, apart from spectral properties, the polarization state of skylight is likely to provide a significant amount of additional information on the atmospheric state and thus to enhance retrieval quality. We present first simulations, expectations and ideas on how to implement and characterize a polarization sensitive Multi-Axis DOAS instrument and a corresponding profile retrieval algorithm.

4-D-VAR assimilation of disdrometer data and radar spectral reflectivities for raindrop size distribution and vertical wind retrievals

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Mercier, François; Chazottes, Aymeric; Barthès, Laurent; Mallet, Cécile

2016-07-01

This paper presents a novel framework for retrieving the vertical raindrop size distribution (DSD) and vertical wind profiles during light rain events. This is also intended as a tool to better characterize rainfall microphysical processes. It consists in coupling K band Doppler spectra and ground disdrometer measurements (raindrop fluxes) in a 2-D numerical model propagating the DSD from the clouds to the ground level. The coupling is done via a 4-D-VAR data assimilation algorithm. As a first step, in this paper, the dynamical model and the geometry of the problem are quite simple. They do not allow the complexity implied by all rain microphysical processes to be encompassed (evaporation, coalescence breakup and horizontal air motion are not taken into account). In the end, the model is limited to the fall of droplets under gravity, modulated by the effects of vertical winds. The framework is thus illustrated with light, stratiform rain events. We firstly use simulated data sets (data assimilation twin experiment) to show that the algorithm is able to retrieve the DSD profiles and vertical winds. It also demonstrates the ability of the algorithm to deal with the atmospheric turbulence (broadening of the Doppler spectra) and the instrumental noise. The method is then applied to a real case study which was conducted in the southwest of France during the autumn 2013. The data set collected during a long, quiet event (6 h duration, rain rate between 2 and 7 mm h-1) comes from an optical disdrometer and a 24 GHz vertically pointing Doppler radar. We show that the algorithm is able to reproduce the observations and retrieve realistic DSD and vertical wind profiles, when compared to what could be expected for such a rain event. A goal for this study is to apply it to extended data sets for a validation with independent data, which could not be done with our limited 2013 data. Other data sets would also help to parameterize more processes needed in the model (evaporation

Comparison of stratospheric NO2 profiles above Kiruna, Sweden retrieved from ground-based zenith sky DOAS measurements, SAOZ balloon measurements and SCIAMACHY limb observations

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Gu, Myojeong; Enell, Carl-Fredrik; Hendrick, François; Pukite, Janis; Van Roozendael, Michel; Platt, Ulrich; Raffalski, Uwe; Wagner, Thomas

2015-04-01

Stratospheric NO2 not only destroys ozone but acts as a buffer against halogen catalyzed ozone loss by converting halogen species into stable nitrates. These two roles of stratospheric NO2 depend on the altitude. Hence, the objective of this study is to investigate the vertical distribution of stratospheric NO2. We compare the NO2 profiles derived from the zenith sky DOAS with those obtained from, SAOZ balloon measurements and satellite limb observations. Vertical profiles of stratospheric NO2 are retrieved from ground-based zenith sky DOAS observations operated at Kiruna, Sweden (68.84°N, 20.41°E) since 1996. To determine the profile of stratospheric NO2 measured from ground-based zenith sky DOAS, we apply the Optimal Estimation Method (OEM) to retrieval of vertical profiles of stratospheric NO2 which has been developed by IASB-BIRA. The basic principle behind this profiling approach is the dependence of the mean scattering height on solar zenith angle (SZA). We compare the retrieved profiles to two additional datasets of stratospheric NO2 profile. The first one is derived from satellite limb observations by SCIAMACHY (Scanning Imaging Absorption spectrometer for Atmospheric CHartographY) on EnviSAT. The second is derived from the SAOZ balloon measurements (using a UV/Visible spectrometer) performed at Kiruna in Sweden.

Retrieval of water vapor vertical distributions in the upper troposphere and the lower stratosphere from SCIAMACHY limb measurements

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A. Rozanov

2011-05-01

Full Text Available This study describes the retrieval of water vapor vertical distributions in the upper troposphere and lower stratosphere (UTLS altitude range from space-borne observations of the scattered solar light made in limb viewing geometry. First results using measurements from SCIAMACHY (Scanning Imaging Absorption spectroMeter for Atmospheric CHartographY aboard ENVISAT (Environmental Satellite are presented here. In previous publications, the retrieval of water vapor vertical distributions has been achieved exploiting either the emitted radiance leaving the atmosphere or the transmitted solar radiation. In this study, the scattered solar radiation is used as a new source of information on the water vapor content in the UTLS region. A recently developed retrieval algorithm utilizes the differential absorption structure of the water vapor in 1353–1410 nm spectral range and yields the water vapor content in the 11–25 km altitude range. In this study, the retrieval algorithm is successfully applied to SCIAMACHY limb measurements and the resulting water vapor profiles are compared to in situ balloon-borne observations. The results from both satellite and balloon-borne instruments are found to agree typically within 10 %.

The feasibility of retrieving vertical temperature profiles from satellite nadir UV observations: A sensitivity analysis and an inversion experiment with neural network algorithms

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sellitto, P.; Del Frate, F.

2014-01-01

Atmospheric temperature profiles are inferred from passive satellite instruments, using thermal infrared or microwave observations. Here we investigate on the feasibility of the retrieval of height resolved temperature information in the ultraviolet spectral region. The temperature dependence of the absorption cross sections of ozone in the Huggins band, in particular in the interval 320–325 nm, is exploited. We carried out a sensitivity analysis and demonstrated that a non-negligible information on the temperature profile can be extracted from this small band. Starting from these results, we developed a neural network inversion algorithm, trained and tested with simulated nadir EnviSat-SCIAMACHY ultraviolet observations. The algorithm is able to retrieve the temperature profile with root mean square errors and biases comparable to existing retrieval schemes that use thermal infrared or microwave observations. This demonstrates, for the first time, the feasibility of temperature profiles retrieval from space-borne instruments operating in the ultraviolet. - Highlights: • A sensitivity analysis and an inversion scheme to retrieve temperature profiles from satellite UV observations (320–325 nm). • The exploitation of the temperature dependence of the absorption cross section of ozone in the Huggins band is proposed. • First demonstration of the feasibility of temperature profiles retrieval from satellite UV observations. • RMSEs and biases comparable with more established techniques involving TIR and MW observations

Significant effect of topographic normalization of airborne LiDAR data on the retrieval of plant area index profile in mountainous forests

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Jing; Skidmore, Andrew K.; Heurich, Marco; Wang, Tiejun

2017-10-01

As an important metric for describing vertical forest structure, the plant area index (PAI) profile is used for many applications including biomass estimation and wildlife habitat assessment. PAI profiles can be estimated with the vertically resolved gap fraction from airborne LiDAR data. Most research utilizes a height normalization algorithm to retrieve local or relative height by assuming the terrain to be flat. However, for many forests this assumption is not valid. In this research, the effect of topographic normalization of airborne LiDAR data on the retrieval of PAI profile was studied in a mountainous forest area in Germany. Results show that, although individual tree height may be retained after topographic normalization, the spatial arrangement of trees is changed. Specifically, topographic normalization vertically condenses and distorts the PAI profile, which consequently alters the distribution pattern of plant area density in space. This effect becomes more evident as the slope increases. Furthermore, topographic normalization may also undermine the complexity (i.e., canopy layer number and entropy) of the PAI profile. The decrease in PAI profile complexity is not solely determined by local topography, but is determined by the interaction between local topography and the spatial distribution of each tree. This research demonstrates that when calculating the PAI profile from airborne LiDAR data, local topography needs to be taken into account. We therefore suggest that for ecological applications, such as vertical forest structure analysis and modeling of biodiversity, topographic normalization should not be applied in non-flat areas when using LiDAR data.

Hemispheric aerosol vertical profiles: anthropogenic impacts on optical depth and cloud nuclei.

Science.gov (United States)

Clarke, Antony; Kapustin, Vladimir

2010-09-17

Understanding the effect of anthropogenic combustion upon aerosol optical depth (AOD), clouds, and their radiative forcing requires regionally representative aerosol profiles. In this work, we examine more than 1000 vertical profiles from 11 major airborne campaigns in the Pacific hemisphere and confirm that regional enhancements in aerosol light scattering, mass, and number are associated with carbon monoxide from combustion and can exceed values in unperturbed regions by more than one order of magnitude. Related regional increases in a proxy for cloud condensation nuclei (CCN) and AOD imply that direct and indirect aerosol radiative effects are coupled issues linked globally to aged combustion. These profiles constrain the influence of combustion on regional AOD and CCN suitable for challenging climate model performance and informing satellite retrievals.

Improvement of OMI Ozone Profile Retrievals in the Troposphere and Lower Troposphere by the Use of the Tropopause-Based Ozone Profile Climatology

Science.gov (United States)

Bak, Juseon; Liu, X.; Wei, J.; Kim, J. H.; Chance, K.; Barnet, C.

2011-01-01

An advance algorithm based on the optimal estimation technique has beeen developed to derive ozone profile from GOME UV radiances and have adapted it to OMI UV radiances. OMI vertical resolution : 7-11 km in the troposphere and 10-14 km in the stratosphere. Satellite ultraviolet measurements (GOME, OMI) contain little vertical information for the small scale of ozone, especially in the upper troposphere (UT) and lower stratosphere (LS) where the sharp O3 gradient across the tropopause and large ozone variability are observed. Therefore, retrievals depend greatly on the a-priori knowledge in the UTLS

Evaluation of ozone profile and tropospheric ozone retrievals from GEMS and OMI spectra

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

J. Bak

2013-02-01

Full Text Available South Korea is planning to launch the GEMS (Geostationary Environment Monitoring Spectrometer instrument into the GeoKOMPSAT (Geostationary Korea Multi-Purpose SATellite platform in 2018 to monitor tropospheric air pollutants on an hourly basis over East Asia. GEMS will measure backscattered UV radiances covering the 300–500 nm wavelength range with a spectral resolution of 0.6 nm. The main objective of this study is to evaluate ozone profiles and stratospheric column ozone amounts retrieved from simulated GEMS measurements. Ozone Monitoring Instrument (OMI Level 1B radiances, which have the spectral range 270–500 nm at spectral resolution of 0.42–0.63 nm, are used to simulate the GEMS radiances. An optimal estimation-based ozone profile algorithm is used to retrieve ozone profiles from simulated GEMS radiances. Firstly, we compare the retrieval characteristics (including averaging kernels, degrees of freedom for signal, and retrieval error derived from the 270–330 nm (OMI and 300–330 nm (GEMS wavelength ranges. This comparison shows that the effect of not using measurements below 300 nm on retrieval characteristics in the troposphere is insignificant. However, the stratospheric ozone information in terms of DFS decreases greatly from OMI to GEMS, by a factor of ∼2. The number of the independent pieces of information available from GEMS measurements is estimated to 3 on average in the stratosphere, with associated retrieval errors of ~1% in stratospheric column ozone. The difference between OMI and GEMS retrieval characteristics is apparent for retrieving ozone layers above ~20 km, with a reduction in the sensitivity and an increase in the retrieval errors for GEMS. We further investigate whether GEMS can resolve the stratospheric ozone variation observed from high vertical resolution Earth Observing System (EOS Microwave Limb Sounder (MLS. The differences in stratospheric ozone profiles between GEMS and MLS are comparable to those

Retrieving Temperature and Moisture Profiles from AERI Radiance Observations. AERIPROF Value-Added Product Technical Description

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Feltz, W. F. [Univ. of Wisconsin, Madison, WI (United States); Howell, H. B. [Univ. of Wisconsin, Madison, WI (United; Knuteson, R. O. [Univ. of Wisconsin, Madison, WI (United States); Comstock, J. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Mahon, R. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Turner, D. D. [National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Boulder, CO (United States); Smith, W. L. [NASA Langley Research Center, Hampton, VA (United States); Woolf, H. M. [Univ. of Wisconsin, Madison, WI (United; Sivaraman, C. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States); Halter, T. [Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States)

2007-04-01

One of the goals of the Atmospheric Radiation Measurement (ARM) Program is to collect a long-term series of radiative and atmospheric state observations to improve the parameterization of these processes in global climate models. The ARM Program intended to move away from the traditional approach of directly measuring profiles of temperature and moisture using radiosondes, which is expensive in terms of expendables and manpower, and develop methods to retrieve these profiles with ground-based remote sensors. The atmospheric emitted radiance interferometer (AERI), whose radiance data contains information on the vertical distribution of water vapor and temperature, is an integral part of the ARM profiling plan.

Integrating uncertainty propagation in GNSS radio occultation retrieval: from excess phase to atmospheric bending angle profiles

Science.gov (United States)

Schwarz, Jakob; Kirchengast, Gottfried; Schwaerz, Marc

2018-05-01

Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) radio occultation (RO) observations are highly accurate, long-term stable data sets and are globally available as a continuous record from 2001. Essential climate variables for the thermodynamic state of the free atmosphere - such as pressure, temperature, and tropospheric water vapor profiles (involving background information) - can be derived from these records, which therefore have the potential to serve as climate benchmark data. However, to exploit this potential, atmospheric profile retrievals need to be very accurate and the remaining uncertainties quantified and traced throughout the retrieval chain from raw observations to essential climate variables. The new Reference Occultation Processing System (rOPS) at the Wegener Center aims to deliver such an accurate RO retrieval chain with integrated uncertainty propagation. Here we introduce and demonstrate the algorithms implemented in the rOPS for uncertainty propagation from excess phase to atmospheric bending angle profiles, for estimated systematic and random uncertainties, including vertical error correlations and resolution estimates. We estimated systematic uncertainty profiles with the same operators as used for the basic state profiles retrieval. The random uncertainty is traced through covariance propagation and validated using Monte Carlo ensemble methods. The algorithm performance is demonstrated using test day ensembles of simulated data as well as real RO event data from the satellite missions CHAllenging Minisatellite Payload (CHAMP); Constellation Observing System for Meteorology, Ionosphere, and Climate (COSMIC); and Meteorological Operational Satellite A (MetOp). The results of the Monte Carlo validation show that our covariance propagation delivers correct uncertainty quantification from excess phase to bending angle profiles. The results from the real RO event ensembles demonstrate that the new uncertainty estimation chain performs robustly. Together

Retrieval of convective boundary layer wind field statistics from radar profiler measurements in conjunction with large eddy simulation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Danny Scipión

2009-05-01

Full Text Available The daytime convective boundary layer (CBL is characterized by strong turbulence that is primarily forced by buoyancy transport from the heated underlying surface. The present study focuses on an example of flow structure of the CBL as observed in the U.S. Great Plains on June 8, 2007. The considered CBL flow has been reproduced using a numerical large eddy simulation (LES, sampled with an LES-based virtual boundary layer radar (BLR, and probed with an actual operational radar profiler. The LES-generated CBL flow data are then ingested by the virtual BLR and treated as a proxy for prevailing atmospheric conditions. The mean flow and turbulence parameters retrieved via each technique (actual radar profiler, virtual BLR, and LES have been cross-analyzed and reasonable agreement was found between the CBL wind parameters obtained from the LES and those measured by the actual radar. Averaged vertical velocity variance estimates from the virtual and actual BLRs were compared with estimates calculated from the LES for different periods of time. There is good agreement in the estimates from all three sources. Also, values of the vertical velocity skewness retrieved by all three techniques have been inter-compared as a function of height for different stages of the CBL evolution, showing fair agreement with each other. All three retrievals contain positively skewed vertical velocity structure throughout the main portion of the CBL. Radar estimates of the turbulence kinetic energy (eddy dissipation rate (ε have been obtained based on the Doppler spectral width of the returned signal for the vertical radar beam. The radar estimates were averaged over time in the same fashion as the LES output data. The agreement between estimates was generally good, especially within the mixing layer. Discrepancies observed above the inversion layer may be explained by a weak turbulence signal in particular flow configurations. The virtual BLR produces voltage

Profiles of CH4, HDO, H2O, and N2O with improved lower tropospheric vertical resolution from Aura TES radiances

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D. Noone

2012-02-01

Full Text Available Thermal infrared (IR radiances measured near 8 microns contain information about the vertical distribution of water vapor (H2O, the water isotopologue HDO, and methane (CH4, key gases in the water and carbon cycles. Previous versions (Version 4 or less of the TES profile retrieval algorithm used a "spectral-window" approach to minimize uncertainty from interfering species at the expense of reduced vertical resolution and sensitivity. In this manuscript we document changes to the vertical resolution and uncertainties of the TES version 5 retrieval algorithm. In this version (Version 5, joint estimates of H2O, HDO, CH4 and nitrous oxide (N2O are made using radiances from almost the entire spectral region between 1100 cm−1 and 1330 cm−1. The TES retrieval constraints are also modified in order to better use this information. The new H2O estimates show improved vertical resolution in the lower troposphere and boundary layer, while the new HDO/H2O estimates can now profile the HDO/H2O ratio between 925 hPa and 450 hPa in the tropics and during summertime at high latitudes. The new retrievals are now sensitive to methane in the free troposphere between 800 and 150 mb with peak sensitivity near 500 hPa; whereas in previous versions the sensitivity peaked at 200 hPa. However, the upper troposphere methane concentrations are biased high relative to the lower troposphere by approximately 4% on average. This bias is likely related to temperature, calibration, and/or methane spectroscopy errors. This bias can be mitigated by normalizing the CH4 estimate by the ratio of the N2O estimate relative to the N2O prior, under the assumption that the same systematic error affects both the N2O and CH4 estimates. We demonstrate that applying this ratio theoretically reduces the CH4 estimate for non-retrieved parameters that jointly affect both the N2O and CH4 estimates. The relative upper troposphere to lower troposphere bias is approximately 2.8% after this bias

A new retrieval algorithm for tropospheric temperature, humidity and pressure profiling based on GNSS radio occultation data

Science.gov (United States)

Kirchengast, Gottfried; Li, Ying; Scherllin-Pirscher, Barbara; Schwärz, Marc; Schwarz, Jakob; Nielsen, Johannes K.

2017-04-01

The GNSS radio occultation (RO) technique is an important remote sensing technique for obtaining thermodynamic profiles of temperature, humidity, and pressure in the Earth's troposphere. However, due to refraction effects of both dry ambient air and water vapor in the troposphere, retrieval of accurate thermodynamic profiles at these lower altitudes is challenging and requires suitable background information in addition to the RO refractivity information. Here we introduce a new moist air retrieval algorithm aiming to improve the quality and robustness of retrieving temperature, humidity and pressure profiles in moist air tropospheric conditions. The new algorithm consists of four steps: (1) use of prescribed specific humidity and its uncertainty to retrieve temperature and its associated uncertainty; (2) use of prescribed temperature and its uncertainty to retrieve specific humidity and its associated uncertainty; (3) use of the previous results to estimate final temperature and specific humidity profiles through optimal estimation; (4) determination of air pressure and density profiles from the results obtained before. The new algorithm does not require elaborated matrix inversions which are otherwise widely used in 1D-Var retrieval algorithms, and it allows a transparent uncertainty propagation, whereby the uncertainties of prescribed variables are dynamically estimated accounting for their spatial and temporal variations. Estimated random uncertainties are calculated by constructing error covariance matrices from co-located ECMWF short-range forecast and corresponding analysis profiles. Systematic uncertainties are estimated by empirical modeling. The influence of regarding or disregarding vertical error correlations is quantified. The new scheme is implemented with static input uncertainty profiles in WEGC's current OPSv5.6 processing system and with full scope in WEGC's next-generation system, the Reference Occultation Processing System (rOPS). Results from

Vertical profiles of aerosol optical properties over central Illinois and comparison with surface and satellite measurements

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

P. J. Sheridan

2012-12-01

Full Text Available Between June 2006 and September 2009, an instrumented light aircraft measured over 400 vertical profiles of aerosol and trace gas properties over eastern and central Illinois. The primary objectives of this program were to (1 measure the in situ aerosol properties and determine their vertical and temporal variability and (2 relate these aircraft measurements to concurrent surface and satellite measurements. The primary profile location was within 15 km of the NOAA/ESRL surface aerosol monitoring station near Bondville, Illinois. Identical instruments at the surface and on the aircraft ensured that the data from both platforms would be directly comparable and permitted a determination of how representative surface aerosol properties were of the lower column. Aircraft profiles were also conducted occasionally at two other nearby locations to increase the frequency of A-Train satellite underflights for the purpose of comparing in situ and satellite-retrieved aerosol data. Measurements of aerosol properties conducted at low relative humidity over the Bondville site compare well with the analogous surface aerosol data and do not indicate any major sampling issues or that the aerosol is radically different at the surface compared with the lowest flyby altitude of ~ 240 m above ground level. Statistical analyses of the in situ vertical profile data indicate that aerosol light scattering and absorption (related to aerosol amount decreases substantially with increasing altitude. Parameters related to the nature of the aerosol (e.g., single-scattering albedo, Ångström exponent, etc., however, are relatively constant throughout the mixed layer, and do not vary as much as the aerosol amount throughout the profile. While individual profiles often showed more variability, the median in situ single-scattering albedo was 0.93–0.95 for all sampled altitudes. Several parameters (e.g., submicrometer scattering fraction, hemispheric backscattering fraction, and

Integrating uncertainty propagation in GNSS radio occultation retrieval: from excess phase to atmospheric bending angle profiles

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

J. Schwarz

2018-05-01

Full Text Available Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS radio occultation (RO observations are highly accurate, long-term stable data sets and are globally available as a continuous record from 2001. Essential climate variables for the thermodynamic state of the free atmosphere – such as pressure, temperature, and tropospheric water vapor profiles (involving background information – can be derived from these records, which therefore have the potential to serve as climate benchmark data. However, to exploit this potential, atmospheric profile retrievals need to be very accurate and the remaining uncertainties quantified and traced throughout the retrieval chain from raw observations to essential climate variables. The new Reference Occultation Processing System (rOPS at the Wegener Center aims to deliver such an accurate RO retrieval chain with integrated uncertainty propagation. Here we introduce and demonstrate the algorithms implemented in the rOPS for uncertainty propagation from excess phase to atmospheric bending angle profiles, for estimated systematic and random uncertainties, including vertical error correlations and resolution estimates. We estimated systematic uncertainty profiles with the same operators as used for the basic state profiles retrieval. The random uncertainty is traced through covariance propagation and validated using Monte Carlo ensemble methods. The algorithm performance is demonstrated using test day ensembles of simulated data as well as real RO event data from the satellite missions CHAllenging Minisatellite Payload (CHAMP; Constellation Observing System for Meteorology, Ionosphere, and Climate (COSMIC; and Meteorological Operational Satellite A (MetOp. The results of the Monte Carlo validation show that our covariance propagation delivers correct uncertainty quantification from excess phase to bending angle profiles. The results from the real RO event ensembles demonstrate that the new uncertainty estimation chain performs

Exploring the Effects of Cloud Vertical Structure on Cloud Microphysical Retrievals based on Polarized Reflectances

Science.gov (United States)

Miller, D. J.; Zhang, Z.; Platnick, S. E.; Ackerman, A. S.; Cornet, C.; Baum, B. A.

2013-12-01

A polarized cloud reflectance simulator was developed by coupling an LES cloud model with a polarized radiative transfer model to assess the capabilities of polarimetric cloud retrievals. With future remote sensing campaigns like NASA's Aerosols/Clouds/Ecosystems (ACE) planning to feature advanced polarimetric instruments it is important for the cloud remote sensing community to understand the retrievable information available and the related systematic/methodical limitations. The cloud retrieval simulator we have developed allows us to probe these important questions in a realistically relevant test bed. Our simulator utilizes a polarized adding-doubling radiative transfer model and an LES cloud field from a DHARMA simulation (Ackerman et al. 2004) with cloud properties based on the stratocumulus clouds observed during the DYCOMS-II field campaign. In this study we will focus on how the vertical structure of cloud microphysics can influence polarized cloud effective radius retrievals. Numerous previous studies have explored how retrievals based on total reflectance are affected by cloud vertical structure (Platnick 2000, Chang and Li 2002) but no such studies about the effects of vertical structure on polarized retrievals exist. Unlike the total cloud reflectance, which is predominantly multiply scattered light, the polarized reflectance is primarily the result of singly scattered photons. Thus the polarized reflectance is sensitive to only the uppermost region of the cloud (tau~influencer on the microphysical development of cloud droplets, can be potentially studied with polarimetric retrievals.

Cloud sensitivity studies for stratospheric and lower mesospheric ozone profile retrievals from measurements of limb-scattered solar radiation

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T. Sonkaew

2009-11-01

Full Text Available Clouds in the atmosphere play an important role in reflection, absorption and transmission of solar radiation and thus affect trace gas retrievals. The main goal of this paper is to examine the sensitivity of stratospheric and lower mesospheric ozone retrievals from limb-scattered radiance measurements to clouds using the SCIATRAN radiative transfer model and retrieval package. The retrieval approach employed is optimal estimation, and the considered clouds are vertically and horizontally homogeneous. Assuming an aerosol-free atmosphere and Mie phase functions for cloud particles, we compute the relative error of ozone profile retrievals in a cloudy atmosphere if clouds are neglected in the retrieval. To access altitudes from the lower stratosphere up to the lower mesosphere, we combine the retrievals in the Chappuis and Hartley ozone absorption bands. We find significant cloud sensitivity of the limb ozone retrievals in the Chappuis bands at lower stratospheric altitudes. The relative error in the retrieved ozone concentrations gradually decreases with increasing altitude and becomes negligible above approximately 40 km. The parameters with the largest impact on the ozone retrievals are cloud optical thickness, ground albedo and solar zenith angle. Clouds with different geometrical thicknesses or different cloud altitudes have a similar impact on the ozone retrievals for a given cloud optical thickness value, if the clouds are outside the field of view of the instrument. The effective radius of water droplets has a small influence on the error, i.e., less than 0.5% at altitudes above the cloud top height. Furthermore, the impact of clouds on the ozone profile retrievals was found to have a rather small dependence on the solar azimuth angle (less than 1% for all possible azimuth angles. For the most frequent cloud types, the total error is below 6% above 15 km altitude, if clouds are completely neglected in the retrieval. Neglecting clouds in

Investigating Methods for Serving Visualizations of Vertical Profiles

Science.gov (United States)

Roberts, J. T.; Cechini, M. F.; Lanjewar, K.; Rodriguez, J.; Boller, R. A.; Baynes, K.

2017-12-01

Several geospatial web servers, web service standards, and mapping clients exist for the visualization of two-dimensional raster and vector-based Earth science data products. However, data products with a vertical component (i.e., vertical profiles) do not have the same mature set of technologies and pose a greater technical challenge when it comes to visualizations. There are a variety of tools and proposed standards, but no obvious solution that can handle the variety of visualizations found with vertical profiles. An effort is being led by members of the NASA Global Imagery Browse Services (GIBS) team to gather a list of technologies relevant to existing vertical profile data products and user stories. The goal is to find a subset of technologies, standards, and tools that can be used to build publicly accessible web services that can handle the greatest number of use cases for the widest audience possible. This presentation will describe results of the investigation and offer directions for moving forward with building a system that is capable of effectively and efficiently serving visualizations of vertical profiles.

Observations of the vertical distributions of summertime atmospheric pollutants and the corresponding ozone production in Shanghai, China

Science.gov (United States)

Xing, Chengzhi; Liu, Cheng; Wang, Shanshan; Chan, Ka Lok; Gao, Yang; Huang, Xin; Su, Wenjing; Zhang, Chengxin; Dong, Yunsheng; Fan, Guangqiang; Zhang, Tianshu; Chen, Zhenyi; Hu, Qihou; Su, Hang; Xie, Zhouqing; Liu, Jianguo

2017-12-01

Ground-based multi-axis differential optical absorption spectroscopy (MAX-DOAS) and lidar measurements were performed in Shanghai, China, during May 2016 to investigate the vertical distribution of summertime atmospheric pollutants. In this study, vertical profiles of aerosol extinction coefficient, nitrogen dioxide (NO2) and formaldehyde (HCHO) concentrations were retrieved from MAX-DOAS measurements using the Heidelberg Profile (HEIPRO) algorithm, while vertical distribution of ozone (O3) was obtained from an ozone lidar. Sensitivity study of the MAX-DOAS aerosol profile retrieval shows that the a priori aerosol profile shape has significant influences on the aerosol profile retrieval. Aerosol profiles retrieved from MAX-DOAS measurements with Gaussian a priori profile demonstrate the best agreements with simultaneous lidar measurements and vehicle-based tethered-balloon observations among all a priori aerosol profiles. Tropospheric NO2 vertical column densities (VCDs) measured with MAX-DOAS show a good agreement with OMI satellite observations with a Pearson correlation coefficient (R) of 0.95. In addition, measurements of the O3 vertical distribution indicate that the ozone productions do not only occur at surface level but also at higher altitudes (about 1.1 km). Planetary boundary layer (PBL) height and horizontal and vertical wind field information were integrated to discuss the ozone formation at upper altitudes. The results reveal that enhanced ozone concentrations at ground level and upper altitudes are not directly related to horizontal and vertical transportation. Similar patterns of O3 and HCHO vertical distributions were observed during this campaign, which implies that the ozone productions near the surface and at higher altitudes are mainly influenced by the abundance of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in the lower troposphere.

Profiles and Context for Structured Text Retrieval

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Koolen, Marijn; Bogers, Toine

2017-01-01

The combination of structured information retrieval with user profile information represents the scenario where systems search with an explicit statement of the information need—a search query—as well as a profile of a user, which can contain information about previous interactions, search histor...

Vertical profile of tropospheric ozone derived from synergetic retrieval using three different wavelength ranges, UV, IR, and microwave: sensitivity study for satellite observation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

T. O. Sato

2018-03-01

Full Text Available We performed a feasibility study of constraining the vertical profile of the tropospheric ozone by using a synergetic retrieval method on multiple spectra, i.e., ultraviolet (UV, thermal infrared (TIR, and microwave (MW ranges, measured from space. This work provides, for the first time, a quantitative evaluation of the retrieval sensitivity of the tropospheric ozone by adding the MW measurement to the UV and TIR measurements. Two observation points in East Asia (one in an urban area and one in an ocean area and two observation times (one during summer and one during winter were assumed. Geometry of line of sight was nadir down-looking for the UV and TIR measurements, and limb sounding for the MW measurement. The retrieval sensitivities of the ozone profiles in the upper troposphere (UT, middle troposphere (MT, and lowermost troposphere (LMT were estimated using the degree of freedom for signal (DFS, the pressure of maximum sensitivity, reduction rate of error from the a priori error, and the averaging kernel matrix, derived based on the optimal estimation method. The measurement noise levels were assumed to be the same as those for currently available instruments. The weighting functions for the UV, TIR, and MW ranges were calculated using the SCIATRAN radiative transfer model, the Line-By-Line Radiative Transfer Model (LBLRTM, and the Advanced Model for Atmospheric Terahertz Radiation Analysis and Simulation (AMATERASU, respectively. The DFS value was increased by approximately 96, 23, and 30 % by adding the MW measurements to the combination of UV and TIR measurements in the UT, MT, and LMT regions, respectively. The MW measurement increased the DFS value of the LMT ozone; nevertheless, the MW measurement alone has no sensitivity to the LMT ozone. The pressure of maximum sensitivity value for the LMT ozone was also increased by adding the MW measurement. These findings indicate that better information on LMT ozone can be obtained by adding

Vertical profile of tropospheric ozone derived from synergetic retrieval using three different wavelength ranges, UV, IR, and microwave: sensitivity study for satellite observation

Science.gov (United States)

Sato, Tomohiro O.; Sato, Takao M.; Sagawa, Hideo; Noguchi, Katsuyuki; Saitoh, Naoko; Irie, Hitoshi; Kita, Kazuyuki; Mahani, Mona E.; Zettsu, Koji; Imasu, Ryoichi; Hayashida, Sachiko; Kasai, Yasuko

2018-03-01

We performed a feasibility study of constraining the vertical profile of the tropospheric ozone by using a synergetic retrieval method on multiple spectra, i.e., ultraviolet (UV), thermal infrared (TIR), and microwave (MW) ranges, measured from space. This work provides, for the first time, a quantitative evaluation of the retrieval sensitivity of the tropospheric ozone by adding the MW measurement to the UV and TIR measurements. Two observation points in East Asia (one in an urban area and one in an ocean area) and two observation times (one during summer and one during winter) were assumed. Geometry of line of sight was nadir down-looking for the UV and TIR measurements, and limb sounding for the MW measurement. The retrieval sensitivities of the ozone profiles in the upper troposphere (UT), middle troposphere (MT), and lowermost troposphere (LMT) were estimated using the degree of freedom for signal (DFS), the pressure of maximum sensitivity, reduction rate of error from the a priori error, and the averaging kernel matrix, derived based on the optimal estimation method. The measurement noise levels were assumed to be the same as those for currently available instruments. The weighting functions for the UV, TIR, and MW ranges were calculated using the SCIATRAN radiative transfer model, the Line-By-Line Radiative Transfer Model (LBLRTM), and the Advanced Model for Atmospheric Terahertz Radiation Analysis and Simulation (AMATERASU), respectively. The DFS value was increased by approximately 96, 23, and 30 % by adding the MW measurements to the combination of UV and TIR measurements in the UT, MT, and LMT regions, respectively. The MW measurement increased the DFS value of the LMT ozone; nevertheless, the MW measurement alone has no sensitivity to the LMT ozone. The pressure of maximum sensitivity value for the LMT ozone was also increased by adding the MW measurement. These findings indicate that better information on LMT ozone can be obtained by adding constraints

Vertical profiles of droplet effective radius in shallow convective clouds

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

S. Zhang

2011-05-01

Full Text Available Conventional satellite retrievals can only provide information on cloud-top droplet effective radius (r_e. Given the fact that cloud ensembles in a satellite snapshot have different cloud-top heights, Rosenfeld and Lensky (1998 used the cloud-top height and the corresponding cloud-top r_e from the cloud ensembles in the snapshot to construct a profile of r_e representative of that in the individual clouds. This study investigates the robustness of this approach in shallow convective clouds based on results from large-eddy simulations (LES for clean (aerosol mixing ratio N_a = 25 mg⁻¹, intermediate (N_a = 100 mg⁻¹, and polluted (N_a = 2000 mg⁻¹ conditions. The cloud-top height and the cloud-top r_e from the modeled cloud ensembles are used to form a constructed r_e profile, which is then compared to the in-cloud r_e profiles. For the polluted and intermediate cases where precipitation is negligible, the constructed r_e profiles represent the in-cloud r_e profiles fairly well with a low bias (about 10 %. The method used in Rosenfeld and Lensky (1998 is therefore validated for nonprecipitating shallow cumulus clouds. For the clean, drizzling case, the in-cloud r_e can be very large and highly variable, and quantitative profiling based on cloud-top r_e is less useful. The differences in r_e profiles between clean and polluted conditions derived in this manner are however, distinct. This study also investigates the subadiabatic characteristics of the simulated cumulus clouds to reveal the effect of mixing on r_e and its evolution. Results indicate that as polluted and moderately polluted clouds develop into their decaying stage, the subadiabatic fraction

Evaluating A Priori Ozone Profile Information Used in TEMPO Tropospheric Ozone Retrievals

Science.gov (United States)

Johnson, Matthew S.; Sullivan, John T.; Liu, Xiong; Newchurch, Mike; Kuang, Shi; McGee, Thomas J.; Langford, Andrew O'Neil; Senff, Christoph J.; Leblanc, Thierry; Berkoff, Timothy;

Evaluating A Priori Ozone Profile Information Used in TEMPO Tropospheric Ozone Retrievals

Science.gov (United States)

Johnson, M. S.; Sullivan, J. T.; Liu, X.; Newchurch, M.; Kuang, S.; McGee, T. J.; Langford, A. O.; Senff, C. J.; Leblanc, T.; Berkoff, T.; Gronoff, G.; Chen, G.; Strawbridge, K. B.

2016-12-01

Ozone (O3) is a greenhouse gas and toxic pollutant which plays a major role in air quality. Typically, monitoring of surface air quality and O3 mixing ratios is primarily conducted using in situ measurement networks. This is partially due to high-quality information related to air quality being limited from space-borne platforms due to coarse spatial resolution, limited temporal frequency, and minimal sensitivity to lower tropospheric and surface-level O3. The Tropospheric Emissions: Monitoring of Pollution (TEMPO) satellite is designed to address these limitations of current space-based platforms and to improve our ability to monitor North American air quality. TEMPO will provide hourly data of total column and vertical profiles of O3 with high spatial resolution to be used as a near-real-time air quality product. TEMPO O3 retrievals will apply the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory profile algorithm developed based on work from GOME, GOME-2, and OMI. This algorithm uses a priori O3 profile information from a climatological data-base developed from long-term ozone-sonde measurements (tropopause-based (TB) O3 climatology). It has been shown that satellite O3 retrievals are sensitive to a priori O3 profiles and covariance matrices. During this work we investigate the climatological data to be used in TEMPO algorithms (TB O3) and simulated data from the NASA GMAO Goddard Earth Observing System (GEOS-5) Forward Processing (FP) near-real-time (NRT) model products. These two data products will be evaluated with ground-based lidar data from the Tropospheric Ozone Lidar Network (TOLNet) at various locations of the US. This study evaluates the TB climatology, GEOS-5 climatology, and 3-hourly GEOS-5 data compared to lower tropospheric observations to demonstrate the accuracy of a priori information to potentially be used in TEMPO O3 algorithms. Here we present our initial analysis and the theoretical impact on TEMPO retrievals in the lower troposphere.

Comparison of the GOSAT TANSO-FTS TIR CH volume mixing ratio vertical profiles with those measured by ACE-FTS, ESA MIPAS, IMK-IAA MIPAS, and 16 NDACC stations

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

K. S. Olsen

2017-10-01

Full Text Available The primary instrument on the Greenhouse gases Observing SATellite (GOSAT is the Thermal And Near infrared Sensor for carbon Observations (TANSO Fourier transform spectrometer (FTS. TANSO-FTS uses three short-wave infrared (SWIR bands to retrieve total columns of CO2 and CH4 along its optical line of sight and one thermal infrared (TIR channel to retrieve vertical profiles of CO2 and CH4 volume mixing ratios (VMRs in the troposphere. We examine version 1 of the TANSO-FTS TIR CH4 product by comparing co-located CH4 VMR vertical profiles from two other remote-sensing FTS systems: the Canadian Space Agency's Atmospheric Chemistry Experiment FTS (ACE-FTS on SCISAT (version 3.5 and the European Space Agency's Michelson Interferometer for Passive Atmospheric Sounding (MIPAS on Envisat (ESA ML2PP version 6 and IMK-IAA reduced-resolution version V5R_CH4_224/225, as well as 16 ground stations with the Network for the Detection of Atmospheric Composition Change (NDACC. This work follows an initial inter-comparison study over the Arctic, which incorporated a ground-based FTS at the Polar Environment Atmospheric Research Laboratory (PEARL at Eureka, Canada, and focuses on tropospheric and lower-stratospheric measurements made at middle and tropical latitudes between 2009 and 2013 (mid-2012 for MIPAS. For comparison, vertical profiles from all instruments are interpolated onto a common pressure grid, and smoothing is applied to ACE-FTS, MIPAS, and NDACC vertical profiles. Smoothing is needed to account for differences between the vertical resolution of each instrument and differences in the dependence on a priori profiles. The smoothing operators use the TANSO-FTS a priori and averaging kernels in all cases. We present zonally averaged mean CH4 differences between each instrument and TANSO-FTS with and without smoothing, and we examine their information content, their sensitive altitude range, their correlation, their a priori dependence, and the

Retrieval of tropospheric NO2 vertical column densities and aerosol optical properties form MAXDOAS measurements in Yangtze River Delta, China

Science.gov (United States)

Hao, Nan; Van. Roozendael, Michel; Ding, Aijun; Zhou, Bin; Hendrick, François; Shen, Yicheng; Wang, Tin; Valks, Pieter

2014-05-01

Air pollution is one of the most important environmental problems in developing Asian countries like China. Due to huge consumption of fossil fuels and rapid increase of traffic emissions in the past decades, many regions in China have been experiencing heavy air pollution. The Yangtze River Delta (YRD) region includes the mega-city Shanghai and the well-industrialized and urbanized areas of Zhejiang Province and Jiangsu Province, with over ten large cities, such as Hangzhou, Suzhou and Nanjing. Covering only 2% land area, this region produces over 20% of China's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) which makes it the most densely populated region and one of the most polluted regions in China. For instance, there more than 60% of a year was haze days with poor visibility in Shanghai over the last few years. In the YRD region, knowledge gaps still exist in the understanding of the source and transport of air pollutants because only few measurement studies have been conducted. MAX-DOAS measurements were performed in Shanghai city center and Wujiang (border of Shanghai and Jiangsu Province) from 2010 to 2012 and in Nanjing (capital of Jiangsu Province) from April 2013. A retrieval algorithm, based on an on-line implementation of the radiative transfer code LIDORT and the optimal estimation technique, has been used to provide information on aerosol extinction vertical profiles. The total aerosol optical depths (AODs) calculated from the retrieved profiles were compared to MODIS, AERONET and local PM measurements. The aerosol information was input to LIDORT to calculate NO2 air mass factors. The retrieved tropospheric NO2 vertical column densities (VCDs) were compared to in-situ and satellite NO2 measurements.

Spectropolarimetric Measurements of Scattered Sunlight in the Huggins Bands: Retrieval of Tropospheric Ozone Profiles

Science.gov (United States)

Fu, D.; Sander, S. P.; Stutz, J.; Pongetti, T. J.; Yung, Y. L.; Wong, M.; Natraj, V.; Li, K.; Shia, R.

2009-12-01

Ozone concentrations in the troposphere have increased over the past century as a result of anthropogenic emissions of NOx and volatile organic compounds. In addition to being harmful to human health and plant life, ozone is an important greenhouse gas, especially in the middle and upper troposphere. Therefore, accurate monitoring of tropospheric ozone vertical distributions is crucial for a better understanding of air quality and climate change. Simulations of vector radiative transfer in the near ultraviolet region have shown that tropospheric ozone profiles can be retrieved using polarization measurements. However, to date there has been no experimental test of this method. A new compact, portable spectropolarimeter has been built for atmospheric remote sensing. The first comprehensive description of the configuration and performance of this instrument for ground-based operation is provided and sample atmospheric scattered sunlight spectra are shown. Using optimal estimation retrieval theory we study the information content of polarization spectra in the Huggins band and uncertainties in the retrieval associated with the measurement parameters, such as aerosol scattering.

Observations of the vertical distributions of summertime atmospheric pollutants and the corresponding ozone production in Shanghai, China

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

C. Xing

2017-12-01

Full Text Available Ground-based multi-axis differential optical absorption spectroscopy (MAX-DOAS and lidar measurements were performed in Shanghai, China, during May 2016 to investigate the vertical distribution of summertime atmospheric pollutants. In this study, vertical profiles of aerosol extinction coefficient, nitrogen dioxide (NO2 and formaldehyde (HCHO concentrations were retrieved from MAX-DOAS measurements using the Heidelberg Profile (HEIPRO algorithm, while vertical distribution of ozone (O3 was obtained from an ozone lidar. Sensitivity study of the MAX-DOAS aerosol profile retrieval shows that the a priori aerosol profile shape has significant influences on the aerosol profile retrieval. Aerosol profiles retrieved from MAX-DOAS measurements with Gaussian a priori profile demonstrate the best agreements with simultaneous lidar measurements and vehicle-based tethered-balloon observations among all a priori aerosol profiles. Tropospheric NO2 vertical column densities (VCDs measured with MAX-DOAS show a good agreement with OMI satellite observations with a Pearson correlation coefficient (R of 0.95. In addition, measurements of the O3 vertical distribution indicate that the ozone productions do not only occur at surface level but also at higher altitudes (about 1.1 km. Planetary boundary layer (PBL height and horizontal and vertical wind field information were integrated to discuss the ozone formation at upper altitudes. The results reveal that enhanced ozone concentrations at ground level and upper altitudes are not directly related to horizontal and vertical transportation. Similar patterns of O3 and HCHO vertical distributions were observed during this campaign, which implies that the ozone productions near the surface and at higher altitudes are mainly influenced by the abundance of volatile organic compounds (VOCs in the lower troposphere.

If Frisch is true - impacts of varying beam width, resolution, frequency combinations and beam overlap when retrieving liquid water content profiles

Science.gov (United States)

Küchler, N.; Kneifel, S.; Kollias, P.; Loehnert, U.

2017-12-01

Cumulus and stratocumulus clouds strongly affect the Earth's radiation budget and are a major uncertainty source in weather and climate prediction models. To improve and evaluate models, a comprehensive understanding of cloud processes is necessary and references are needed. Therefore active and passive microwave remote sensing of clouds can be used to derive cloud properties such as liquid water path and liquid water content (LWC), which can serve as a reference for model evaluation. However, both the measurements and the assumptions when retrieving physical quantities from the measurements involve uncertainty sources. Frisch et al. (1998) combined radar and radiometer observations to derive LWC profiles. Assuming their assumptions are correct, there will be still uncertainties regarding the measurement setup. We investigate how varying beam width, temporal and vertical resolutions, frequency combinations, and beam overlap of and between the two instruments influence the retrieval of LWC profiles. Especially, we discuss the benefit of combining vertically, high resolved radar and radiometer measurements using the same antenna, i.e. having ideal beam overlap. Frisch, A. S., G. Feingold, C. W. Fairall, T. Uttal, and J. B. Snider, 1998: On cloud radar and microwave radiometer measurements of stratus cloud liquid water profiles. J. Geophys. Res.: Atmos., 103 (18), 23 195-23 197, doi:0148-0227/98/98JD-01827509.00.

Adaptive neuro-fuzzy inference system for temperature and humidity profile retrieval from microwave radiometer observations

Science.gov (United States)

Ramesh, K.; Kesarkar, A. P.; Bhate, J.; Venkat Ratnam, M.; Jayaraman, A.

2015-01-01

The retrieval of accurate profiles of temperature and water vapour is important for the study of atmospheric convection. Recent development in computational techniques motivated us to use adaptive techniques in the retrieval algorithms. In this work, we have used an adaptive neuro-fuzzy inference system (ANFIS) to retrieve profiles of temperature and humidity up to 10 km over the tropical station Gadanki (13.5° N, 79.2° E), India. ANFIS is trained by using observations of temperature and humidity measurements by co-located Meisei GPS radiosonde (henceforth referred to as radiosonde) and microwave brightness temperatures observed by radiometrics multichannel microwave radiometer MP3000 (MWR). ANFIS is trained by considering these observations during rainy and non-rainy days (ANFIS(RD + NRD)) and during non-rainy days only (ANFIS(NRD)). The comparison of ANFIS(RD + NRD) and ANFIS(NRD) profiles with independent radiosonde observations and profiles retrieved using multivariate linear regression (MVLR: RD + NRD and NRD) and artificial neural network (ANN) indicated that the errors in the ANFIS(RD + NRD) are less compared to other retrieval methods. The Pearson product movement correlation coefficient (r) between retrieved and observed profiles is more than 92% for temperature profiles for all techniques and more than 99% for the ANFIS(RD + NRD) technique Therefore this new techniques is relatively better for the retrieval of temperature profiles. The comparison of bias, mean absolute error (MAE), RMSE and symmetric mean absolute percentage error (SMAPE) of retrieved temperature and relative humidity (RH) profiles using ANN and ANFIS also indicated that profiles retrieved using ANFIS(RD + NRD) are significantly better compared to the ANN technique. The analysis of profiles concludes that retrieved profiles using ANFIS techniques have improved the temperature retrievals substantially; however, the retrieval of RH by all techniques considered in this paper (ANN, MVLR and

Retrieval of water vapor vertical distributions in the upper troposphere and the lower stratosphere from SCIAMACHY limb measurements

OpenAIRE

Rozanov, A.; Weigel, K.; Bovensmann, H.; Dhomse, S.; Eichmann, K.-U.; Kivi, R.; Rozanov, V.; Vömel, H.; Weber, M.; Burrows, J. P.

2011-01-01

This study describes the retrieval of water vapor vertical distributions in the upper troposphere and lower stratosphere (UTLS) altitude range from space-borne observations of the scattered solar light made in limb viewing geometry. First results using measurements from SCIAMACHY (Scanning Imaging Absorption spectroMeter for Atmospheric CHartographY) aboard ENVISAT (Environmental Satellite) are presented here. In previous publications, the retrieval of water vapor vertical ...

Characterizing vertical heterogeneity of permafrost soils in support of ABoVE radar retrievals

Science.gov (United States)

Tabatabaeenejad, A.; Chen, R. H.; Silva, A.; Schaefer, K. M.; Moghaddam, M.

2017-12-01

Permafrost-affected soils, including the top active layer and underlying permafrost, have unique seasonal variations in terms of soil temperature, soil moisture, and freeze/thaw-state profiles. The presence of a perennially frozen and impermeable substrate maintains the required temperature gradient for the descending thawing front, and causes meltwater to accumulate and form the saturated zone in the active layer. Radar backscattering measurements are sensitive to dielectric properties of subsurface soils, which are strongly correlated with unfrozen water content and soil texture/composition. To enable accurate radar retrievals, we need to properly characterize soil profile heterogeneity, which can be modeled with layered soil or depth-dependent functions. To this end, we first cross compare the measured radar backscatter and model-predicted radar backscatter using in-situ dielectric profile measurements as well as mathematical or hydrologic-based profile functions. Since radar signal's backscatter has limited penetration, to fully capture the true heterogeneity profile, we determine the optimal profile function by minimizing the error between predicted and measured radar backscatter signals as well as between in-situ and fitted profiles. The in-situ soil profile data (temperature, dielectric constant, unfrozen water content, organic/mineral soils) are collected from the Soil Moisture Sensing Controller And oPtimal Estimator (SoilSCAPE) sensor networks and from the Arctic-Boreal Vulnerability Experiment (ABoVE) field campaign in August 2017 (concurrent with the ABoVE August flights over Alaska North Slope) while the radar data are acquired by NASA's P-band AirMOSS and L-band UAVSAR as part of the ABoVE airborne campaign. The retrieval results using our new heterogeneity model will be compared with the results from retrievals that model soil as a layered medium. This analysis can advance the accuracy of retrieval of active layer properties using low-frequency SAR

MAX-DOAS observations of aerosols, formaldehyde and nitrogen dioxide in the Beijing area: comparison of two profile retrieval approaches

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

T. Vlemmix

2015-02-01

Full Text Available A 4-year data set of MAX-DOAS observations in the Beijing area (2008–2012 is analysed with a focus on NO2, HCHO and aerosols. Two very different retrieval methods are applied. Method A describes the tropospheric profile with 13 layers and makes use of the optimal estimation method. Method B uses 2–4 parameters to describe the tropospheric profile and an inversion based on a least-squares fit. For each constituent (NO2, HCHO and aerosols the retrieval outcomes are compared in terms of tropospheric column densities, surface concentrations and "characteristic profile heights" (i.e. the height below which 75% of the vertically integrated tropospheric column density resides. We find best agreement between the two methods for tropospheric NO2 column densities, with a standard deviation of relative differences below 10%, a correlation of 0.99 and a linear regression with a slope of 1.03. For tropospheric HCHO column densities we find a similar slope, but also a systematic bias of almost 10% which is likely related to differences in profile height. Aerosol optical depths (AODs retrieved with method B are 20% high compared to method A. They are more in agreement with AERONET measurements, which are on average only 5% lower, however with considerable relative differences (standard deviation ~ 25%. With respect to near-surface volume mixing ratios and aerosol extinction we find considerably larger relative differences: 10 ± 30, −23 ± 28 and −8 ± 33% for aerosols, HCHO and NO2 respectively. The frequency distributions of these near-surface concentrations show however a quite good agreement, and this indicates that near-surface concentrations derived from MAX-DOAS are certainly useful in a climatological sense. A major difference between the two methods is the dynamic range of retrieved characteristic profile heights which is larger for method B than for method A. This effect is most pronounced for HCHO, where retrieved profile shapes with method

Comparison of AOD, AAOD and column single scattering albedo from AERONET retrievals and in situ profiling measurements

Science.gov (United States)

Andrews, Elisabeth; Ogren, John A.; Kinne, Stefan; Samset, Bjorn

2017-05-01

Here we present new results comparing aerosol optical depth (AOD), aerosol absorption optical depth (AAOD) and column single scattering albedo (SSA) obtained from in situ vertical profile measurements with AERONET ground-based remote sensing from two rural, continental sites in the US. The profiles are closely matched in time (within ±3 h) and space (within 15 km) with the AERONET retrievals. We have used Level 1.5 inversion retrievals when there was a valid Level 2 almucantar retrieval in order to be able to compare AAOD and column SSA below AERONET's recommended loading constraint (AOD > 0.4 at 440 nm). While there is reasonable agreement for the AOD comparisons, the direct comparisons of in situ-derived to AERONET-retrieved AAOD (or SSA) reveal that AERONET retrievals yield higher aerosol absorption than obtained from the in situ profiles for the low aerosol optical depth conditions prevalent at the two study sites. However, it should be noted that the majority of SSA comparisons for AOD440 > 0.2 are, nonetheless, within the reported SSA uncertainty bounds. The observation that, relative to in situ measurements, AERONET inversions exhibit increased absorption potential at low AOD values is generally consistent with other published AERONET-in situ comparisons across a range of locations, atmospheric conditions and AOD values. This systematic difference in the comparisons suggests a bias in one or both of the methods, but we cannot assess whether the AERONET retrievals are biased towards high absorption or the in situ measurements are biased low. Based on the discrepancy between the AERONET and in situ values, we conclude that scaling modeled black carbon concentrations upwards to match AERONET retrievals of AAOD should be approached with caution as it may lead to aerosol absorption overestimates in regions of low AOD. Both AERONET retrievals and in situ measurements suggest there is a systematic relationship between SSA and aerosol amount (AOD or aerosol light

A COMPARITIVE STUDY USING GEOMETRIC AND VERTICAL PROFILE FEATURES DERIVED FROM AIRBORNE LIDAR FOR CLASSIFYING TREE GENERA

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C. Ko

2012-07-01

Full Text Available We present a comparative study between two different approaches for tree genera classification using descriptors derived from tree geometry and those derived from the vertical profile analysis of LiDAR point data. The different methods provide two perspectives for processing LiDAR point clouds for tree genera identification. The geometric perspective analyzes individual tree crowns in relation to valuable information related to characteristics of clusters and line segments derived within crowns and overall tree shapes to highlight the spatial distribution of LiDAR points within the crown. Conversely, analyzing vertical profiles retrieves information about the point distributions with respect to height percentiles; this perspective emphasizes of the importance that point distributions at specific heights express, accommodating for the decreased point density with respect to depth of canopy penetration by LiDAR pulses. The targeted species include white birch, maple, oak, poplar, white pine and jack pine at a study site northeast of Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, Canada.

Evaluation of vertical profiles to design continuous descent approach procedure

Science.gov (United States)

Pradeep, Priyank

The current research focuses on predictability, variability and operational feasibility aspect of Continuous Descent Approach (CDA), which is among the key concepts of the Next Generation Air Transportation System (NextGen). The idle-thrust CDA is a fuel economical, noise and emission abatement procedure, but requires increased separation to accommodate for variability and uncertainties in vertical and speed profiles of arriving aircraft. Although a considerable amount of researches have been devoted to the estimation of potential benefits of the CDA, only few have attempted to explain the predictability, variability and operational feasibility aspect of CDA. The analytical equations derived using flight dynamics and Base of Aircraft and Data (BADA) Total Energy Model (TEM) in this research gives insight into dependency of vertical profile of CDA on various factors like wind speed and gradient, weight, aircraft type and configuration, thrust settings, atmospheric factors (deviation from ISA (DISA), pressure and density of the air) and descent speed profile. Application of the derived equations to idle-thrust CDA gives an insight into sensitivity of its vertical profile to multiple factors. This suggests fixed geometric flight path angle (FPA) CDA has higher degree of predictability and lesser variability at the cost of non-idle and low thrust engine settings. However, with optimized design this impact can be overall minimized. The CDA simulations were performed using Future ATM Concept Evaluation Tool (FACET) based on radar-track and aircraft type data (BADA) of the real air-traffic to some of the busiest airports in the USA (ATL, SFO and New York Metroplex (JFK, EWR and LGA)). The statistical analysis of the vertical profiles of CDA shows 1) mean geometric FPAs derived from various simulated vertical profiles are consistently shallower than 3° glideslope angle and 2) high level of variability in vertical profiles of idle-thrust CDA even in absence of

Retrieving latent heating vertical structure from cloud and precipitation Profiles—Part I: Warm rain processes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Min, Qilong; Li, Rui; Wu, Xiaoqing; Fu, Yunfei

2013-01-01

An exploratory study on physical based latent heat (LH) retrieval algorithm is conducted by parameterizing the physical linkages of hydrometeor profiles of cloud and precipitation to the major processes related to the phase change of atmospheric water. Specifically, rain events are segregated into three rain types: warm, convective, and stratiform, based on their dynamical and thermodynamical characteristics. As the first of the series, only the warm rain LH algorithm is presented and evaluated here. The major microphysical processes of condensation and evaporation for warm rain are parameterized through traditional rain growth theory, with the aid of Cloud Resolving Model (CRM) simulations. The evaluation or the self-consistency tests indicate that the physical based retrievals capture the fundamental LH processes associated with the warm rain life cycle. There is no significant systematic bias in terms of convection strength, illustrated by the month-long CRM simulation as the mesoscale convective systems (MCSs) experience from initial, mature, to decay stages. The overall monthly-mean LH comparison showed that the total LH, as well as condensation heating and evaporation cooling components, agree with the CRM simulation. -- Highlights: ► An exploratory study on physics-based warm rain latent heat retrieval algorithm. ► Utilize the full information of the vertical structures of cloud and rainfall. ► Directly link water mass measurements to latent heat at instantaneous pixel level. ► Applicable at various stages of cloud system life cycle

A large-scale intercomparison of stratospheric vertical distributions of NO2 and BrO retrieved from the SCIAMACHY limb measurements and ground-based twilight observations

Science.gov (United States)

Rozanov, Alexei; Hendrick, Francois; Lotz, Wolfhardt; van Roozendael, Michel; Bovensmann, Heinrich; Burrows, John P.

This study is devoted to the intercomparison of NO2 and BrO vertical profiles obtained from the satellite and ground-based measurements. Although, the ground-based observations are performed only at selected locations, they have a great potential to be used for the validation of satellite measurements since continuous long-term measurement series performed with the same instruments are available. Thus, long-term trends in the observed species can be analyzed and intercompared. Previous intercomparisons of the vertical distributions of NO2 and BrO retrieved from SCIAMACHY limb measurements at the University of Bremen and obtained at IASB-BIRA by applying a profiling technique to ground-based zenith-sky DOAS observations have shown a good agreement between the results of completely different measurement techniques. However, only a relatively short time period of one year was analyzed so far which do not allow investigating seasonal variations and trends. Furthermore, some minor discrepancies are still to be analyzed. In the current study, several years datasets obtained at Observatoire de Haute-Provence (OHP) in France and in Harestua in Norway will be compared to the retrievals of SCIAMACHY limb measurements. Seasonal and annual variations will be analyzed and possible reasons for the remaining discrepancies will be discussed.

Sensitivity Analysis for Atmospheric Infrared Sounder (AIRS) CO2 Retrieval

Science.gov (United States)

Gat, Ilana

2012-01-01

The Atmospheric Infrared Sounder (AIRS) is a thermal infrared sensor able to retrieve the daily atmospheric state globally for clear as well as partially cloudy field-of-views. The AIRS spectrometer has 2378 channels sensing from 15.4 micrometers to 3.7 micrometers, of which a small subset in the 15 micrometers region has been selected, to date, for CO2 retrieval. To improve upon the current retrieval method, we extended the retrieval calculations to include a prior estimate component and developed a channel ranking system to optimize the channels and number of channels used. The channel ranking system uses a mathematical formalism to rapidly process and assess the retrieval potential of large numbers of channels. Implementing this system, we identifed a larger optimized subset of AIRS channels that can decrease retrieval errors and minimize the overall sensitivity to other iridescent contributors, such as water vapor, ozone, and atmospheric temperature. This methodology selects channels globally by accounting for the latitudinal, longitudinal, and seasonal dependencies of the subset. The new methodology increases accuracy in AIRS CO2 as well as other retrievals and enables the extension of retrieved CO2 vertical profiles to altitudes ranging from the lower troposphere to upper stratosphere. The extended retrieval method for CO2 vertical profile estimation using a maximum-likelihood estimation method. We use model data to demonstrate the beneficial impact of the extended retrieval method using the new channel ranking system on CO2 retrieval.

Insights into Tikhonov regularization: application to trace gas column retrieval and the efficient calculation of total column averaging kernels

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

T. Borsdorff

2014-02-01

Full Text Available Insights are given into Tikhonov regularization and its application to the retrieval of vertical column densities of atmospheric trace gases from remote sensing measurements. The study builds upon the equivalence of the least-squares profile-scaling approach and Tikhonov regularization method of the first kind with an infinite regularization strength. Here, the vertical profile is expressed relative to a reference profile. On the basis of this, we propose a new algorithm as an extension of the least-squares profile scaling which permits the calculation of total column averaging kernels on arbitrary vertical grids using an analytic expression. Moreover, we discuss the effective null space of the retrieval, which comprises those parts of a vertical trace gas distribution which cannot be inferred from the measurements. Numerically the algorithm can be implemented in a robust and efficient manner. In particular for operational data processing with challenging demands on processing time, the proposed inversion method in combination with highly efficient forward models is an asset. For demonstration purposes, we apply the algorithm to CO column retrieval from simulated measurements in the 2.3 μm spectral region and to O3 column retrieval from the UV. These represent ideal measurements of a series of spaceborne spectrometers such as SCIAMACHY, TROPOMI, GOME, and GOME-2. For both spectral ranges, we consider clear-sky and cloudy scenes where clouds are modelled as an elevated Lambertian surface. Here, the smoothing error for the clear-sky and cloudy atmosphere is significant and reaches several percent, depending on the reference profile which is used for scaling. This underlines the importance of the column averaging kernel for a proper interpretation of retrieved column densities. Furthermore, we show that the smoothing due to regularization can be underestimated by calculating the column averaging kernel on a too coarse vertical grid. For both

Vertical Distribution of Dust and Water Ice Aerosols from CRISM Limb-geometry Observations

Science.gov (United States)

Smith, Michael Doyle; Wolff, Michael J.; Clancy, Todd; Kleinbohl, Armin; Murchie, Scott L.

2013-01-01

[1] Near-infrared spectra taken in a limb-viewing geometry by the Compact Reconnaissance Imaging Spectrometer for Mars (CRISM) on board the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter provide a useful tool for probing atmospheric structure. Specifically, the observed radiance as a function of wavelength and height above the limb enables the vertical distribution of both dust and water ice aerosols to be retrieved. More than a dozen sets of CRISM limb observations have been taken so far providing pole-to-pole cross sections, spanning more than a full Martian year. Radiative transfer modeling is used to model the observations taking into account multiple scattering from aerosols and the spherical geometry of the limb observations. Both dust and water ice vertical profiles often show a significant vertical structure for nearly all seasons and latitudes that is not consistent with the well-mixed or Conrath-v assumptions that have often been used in the past for describing aerosol vertical profiles for retrieval and modeling purposes. Significant variations are seen in the retrieved vertical profiles of dust and water ice aerosol as a function of season. Dust typically extends to higher altitudes (approx. 40-50km) during the perihelion season than during the aphelion season (water ice clouds are common, and water ice aerosols are observed to cap the dust layer in all seasons.

SBUV version 8.6 Retrieval Algorithm: Error Analysis and Validation Technique

Science.gov (United States)

Kramarova, N. A.; Bhartia, P. K.; Frith, P. K.; McPeters, S. M.; Labow, R. D.; Taylor, G.; Fisher, S.; DeLand, M.

2012-01-01

SBUV version 8.6 algorithm was used to reprocess data from the Back Scattered Ultra Violet (BUV), the Solar Back Scattered Ultra Violet (SBUV) and a number of SBUV/2 instruments, which 'span a 41-year period from 1970 to 2011 (except a 5-year gap in the 1970s)[see Bhartia et al, 2012]. In the new version Daumont et al. [1992] ozone cross section were used, and new ozone [McPeters et ai, 2007] and cloud climatologies Doiner and Bhartia, 1995] were implemented. The algorithm uses the Optimum Estimation technique [Rodgers, 2000] to retrieve ozone profiles as ozone layer (partial column, DU) on 21 pressure layers. The corresponding total ozone values are calculated by summing ozone columns at individual layers. The algorithm is optimized to accurately retrieve monthly zonal mean (mzm) profiles rather than an individual profile, since it uses monthly zonal mean ozone climatology as the A Priori. Thus, the SBUV version 8.6 ozone dataset is better suited for long-term trend analysis and monitoring ozone changes rather than for studying short-term ozone variability. Here we discuss some characteristics of the SBUV algorithm and sources of error in the SBUV profile and total ozone retrievals. For the first time the Averaging Kernels, smoothing errors and weighting functions (or Jacobians) are included in the SBUV metadata. The Averaging Kernels (AK) represent the sensitivity of the retrieved profile to the true state and contain valuable information about the retrieval algorithm, such as Vertical Resolution, Degrees of Freedom for Signals (DFS) and Retrieval Efficiency [Rodgers, 2000]. Analysis of AK for mzm ozone profiles shows that the total number of DFS for ozone profiles varies from 4.4 to 5.5 out of 6-9 wavelengths used for retrieval. The number of wavelengths in turn depends on solar zenith angles. Between 25 and 0.5 hPa, where SBUV vertical resolution is the highest, DFS for individual layers are about 0.5.

Validation of ozone profile retrievals derived from the OMPS LP version 2.5 algorithm against correlative satellite measurements

Science.gov (United States)

Kramarova, Natalya A.; Bhartia, Pawan K.; Jaross, Glen; Moy, Leslie; Xu, Philippe; Chen, Zhong; DeLand, Matthew; Froidevaux, Lucien; Livesey, Nathaniel; Degenstein, Douglas; Bourassa, Adam; Walker, Kaley A.; Sheese, Patrick

2018-05-01

The Limb Profiler (LP) is a part of the Ozone Mapping and Profiler Suite launched on board of the Suomi NPP satellite in October 2011. The LP measures solar radiation scattered from the atmospheric limb in ultraviolet and visible spectral ranges between the surface and 80 km. These measurements of scattered solar radiances allow for the retrieval of ozone profiles from cloud tops up to 55 km. The LP started operational observations in April 2012. In this study we evaluate more than 5.5 years of ozone profile measurements from the OMPS LP processed with the new NASA GSFC version 2.5 retrieval algorithm. We provide a brief description of the key changes that had been implemented in this new algorithm, including a pointing correction, new cloud height detection, explicit aerosol correction and a reduction of the number of wavelengths used in the retrievals. The OMPS LP ozone retrievals have been compared with independent satellite profile measurements obtained from the Aura Microwave Limb Sounder (MLS), Atmospheric Chemistry Experiment Fourier Transform Spectrometer (ACE-FTS) and Odin Optical Spectrograph and InfraRed Imaging System (OSIRIS). We document observed biases and seasonal differences and evaluate the stability of the version 2.5 ozone record over 5.5 years. Our analysis indicates that the mean differences between LP and correlative measurements are well within required ±10 % between 18 and 42 km. In the upper stratosphere and lower mesosphere (> 43 km) LP tends to have a negative bias. We find larger biases in the lower stratosphere and upper troposphere, but LP ozone retrievals have significantly improved in version 2.5 compared to version 2 due to the implemented aerosol correction. In the northern high latitudes we observe larger biases between 20 and 32 km due to the remaining thermal sensitivity issue. Our analysis shows that LP ozone retrievals agree well with the correlative satellite observations in characterizing vertical, spatial and temporal

Sensitivity of the OMI ozone profile retrieval (OMO3PR) to a priori assumptions

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Mielonen, T.; De Haan, J.F.; Veefkind, J.P.

2014-01-01

We have assessed the sensitivity of the operational OMI ozone profile retrieval (OMO3PR) algorithm to a number of a priori assumptions. We studied the effect of stray light correction, surface albedo assumptions and a priori ozone profiles on the retrieved ozone profile. Then, we studied how to

Accelerating Information Retrieval from Profile Hidden Markov Model Databases.

Science.gov (United States)

Tamimi, Ahmad; Ashhab, Yaqoub; Tamimi, Hashem

2016-01-01

Profile Hidden Markov Model (Profile-HMM) is an efficient statistical approach to represent protein families. Currently, several databases maintain valuable protein sequence information as profile-HMMs. There is an increasing interest to improve the efficiency of searching Profile-HMM databases to detect sequence-profile or profile-profile homology. However, most efforts to enhance searching efficiency have been focusing on improving the alignment algorithms. Although the performance of these algorithms is fairly acceptable, the growing size of these databases, as well as the increasing demand for using batch query searching approach, are strong motivations that call for further enhancement of information retrieval from profile-HMM databases. This work presents a heuristic method to accelerate the current profile-HMM homology searching approaches. The method works by cluster-based remodeling of the database to reduce the search space, rather than focusing on the alignment algorithms. Using different clustering techniques, 4284 TIGRFAMs profiles were clustered based on their similarities. A representative for each cluster was assigned. To enhance sensitivity, we proposed an extended step that allows overlapping among clusters. A validation benchmark of 6000 randomly selected protein sequences was used to query the clustered profiles. To evaluate the efficiency of our approach, speed and recall values were measured and compared with the sequential search approach. Using hierarchical, k-means, and connected component clustering techniques followed by the extended overlapping step, we obtained an average reduction in time of 41%, and an average recall of 96%. Our results demonstrate that representation of profile-HMMs using a clustering-based approach can significantly accelerate data retrieval from profile-HMM databases.

Time changes of vertical profile of neutron fluence rate in LVR-15 reactor

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Viererbl, L.; Stehno, J.; Erben, O.; Lahodova, Z.; Marek, M.

2003-01-01

The LVR-15 reactor is a light water research type reactor, which is situated, in Nuclear Research Institute, Rez near Prague. The reactor is used as a multipurpose facility. For some experiments and material productions, e.g. for homogeneity of silicon resistance in production of radiation doped silicon, the time changes of vertical profile of neutron fluence rate are particularly important. The assembly used for silicon irradiation has two self-powered neutron detectors installed in a vertical irradiation channel in LVR-15 reactor. Vertical profile of thermal neutron fluence rate was automatically scanned during reactor operation. The results of measurements made in 2002 and 2003 with these detectors are presented. A set of vertical profile measurements was made during two 21-days reactor cycles. During the cycle the vertical profile slightly changes both in the position of its maximum and in the shape. The time dependences of the position of profile maximum and the profile width at half maximum during the cycle are given. (author)

Vertical profiles of BC direct radiative effect over Italy: high vertical resolution data and atmospheric feedbacks

Science.gov (United States)

Močnik, Griša; Ferrero, Luca; Castelli, Mariapina; Ferrini, Barbara S.; Moscatelli, Marco; Grazia Perrone, Maria; Sangiorgi, Giorgia; Rovelli, Grazia; D'Angelo, Luca; Moroni, Beatrice; Scardazza, Francesco; Bolzacchini, Ezio; Petitta, Marcello; Cappelletti, David

2016-04-01

Black carbon (BC), and its vertical distribution, affects the climate. Global measurements of BC vertical profiles are lacking to support climate change research. To fill this gap, a campaign was conducted over three Italian basin valleys, Terni Valley (Appennines), Po Valley and Passiria Valley (Alps), to characterize the impact of BC on the radiative budget under similar orographic conditions. 120 vertical profiles were measured in winter 2010. The BC vertical profiles, together with aerosol size distribution, aerosol chemistry and meteorological parameters, have been determined using a tethered balloon-based platform equipped with: a micro-Aethalometer AE51 (Magee Scientific), a 1.107 Grimm OPC (0.25-32 μm, 31 size classes), a cascade impactor (Siuotas SKC), and a meteorological station (LSI-Lastem). The aerosol chemical composition was determined from collected PM2.5 samples. The aerosol absorption along the vertical profiles was measured and optical properties calculated using the Mie theory applied to the aerosol size distribution. The aerosol optical properties were validated with AERONET data and then used as inputs to the radiative transfer model libRadtran. Vertical profiles of the aerosol direct radiative effect, the related atmospheric absorption and the heating rate were calculated. Vertical profile measurements revealed some common behaviors over the studied basin valleys. From below the mixing height to above it, a marked concentration drop was found for both BC (from -48.4±5.3% up to -69.1±5.5%) and aerosol number concentration (from -23.9±4.3% up to -46.5±7.3%). These features reflected on the optical properties of the aerosol. Absorption and scattering coefficients decreased from below the MH to above it (babs from -47.6±2.5% up to -71.3±3.0% and bsca from -23.5±0.8% up to -61.2±3.1%, respectively). Consequently, the Single Scattering Albedo increased above the MH (from +4.9±2.2% to +7.4±1.0%). The highest aerosol absorption was

HCl and ClO in activated Arctic air; first retrieved vertical profiles from TELIS submillimetre limb spectra

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

A. de Lange

2012-02-01

Full Text Available The first profile retrieval results of the Terahertz and submillimeter Limb Sounder (TELIS balloon instrument are presented. The spectra are recorded during a 13-h balloon flight on 24 January 2010 from Kiruna, Sweden. The TELIS instrument was mounted on the MIPAS-B2 gondola and shared this platform with the Michelson Interferometer for Passive Atmospheric Sounding (MIPAS and the mini-Differential Optical Absorption Spectroscopy (mini-DOAS instruments. The flight took place within the Arctic vortex at an altitude of ≈34 km in chlorine activated air, and both active (ClO and inactive chlorine (HCl were measured over an altitude range of respectively ≈16–32 km and ≈10–32 km. In this altitude range, the increase of ClO concentration levels during sunrise has been recorded with a temporal resolution of one minute. During the daytime equilibrium, a maximum ClO level of 2.1 ± 0.3 ppbv has been observed at an altitude of 23.5 km. This equilibrium profile is validated against the ClO profile by the satellite instrument Microwave Limb Sounder (MLS aboard EOS Aura. HCl profiles have been determined from two different isotopes – H³⁵Cl and H³⁷Cl – and are also validated against MLS. The precision of all profiles is well below 0.01 ppbv and the overall accuracy is therefore governed by systematic effects. The total uncertainty of these effects is estimated to be maximal 0.3 ppbv for ClO around its peak value at 23.5 km during the daytime equilibrium, and for HCl it ranges from 0.05 to 0.4 ppbv, depending on altitude. In both cases the main uncertainty stems from a largely unknown non-linear response in the detector.

Web User Profile Using XUL and Information Retrieval Techniques

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Dan MUNTEANU

2008-12-01

Full Text Available This paper presents the importance of user profile in information retrieval, information filtering and recommender systems using explicit and implicit feedback. A Firefox extension (based on XUL used for gathering data needed to infer a web user profile and an example file with collected data are presented. Also an algorithm for creating and updating the user profile and keeping track of a fixed number k of subjects of interest is presented.

Accelerating Information Retrieval from Profile Hidden Markov Model Databases.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ahmad Tamimi

Full Text Available Profile Hidden Markov Model (Profile-HMM is an efficient statistical approach to represent protein families. Currently, several databases maintain valuable protein sequence information as profile-HMMs. There is an increasing interest to improve the efficiency of searching Profile-HMM databases to detect sequence-profile or profile-profile homology. However, most efforts to enhance searching efficiency have been focusing on improving the alignment algorithms. Although the performance of these algorithms is fairly acceptable, the growing size of these databases, as well as the increasing demand for using batch query searching approach, are strong motivations that call for further enhancement of information retrieval from profile-HMM databases. This work presents a heuristic method to accelerate the current profile-HMM homology searching approaches. The method works by cluster-based remodeling of the database to reduce the search space, rather than focusing on the alignment algorithms. Using different clustering techniques, 4284 TIGRFAMs profiles were clustered based on their similarities. A representative for each cluster was assigned. To enhance sensitivity, we proposed an extended step that allows overlapping among clusters. A validation benchmark of 6000 randomly selected protein sequences was used to query the clustered profiles. To evaluate the efficiency of our approach, speed and recall values were measured and compared with the sequential search approach. Using hierarchical, k-means, and connected component clustering techniques followed by the extended overlapping step, we obtained an average reduction in time of 41%, and an average recall of 96%. Our results demonstrate that representation of profile-HMMs using a clustering-based approach can significantly accelerate data retrieval from profile-HMM databases.

Validation of ozone profile retrievals derived from the OMPS LP version 2.5 algorithm against correlative satellite measurements

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N. A. Kramarova

2018-05-01

Full Text Available The Limb Profiler (LP is a part of the Ozone Mapping and Profiler Suite launched on board of the Suomi NPP satellite in October 2011. The LP measures solar radiation scattered from the atmospheric limb in ultraviolet and visible spectral ranges between the surface and 80 km. These measurements of scattered solar radiances allow for the retrieval of ozone profiles from cloud tops up to 55 km. The LP started operational observations in April 2012. In this study we evaluate more than 5.5 years of ozone profile measurements from the OMPS LP processed with the new NASA GSFC version 2.5 retrieval algorithm. We provide a brief description of the key changes that had been implemented in this new algorithm, including a pointing correction, new cloud height detection, explicit aerosol correction and a reduction of the number of wavelengths used in the retrievals. The OMPS LP ozone retrievals have been compared with independent satellite profile measurements obtained from the Aura Microwave Limb Sounder (MLS, Atmospheric Chemistry Experiment Fourier Transform Spectrometer (ACE-FTS and Odin Optical Spectrograph and InfraRed Imaging System (OSIRIS. We document observed biases and seasonal differences and evaluate the stability of the version 2.5 ozone record over 5.5 years. Our analysis indicates that the mean differences between LP and correlative measurements are well within required ±10 % between 18 and 42 km. In the upper stratosphere and lower mesosphere (> 43 km LP tends to have a negative bias. We find larger biases in the lower stratosphere and upper troposphere, but LP ozone retrievals have significantly improved in version 2.5 compared to version 2 due to the implemented aerosol correction. In the northern high latitudes we observe larger biases between 20 and 32 km due to the remaining thermal sensitivity issue. Our analysis shows that LP ozone retrievals agree well with the correlative satellite observations in characterizing

In situ profiling of eastern Arabian Sea coastal waters using a new autonomous vertical profiler

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Desa, E.S.; Madhan, R.; Dabholkar, N.A.; Prabhudesai, S.P.; Navelkar, G.S.; Mascarenhas, A.A.M.Q.; Afzulpurkar, S.; Phaldesai, M.; Maurya, P.

The autonomous vertical profiler (AVP) presented here offers a fast, cost-effective, optimized approach to profiling in coastal waters. It consists of a hands-free, slightly buoyant, motor-driven in situ robot profiler that requires no operator...

Global distributions of water vapour isotopologues retrieved from IMG/ADEOS data

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H. Herbin

2007-07-01

Full Text Available The isotopologic composition of water vapour in the atmosphere provides valuable information on many climate, chemical and dynamical processes. The accurate measurements of the water isotopologues by remote-sensing techniques remains a challenge, due to the large spatial and temporal variations. Simultaneous profile retrievals of the main water isotopologues (i.e. H₂¹⁶O, H₂¹⁸O and HDO and their ratios are presented here for the first time, along their retrieved global distributions. The results are obtained by exploiting the high resolution infrared spectra recorded by the Interferometric Monitor for Greenhouse gases (IMG instrument, which has operated in the nadir geometry onboard the ADEOS satellite between 1996 and 1997. The retrievals are performed on cloud-free radiances, measured during ten days of April 1997, considering two atmospheric windows (1205–1228 cm⁻¹; 2004–2032 cm⁻¹ and using a line-by-line radiative transfer model and an inversion procedure based on the Optimal Estimation Method (OEM. Characterizations in terms of vertical sensitivity and error budget are provided. We show that a relatively high vertical resolution is achieved for H₂¹⁶O (~4–5 km, and that the retrieved profiles are in fair agreement with local sonde measurements, at different latitudes. The retrieved global distributions of H₂¹⁶O, H₂¹⁸O, HDO and their ratios are presented and found to be consistent with previous experimental studies and models. The Ocean-Continent difference, the latitudinal and vertical dependence of the water vapour amount and the isotopologic depletion are notably well reproduced. Others trends, possibly related to small-scale variations in the vertical profiles are also discussed. Despite the difficulties encountered for computing accurately the isotopologic ratios, our results demonstrate the ability

Estimation of sand dune thickness using a vertical velocity profile

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Al-Shuhail, Abdullatif A.

2004-01-01

Previous field and mathematical studies have shown that sand dunes may have vertical velocity profiles (i.e. continuous increase of velocity with depth). Therefore, computing the dunes thickness using conventional seismic refraction methods that assume a vertically homogeneous layer will likely produce some errors. The purpose of this study is to quantify the effect of the vertical velocity profile in a sand dune on the process of thickness estimation using seismic refraction data. First, the time distance (T-X) data of the direct wave in the dune is calculated using a vertical velocity profile, V (z), derived from Hertz-Mindlin contact theory. Then the thickness is estimated from the calculated T-X data, intercept time and velocity of the refractor at the dune's base assuming a constant velocity in the dune. The error in the estimated thickness due to the constant-velocity assumption increases with increasing thickness and decreasing porosity of the dune. For sand dunes with porosities greater than 0.2 and thickness less than 200 meter, the error is less than 15%. (author)

Two-dimensional radiative transfer for the retrieval of limb emission measurements in the martian atmosphere

Science.gov (United States)

Kleinböhl, Armin; Friedson, A. James; Schofield, John T.

2017-01-01

The remote sounding of infrared emission from planetary atmospheres using limb-viewing geometry is a powerful technique for deriving vertical profiles of structure and composition on a global scale. Compared with nadir viewing, limb geometry provides enhanced vertical resolution and greater sensitivity to atmospheric constituents. However, standard limb profile retrieval techniques assume spherical symmetry and are vulnerable to biases produced by horizontal gradients in atmospheric parameters. We present a scheme for the correction of horizontal gradients in profile retrievals from limb observations of the martian atmosphere. It characterizes horizontal gradients in temperature, pressure, and aerosol extinction along the line-of-sight of a limb view through neighboring measurements, and represents these gradients by means of two-dimensional radiative transfer in the forward model of the retrieval. The scheme is applied to limb emission measurements from the Mars Climate Sounder instrument on Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. Retrieval simulations using data from numerical models indicate that biases of up to 10 K in the winter polar region, obtained with standard retrievals using spherical symmetry, are reduced to about 2 K in most locations by the retrieval with two-dimensional radiative transfer. Retrievals from Mars atmospheric measurements suggest that the two-dimensional radiative transfer greatly reduces biases in temperature and aerosol opacity caused by observational geometry, predominantly in the polar winter regions.

Retrieval of vertical wind profiles during monsoon from satellite ...

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

large number of radiosonde observations of wind profiles over the Indian Ocean during the monsoon months. It has been found that the first ... include several sources of both systematic and random errors. Among them cloud top height .... highly correlated with the pseudo-winds at levels between 850mb and 600mb (r ј 0:8) ...

Global carbon monoxide vertical distributions from spaceborne high-resolution FTIR nadir measurements

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B. Barret

2005-01-01

Full Text Available This paper presents the first global distributions of CO vertical profiles retrieved from a thermal infrared FTS working in the nadir geometry. It is based on the exploitation of the high resolution and high quality spectra measured by the Interferometric Monitor of Greenhouse gases (IMG which flew onboard the Japanese ADEOS platform in 1996-1997. The retrievals are performed with an algorithm based on the Optimal Estimation Method (OEM and are characterized in terms of vertical sensitivity and error budget. It is found that most of the IMG measurements contain between 1.5 and 2.2 independent pieces of information about the vertical distribution of CO from the lower troposphere to the upper troposphere-lower stratosphere (UTLS. The retrievals are validated against coincident NOAA/CMDL in situ surface measurements and NDSC/FTIR total columns measurements. The retrieved global distributions of CO are also found to be in good agreement with the distributions modeled by the GEOS-CHEM 3D CTM, highlighting the ability of IMG to capture the horizontal as well as the vertical structure of the CO distributions.

Retrieving latent heating vertical structure from cloud and precipitation profiles—Part II: Deep convective and stratiform rain processes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Li, Rui; Min, Qilong; Wu, Xiaoqing; Fu, Yunfei

2013-01-01

An exploratory study on physical based latent heat (LH) retrieval algorithm is conducted by parameterizing the physical linkages between observed cloud and precipitation profiles to the major processes of phase change of atmospheric water. Specifically, rain is segregated into three rain types: warm, convective, and stratiform rain, based on their dynamical and thermodynamical characteristics. As the second of series, both convective and stratiform rain LH algorithms are presented and evaluated here. For convective and stratiform rain, the major LH-related microphysical processes including condensation, deposition, evaporation, sublimation, and freezing–melting are parameterized with the aid of Cloud Resolving Model (CRM) simulations. The condensation and deposition processes are parameterized in terms of rain formation processes through the precipitation formation theory. LH associated with the freezing–melting process is relatively small and is assumed to be a fraction of total condensation and deposition LH. The evaporation and sublimation processes are parameterized for three unsaturated scenarios: rain out of the cloud body, clouds at cloud boundary and clouds and rain in downdraft region. The evaluation or self-consistency test indicates the retrievals capture the major features of LH profiles and reproduce the double peaks at right altitudes. The LH products are applicable at various stages of cloud system life cycle for high-resolution models, as well as for large-scale climate models. -- Highlights: ► An exploratory study on physics-based cold rain latent heat retrieval algorithm. ► Utilize the full information of the vertical structures of cloud and rainfall. ► Include all major LH-related microphysical processes (in ice and liquid phase). ► Directly link water mass measurements to latent heat at instantaneous pixel level. ► Applicable at various stages of cloud system life cycle

A measurement system for vertical seawater profiles close to the air-sea interface

Science.gov (United States)

Sims, Richard P.; Schuster, Ute; Watson, Andrew J.; Yang, Ming Xi; Hopkins, Frances E.; Stephens, John; Bell, Thomas G.

2017-09-01

This paper describes a near-surface ocean profiler, which has been designed to precisely measure vertical gradients in the top 10 m of the ocean. Variations in the depth of seawater collection are minimized when using the profiler compared to conventional CTD/rosette deployments. The profiler consists of a remotely operated winch mounted on a tethered yet free-floating buoy, which is used to raise and lower a small frame housing sensors and inlet tubing. Seawater at the inlet depth is pumped back to the ship for analysis. The profiler can be used to make continuous vertical profiles or to target a series of discrete depths. The profiler has been successfully deployed during wind speeds up to 10 m s-1 and significant wave heights up to 2 m. We demonstrate the potential of the profiler by presenting measured vertical profiles of the trace gases carbon dioxide and dimethylsulfide. Trace gas measurements use an efficient microporous membrane equilibrator to minimize the system response time. The example profiles show vertical gradients in the upper 5 m for temperature, carbon dioxide and dimethylsulfide of 0.15 °C, 4 µatm and 0.4 nM respectively.

Lidar-Radiometer Inversion Code (LIRIC) for the Retrieval of Vertical Aerosol Properties from Combined Lidar Radiometer Data: Development and Distribution in EARLINET

Science.gov (United States)

Chaikovsky, A.; Dubovik, O.; Holben, Brent N.; Bril, A.; Goloub, P.; Tanre, D.; Pappalardo, G.; Wandinger, U.; Chaikovskaya, L.; Denisov, S.;

Optimization of the GSFC TROPOZ DIAL retrieval using synthetic lidar returns and ozonesondes - Part 1: Algorithm validation

Science.gov (United States)

Sullivan, J. T.; McGee, T. J.; Leblanc, T.; Sumnicht, G. K.; Twigg, L. W.

2015-10-01

The main purpose of the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center TROPospheric OZone DIfferential Absorption Lidar (GSFC TROPOZ DIAL) is to measure the vertical distribution of tropospheric ozone for science investigations. Because of the important health and climate impacts of tropospheric ozone, it is imperative to quantify background photochemical ozone concentrations and ozone layers aloft, especially during air quality episodes. For these reasons, this paper addresses the necessary procedures to validate the TROPOZ retrieval algorithm and confirm that it is properly representing ozone concentrations. This paper is focused on ensuring the TROPOZ algorithm is properly quantifying ozone concentrations, and a following paper will focus on a systematic uncertainty analysis. This methodology begins by simulating synthetic lidar returns from actual TROPOZ lidar return signals in combination with a known ozone profile. From these synthetic signals, it is possible to explicitly determine retrieval algorithm biases from the known profile. This was then systematically performed to identify any areas that need refinement for a new operational version of the TROPOZ retrieval algorithm. One immediate outcome of this exercise was that a bin registration error in the correction for detector saturation within the original retrieval was discovered and was subsequently corrected for. Another noticeable outcome was that the vertical smoothing in the retrieval algorithm was upgraded from a constant vertical resolution to a variable vertical resolution to yield a statistical uncertainty of exercise was quite successful.

Towards Improving Satellite Tropospheric NO2 Retrieval Products: Impacts of the spatial resolution and lighting NOx production from the a priori chemical transport model

Science.gov (United States)

Smeltzer, C. D.; Wang, Y.; Zhao, C.; Boersma, F.

2009-12-01

Polar orbiting satellite retrievals of tropospheric nitrogen dioxide (NO2) columns are important to a variety of scientific applications. These NO2 retrievals rely on a priori profiles from chemical transport models and radiative transfer models to derive the vertical columns (VCs) from slant columns measurements. In this work, we compare the retrieval results using a priori profiles from a global model (TM4) and a higher resolution regional model (REAM) at the OMI overpass hour of 1330 local time, implementing the Dutch OMI NO2 (DOMINO) retrieval. We also compare the retrieval results using a priori profiles from REAM model simulations with and without lightning NOx (NO + NO2) production. A priori model resolution and lightning NOx production are both found to have large impact on satellite retrievals by altering the satellite sensitivity to a particular observation by shifting the NO2 vertical distribution interpreted by the radiation model. The retrieved tropospheric NO2 VCs may increase by 25-100% in urban regions and be reduced by 50% in rural regions if the a priori profiles from REAM simulations are used during the retrievals instead of the profiles from TM4 simulations. The a priori profiles with lightning NOx may result in a 25-50% reduction of the retrieved tropospheric NO2 VCs compared to the a priori profiles without lightning. As first priority, a priori vertical NO2 profiles from a chemical transport model with a high resolution, which can better simulate urban-rural NO2 gradients in the boundary layer and make use of observation-based parameterizations of lightning NOx production, should be first implemented to obtain more accurate NO2 retrievals over the United States, where NOx source regions are spatially separated and lightning NOx production is significant. Then as consequence of a priori NO2 profile variabilities resulting from lightning and model resolution dynamics, geostationary satellite, daylight observations would further promote the next

Retrieval of aerosol profiles combining sunphotometer and ceilometer measurements in GRASP code

Science.gov (United States)

Román, R.; Benavent-Oltra, J. A.; Casquero-Vera, J. A.; Lopatin, A.; Cazorla, A.; Lyamani, H.; Denjean, C.; Fuertes, D.; Pérez-Ramírez, D.; Torres, B.; Toledano, C.; Dubovik, O.; Cachorro, V. E.; de Frutos, A. M.; Olmo, F. J.; Alados-Arboledas, L.

2018-05-01

In this paper we present an approach for the profiling of aerosol microphysical and optical properties combining ceilometer and sun/sky photometer measurements in the GRASP code (General Retrieval of Aerosol and Surface Properties). For this objective, GRASP is used with sun/sky photometer measurements of aerosol optical depth (AOD) and sky radiances, both at four wavelengths and obtained from AErosol RObotic NETwork (AERONET), and ceilometer measurements of range corrected signal (RCS) at 1064 nm. A sensitivity study with synthetic data evidences the capability of the method to retrieve aerosol properties such as size distribution and profiles of volume concentration (VC), especially for coarse particles. Aerosol properties obtained by the mentioned method are compared with airborne in-situ measurements acquired during two flights over Granada (Spain) within the framework of ChArMEx/ADRIMED (Chemistry-Aerosol Mediterranean Experiment/Aerosol Direct Radiative Impact on the regional climate in the MEDiterranean region) 2013 campaign. The retrieved aerosol VC profiles agree well with the airborne measurements, showing a mean bias error (MBE) and a mean absolute bias error (MABE) of 0.3 μm3/cm3 (12%) and 5.8 μm3/cm3 (25%), respectively. The differences between retrieved VC and airborne in-situ measurements are within the uncertainty of GRASP retrievals. In addition, the retrieved VC at 2500 m a.s.l. is shown and compared with in-situ measurements obtained during summer 2016 at a high-atitude mountain station in the framework of the SLOPE I campaign (Sierra Nevada Lidar AerOsol Profiling Experiment). VC from GRASP presents high correlation (r = 0.91) with the in-situ measurements, but overestimates them, MBE and MABE being equal to 23% and 43%.

A measurement system for vertical seawater profiles close to the air–sea interface

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

R. P. Sims

2017-09-01

Full Text Available This paper describes a near-surface ocean profiler, which has been designed to precisely measure vertical gradients in the top 10 m of the ocean. Variations in the depth of seawater collection are minimized when using the profiler compared to conventional CTD/rosette deployments. The profiler consists of a remotely operated winch mounted on a tethered yet free-floating buoy, which is used to raise and lower a small frame housing sensors and inlet tubing. Seawater at the inlet depth is pumped back to the ship for analysis. The profiler can be used to make continuous vertical profiles or to target a series of discrete depths. The profiler has been successfully deployed during wind speeds up to 10 m s−1 and significant wave heights up to 2 m. We demonstrate the potential of the profiler by presenting measured vertical profiles of the trace gases carbon dioxide and dimethylsulfide. Trace gas measurements use an efficient microporous membrane equilibrator to minimize the system response time. The example profiles show vertical gradients in the upper 5 m for temperature, carbon dioxide and dimethylsulfide of 0.15 °C, 4 µatm and 0.4 nM respectively.

The Influence of Aerosol Hygroscopicity on Retrieving the Aerosol Extincting Coefficient from MPL Data

Science.gov (United States)

Zhao, G.; Zhao, C.

2016-12-01

Micro-pulse Lidar (MPL) measurements have been widely used to profile the ambient aerosol extincting coefficient(). Lidar Ratio (LR) ,which highly depends on the particle number size distribution (PNSD) and aerosol hygroscopicity, is the most important factor to retrieve the profile. A constant AOD constrained LR is usually used in current algorithms, which would lead to large bias when the relative humidity (RH) in the mixed layer is high. In this research, the influences of PNSD, aerosol hygroscopicity and RH profiles on the vertical variation of LR were investigated based on the datasets from field measurements in the North China Plain (NCP). Results show that LR can have an enhancement factor of more than 120% when the RH reaches to 92%. A new algorithm of retrieving the profile is proposed based on the variation of LR due to aerosol hygroscopicity. The magnitude and vertical structures of retrieved using this method can be significantly different to that of the fiexed LR method. The relative difference can reach up to 40% when the RH in the mixed layer is higher than 90% . Sensitivity studies show that RH profile and PNSD affect most on the retrieved by fiexed LR method. In view of this, a scheme of LR enhancement factor by RH is proposed in the NCP. The relative differnce of the calculated between using this scheme and the new algorithm with the variable LR can be less than 10%.

Explicit and Observation-based Aerosol Treatment in Tropospheric NO2 Retrieval over China from the Ozone Monitoring Instrument

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, M.; Lin, J.; Boersma, F.; Pinardi, G.; Wang, Y.; Chimot, J.; Wagner, T.; Xie, P.; Eskes, H.; Van Roozendael, M.; Hendrick, F.

2017-12-01

Satellite retrieval of vertical column densities (VCDs) of tropospheric nitrogen dioxide (NO2) is influenced by aerosols substantially. Aerosols affect the retrieval of "effective cloud fraction (CF)" and "effective cloud top pressure (CP)" that are used in the subsequent NO2 retrieval to account for the presentence of clouds. And aerosol properties and vertical distributions directly affect the NO2 air mass factor (AMF) calculations. Our published POMINO algorithm uses a parallelized LIDORT-driven AMFv6 code to derive CF, CP and NO2 VCD. Daily information on aerosol optical properties are taken from GEOS-Chem simulations, with aerosol optical depth (AOD) further constrained by monthly MODIS AOD. However, the published algorithm does not include an observation-based constraint of aerosol vertical distribution. Here we construct a monthly climatological observation dataset of aerosol extinction profiles, based on Level-2 CALIOP data over 2007-2015, to further constrain aerosol vertical distributions. GEOS-Chem captures the temporal variations of CALIOP aerosol layer heights (ALH) but has an overall underestimate by about 0.3 km. It tends to overestimate the aerosol extinction by 10% below 2 km but with an underestimate by 30% above 2 km, leading to a low bias by 10-30% in the retrieved tropospheric NO2 VCD. After adjusting GEOS-Chem aerosol extinction profiles by the CALIOP monthly ALH climatology, the retrieved NO2 VCDs increase by 4-16% over China on a monthly basis in 2012. The improved NO2 VCDs are better correlated to independent MAX-DOAS observations at three sites than POMINO and DOMINO are - especially for the polluted cases, R2 reaches 0.76 for the adjusted POMINO, much higher than that for the published POMINO (0.68) and DOMINO (0.38). The newly retrieved CP increases by 60 hPa on average, because of a stronger aerosol screening effect. Compared to the CF used in DOMINO, which implicitly includes aerosol information, our improved CF is much lower and can

A Comparison of the Red Green Blue (RGB) Air Mass Imagery and Hyperspectral Infrared Retrieved Profiles and NOAA G-IV Dropsondes

Science.gov (United States)

Berndt, Emily; Folmer, Michael; Dunion, Jason

2014-01-01

RGB air mass imagery is derived from multiple channels or paired channel differences. The combination of channels and channel differences means the resulting imagery does not represent a quantity or physical parameter such as brightness temperature in conventional single channel imagery. Without a specific quantity to reference, forecasters are often confused as to what RGB products represent. Hyperspectral infrared retrieved profiles and NOAA G-IV dropsondes provide insight about the vertical structure of the air mass represented on the RGB air mass imagery and are a first step to validating the imagery.

An extended Kalman-Bucy filter for atmospheric temperature profile retrieval with a passive microwave sounder

Science.gov (United States)

Ledsham, W. H.; Staelin, D. H.

1978-01-01

An extended Kalman-Bucy filter has been implemented for atmospheric temperature profile retrievals from observations made using the Scanned Microwave Spectrometer (SCAMS) instrument carried on the Nimbus 6 satellite. This filter has the advantage that it requires neither stationary statistics in the underlying processes nor linear production of the observed variables from the variables to be estimated. This extended Kalman-Bucy filter has yielded significant performance improvement relative to multiple regression retrieval methods. A multi-spot extended Kalman-Bucy filter has also been developed in which the temperature profiles at a number of scan angles in a scanning instrument are retrieved simultaneously. These multi-spot retrievals are shown to outperform the single-spot Kalman retrievals.

TES/Aura L2 Summary Profiles V005

Data.gov (United States)

National Aeronautics and Space Administration — Atmospheric vertical profile estimates, along with retrieved surface temperature, cloud effective optical depth, column estimates, quality flags, and a priori...

TES/Aura L2 Summary Profiles V003

Data.gov (United States)

National Aeronautics and Space Administration — Atmospheric vertical profile estimates, along with retrieved surface temperature, cloud effective optical depth, column estimates, quality flags, and a priori...

Retrieval of MetOp-A/IASI CO profiles and validation with MOZAIC data

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

E. De Wachter

2012-11-01

Full Text Available The IASI (Infrared Atmospheric Sounding Interferometer nadir-looking thermal infrared sounder onboard MetOp-A enables the monitoring of atmospheric constituents on a global scale. This paper presents a quality assessment of IASI CO profiles retrieved by the two different retrieval algorithms SOFRID and FORLI, by an intercomparison with airborne in-situ CO profiles from the MOZAIC program for the 2008–2009 period. Lower (surface–480 hPa and upper tropospheric partial column (480–225 hPa comparisons as well as profile comparisons are made. The retrieval errors of the IASI products are less than 21% in the lower troposphere and less than 10% in the upper troposphere. A statistical analysis shows similar correlation coefficients for the two retrieval algorithms and smoothed MOZAIC of r ~ 0.8 and r ~ 0.7 in the lower and upper troposphere respectively. Comparison with smoothed MOZAIC data of the temporal variation of the CO profiles at the airports of Frankfurt and Windhoek demonstrates that the IASI products are able to capture the seasonal variability at these sites. At Frankfurt SOFRID (respectively FORLI is positively biased by 10.5% (13.0% compared to smoothed MOZAIC in the upper (lower troposphere, and the limited sensitivity of the IASI instrument to the boundary layer when thermal contrast is low is identified. At Windhoek, the impact of the vegetation fires in Southern Africa from July to November is captured by both SOFRID and FORLI, with an overestimation of the CO background values (fire maxima by SOFRID (FORLI by 12.8% (10%. Profile comparisons at Frankfurt and Windhoek show that the largest discrepancies are found between the two IASI products and MOZAIC for the nighttime retrievals.

Vertical profiles of black carbon measured by a micro-aethalometer in summer in the North China Plain

Science.gov (United States)

Ran, Liang; Deng, Zhaoze; Xu, Xiaobin; Yan, Peng; Lin, Weili; Wang, Ying; Tian, Ping; Wang, Pucai; Pan, Weilin; Lu, Daren

2016-08-01

Black carbon (BC) is a dominant absorber in the visible spectrum and a potent factor in climatic effects. Vertical profiles of BC were measured using a micro-aethalometer attached to a tethered balloon during the Vertical Observations of trace Gases and Aerosols (VOGA) field campaign, in summer 2014 at a semirural site in the North China Plain (NCP). The diurnal cycle of BC vertical distributions following the evolution of the mixing layer (ML) was investigated for the first time in the NCP region. Statistical parameters including identified mixing height (Hm) and average BC mass concentrations within the ML (Cm) and in the free troposphere (Cf) were obtained for a selected dataset of 67 vertical profiles. Hm was usually lower than 0.2 km in the early morning and rapidly rose thereafter due to strengthened turbulence. The maximum height of the ML was reached in the late afternoon. The top of a full developed ML exceeded 1 km on sunny days in summer, while it stayed much lower on cloudy days. The sunset triggered the collapse of the ML, and a stable nocturnal boundary layer (NBL) gradually formed. Accordingly, the highest level Cm was found in the early morning and the lowest was found in the afternoon. In the daytime, BC was almost uniformly distributed within the ML and significantly decreased above the ML. During the field campaign, Cm averaged about 5.16 ± 2.49 µg m-3, with a range of 1.12 to 14.49 µg m-3, comparable with observational results in many polluted urban areas such as Milan in Italy and Shanghai in China. As evening approached, BC gradually built up near the surface and exponentially declined with height. In contrast to the large variability found both in Hm and Cm, Cf stayed relatively unaffected through the day. Cf was less than 10 % of the ground level under clean conditions, while it amounted to half of the ground level in some polluted cases. In situ measurements of BC vertical profiles would hopefully have an important implication for

Retrieval of tropospheric carbon monoxide for the MOPITT experiment

Science.gov (United States)

Pan, Liwen; Gille, John C.; Edwards, David P.; Bailey, Paul L.; Rodgers, Clive D.

1998-12-01

A retrieval method for deriving the tropospheric carbon monoxide (CO) profile and column amount under clear sky conditions has been developed for the Measurements of Pollution In The Troposphere (MOPITT) instrument, scheduled for launch in 1998 onboard the EOS-AM1 satellite. This paper presents a description of the method along with analyses of retrieval information content. These analyses characterize the forward measurement sensitivity, the contribution of a priori information, and the retrieval vertical resolution. Ensembles of tropospheric CO profiles were compiled both from aircraft in situ measurements and from chemical model results and were used in retrieval experiments to characterize the method and to study the sensitivity to different parameters. Linear error analyses were carried out in parallel with the ensemble experiments. Results of these experiments and analyses indicate that MOPITT CO column measurements will have better than 10% precision, and CO profile measurement will have approximately three pieces of independent information that will resolve 3-5 tropospheric layers to approximately 10% precision. These analyses are important for understanding MOPITT data, both for application of data in tropospheric chemistry studies and for comparison with in situ measurements.

Information operator approach applied to the retrieval of vertical distributions of atmospheric constituents from ground-based FTIR measurements

Science.gov (United States)

Senten, Cindy; de Mazière, Martine; Vanhaelewyn, Gauthier; Vigouroux, Corinne; Delmas, Robert

2010-05-01

The retrieval of information about the vertical distribution of an atmospheric absorber from high spectral resolution ground-based Fourier Transform infrared (FTIR) solar absorption spectra is an important issue in remote sensing. A frequently used technique at present is the optimal estimation method. This work introduces the application of an alternative method, namely the information operator approach (Doicu et al., 2007; Hoogen et al., 1999), for extracting the available information from such FTIR measurements. This approach has been implemented within the well-known retrieval code SFIT2, by adapting the optimal estimation method such as to take into account only the significant contributions to the solution. In particular, we demonstrate the feasibility of the method when applied to ground-based FTIR spectra taken at the southern (sub)tropical site Ile de La Réunion (21° S, 55° E) in 2007. A thorough comparison has been made between the retrieval results obtained with the original optimal estimation method and the ones obtained with the information operator approach, regarding profile and column stability, information content and corresponding full error budget evaluation. This has been done for the target species ozone (O3), methane (CH4), nitrous oxide (N2O), and carbon monoxide (CO). It is shown that the information operator approach performs well and is capable of achieving the same accuracy as optimal estimation, with a gain of stability and with the additional advantage of being less sensitive to the choice of a priori information as well as to the actual signal-to-noise ratio. Keywords: ground-based FTIR, solar absorption spectra, greenhouse gases, information operator approach References Doicu, A., Hilgers, S., von Bargen, A., Rozanov, A., Eichmann, K.-U., von Savigny, C., and Burrows, J.P.: Information operator approach and iterative regularization methods for atmospheric remote sensing, J. Quant. Spectrosc. Radiat. Transfer, 103, 340-350, 2007

Vertical profiles of fine and coarse aerosol particles over Cyprus: Comparison between in-situ drone measurements and remote sensing observations

Science.gov (United States)

Mamali, Dimitra; Marinou, Eleni; Pikridas, Michael; Kottas, Michael; Binietoglou, Ioannis; Kokkalis, Panagiotis; Tsekeri, Aleksandra; Amiridis, Vasilis; Sciare, Jean; Keleshis, Christos; Engelmann, Ronny; Ansmann, Albert; Russchenberg, Herman W. J.; Biskos, George

2017-04-01

Vertical profiles of the aerosol mass concentration derived from light detection and ranging (lidar) measurements were compared to airborne dried optical particle counter (OPC MetOne; Model 212) measurements during the INUIT-BACCHUS-ACTRIS campaign. The campaign took place in April 2016 and its main focus was the study of aerosol dust particles. During the campaign the NOA Polly-XT Raman lidar located at Nicosia (35.08° N, 33.22° E) was providing round-the-clock vertical profiles of aerosol optical properties. In addition, an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) carrying an OPC flew on 7 days during the first morning hours. The flights were performed at Orounda (35.1018° N, 33.0944° E) reaching altitudes of 2.5 km a.s.l, which allows comparison with a good fraction of the recorded lidar data. The polarization lidar photometer networking method (POLIPHON) was used for the estimation of the fine (non-dust) and coarse (dust) mode aerosol mass concentration profiles. This method uses as input the particle backscatter coefficient and the particle depolarization profiles of the lidar at 532 nm wavelength and derives the aerosol mass concentration. The first step in this approach makes use of the lidar observations to separate the backscatter and extinction contributions of the weakly depolarizing non-dust aerosol components from the contributions of the strongly depolarizing dust particles, under the assumption of an externally mixed two-component aerosol. In the second step, sun photometer retrievals of the fine and the coarse modes aerosol optical thickness (AOT) and volume concentration are used to calculate the associated concentrations from the extinction coefficients retrieved from the lidar. The estimated aerosol volume concentrations were converted into mass concentration with an assumption for the bulk aerosol density, and compared with the OPC measurements. The first results show agreement within the experimental uncertainty. This project received funding from the

First retrievals of MLT sodium profiles based on satellite sodium nightglow observations

Science.gov (United States)

Von Savigny, Christian; Zilker, Bianca; Langowski, Martin

2016-07-01

The Na D lines are a well known feature of the terrestrial airglow and have been identified for the first time in 1929. During the daytime the Na airglow emission is caused by resonance fluorescence, while during the night the excitation occurs by chemiluminescent reactions. Knowledge of Na in the mesopause region is of interest, because the Na layer is thought to be maintained by meteoric ablation and Na measurements allow constraining the meteoric mass influx into the Earth system. In this contribution we employ SCIAMACHY/Envisat nighttime limb measurements of the Na D-line airglow from fall 2002 to spring 2012 - in combination with photochemical models - in order to retrieve Na concentration profiles in the 75 - 100 km altitude range. The Na profiles show realistic peak altitudes, number densities and seasonal variations. The retrieval scheme, sample results and comparisons to ground-based LIDAR measurements of Na as well as SCIAMACHY daytime retrievals will be presented. Moreover, uncertainties in the assumed photochemical scheme and their impact on the Na retrievals will be discussed.

Characteristics of aerosol vertical profiles in Tsukuba, Japan, and their impacts on the evolution of the atmospheric boundary layer

Science.gov (United States)

Kudo, Rei; Aoyagi, Toshinori; Nishizawa, Tomoaki

2018-05-01

Vertical profiles of the aerosol physical and optical properties, with a focus on seasonal means and on transport events, were investigated in Tsukuba, Japan, by a synergistic remote sensing method that uses lidar and sky radiometer data. The retrieved aerosol vertical profiles of the springtime mean and five transport events were input to our developed one-dimensional atmospheric model, and the impacts of the aerosol vertical profiles on the evolution of the atmospheric boundary layer (ABL) were studied by numerical sensitivity experiments. The characteristics of the aerosol vertical profiles in Tsukuba are as follows: (1) the retrieval results in the spring showed that aerosol optical thickness at 532 nm in the free atmosphere (FA) was 0.13, greater than 0.08 in the ABL owing to the frequent occurrence of transported aerosols in the FA. In other seasons, optical thickness in the FA was almost the same as that in the ABL. (2) The aerosol optical and physical properties in the ABL showed a dependency on the extinction coefficient. With an increase in the extinction coefficient from 0.00 to 0.24 km-1, the Ångström exponent increased from 0.0 to 2.0, the single-scattering albedo increased from 0.87 to 0.99, and the asymmetry factor decreased from 0.75 to 0.50. (3) The large variability in the physical and optical properties of aerosols in the FA were attributed to transport events, during which the transported aerosols consisted of varying amounts of dust and smoke particles depending on where they originated (China, Mongolia, or Russia). The results of the numerical sensitivity experiments using the aerosol vertical profiles of the springtime mean and five transport events in the FA are as follows: (1) numerical sensitivity experiments based on simulations conducted with and without aerosols showed that aerosols caused the net downward radiation and the sensible and latent heat fluxes at the surface to decrease. The decrease in temperature in the ABL (-0.2 to -0

Thermal structure of the Martian atmosphere retrieved from the IR spectrometry in the 15 μm CO2 band: input to MIRA

Science.gov (United States)

Zasova, L. V.; Formisano, V.; Grassi, D.; Igantiev, N. I.; Moroz, V. I.

This paper describes one of the sources of the data concerning the thermal structure of the Martian atmosphere, based on the thermal IR spectrometry method. It allows to investigate the Martian atmosphere below 55 km by retrieving the temperature profiles from the 15 μm CO2 band. This approach enables to reach the vertical resolution of several kilometers and the temperature accuracy of several Kelvins. An aerosol abundance, which influences the temperature profile, is obtained from the continuum of the same spectrum parallel with the temperature profile and is taken into account in the temperature retrieval procedure in a self consistent way. Although this method has the limited vertical resolution, it possesses a significant advantage: the thermal IR spectrometry allows to monitor the temperature profiles with a good coverage both in space and local time. The Planetary Fourier spectrometer on board of Mars Express has the spectral range from 250 to 8000 cm-1 and a high spectral resolution of about 2 cm-1. Vertical temperature profiles retrieval is one of the main scientific goals of the experiment. The important data are expected to be obtained on the vertical thermal structure of the atmosphere, and its dependence on latitude, longitude, season, local time, clouds and dust loadings. These results should give a significant input in the future MIRA, being included in the Chapter “Structure of the atmosphere from the surface to 100 km”.

Interpretation of ozone vertical profiles and their variations in the Northern hemisphere on the basis of GOME satellite data. Final report; Interpretation von Ozon-Vertikalprofilen und deren Variationen in der noerdlichen Hemisphaere unter Benutzung von GOME Satellitendaten. Abschlussbericht

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Eichmann, K.U.; Bramstedt, K.; Weber, M.; Rozanov, V.; Debeek, R.; Hoogen, R.; Burrows, J.P.

2000-07-04

Semiglobal ozone vertical profiles based on GOME measurements were established and evaluated systematically. GOME (Global Ozone Monitoring Experiment), carried by the ERS-2 satellite, is the first European passive optical sensor for long-term monitoring of ozone, other trace elements, and aerosols. Especially the vertical distribution of ozone in the Arctic region was measured and interpreted with a view to enhanced ozone degradation in the Arctic winter and spring seasons. Apart from the regional variations, also the time variations of the profiles are to provide further information on the dynamics and chemical processes in the polar vortex. The retrieval algorithm used for assessing the ozone vertical profiles, FURM (FUll Retrieval Method), is based on the GOMETRAN radiation transport model developed at Bremen university especially for evaluation of the GOME data. The GOME ozone profiles were validated with ozone probes and other satellite experiments. [German] Ziel des Projektes war eine systematische Bestimmung und Auswertung von semiglobalen Ozonvertikalprofilen aus den Messdaten von GOME. Das auf dem Satelliten ERS-2 fliegende Spektrometer GOME (Global Ozone Monitoring Experiment) ist der erste europaeische, passive, optische Sensor, der fuer Langzeitmessungen von Ozon, anderen Spurenstoffen und Aerosolen konzipiert wurde. Im Projekt wurde insbesondere die vertikale Verteilung von Ozon in der Arktis bestimmt und interpretiert hinsichtlich des verstaerkten Ozonabbaus im arktischen Winter und Fruehjahr. Neben der raeumlichen Variation sollen auch die zeitlichen Ablaeufe und Veraenderungen der Profile weitere Erkenntnise hinsichtlich der Dynamik und der chemischen Prozesse im Polarwirbel liefern. Der Retrievalalgorithmus zur Bestimmung des Ozonhoehenprofils, FURM (Full Retrieval Method) genannt, basiert auf dem Strahlungstransportmodell GOMETRAN, das an der Universitaet Bremen speziell fuer die Auswertung der Daten des GOME Instrumentes entwickelt wurde

The impact of using different ozone cross sections on ozone profile retrievals from OMI UV measurements

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Liu, Cheng; Liu, Xiong; Chance, Kelly

2013-01-01

We compare three datasets of high-resolution O 3 cross sections and evaluate the effects of using these cross sections on O 3 profile retrievals from OMI UV (270–330 nm) measurements. These O 3 cross sections include Brion–Daumont–Malicet (BDM), Bass–Paur (BP) and a new dataset measured by Serdyuchenko et al. (SGWCB), which is made from measurements at more temperatures and in a wider temperature range than BDM and BP, 193–293 K. Relative to the BDM dataset, the SGWCB data have systematic biases of −2 to +4% for 260–340 nm, and the BP data have smaller biases of 1–2% below 315 nm but larger spiky biases of up to ±6% at longer wavelengths. These datasets show distinctly different temperature dependences. Using different cross sections can significantly affect atmospheric retrievals. Using SGWCB data leads to retrieval failure for almost half of the OMI spatial pixels, producing large negative ozone values that cannot be handled by radiative transfer models and using BP data leads to large fitting residuals over 310–330 nm. Relative to the BDM retrievals, total ozone retrieved using original SGWCB data (with linear temperature interpolation/extrapolation) typically shows negative biases of 5–10 DU; retrieved tropospheric ozone column generally shows negative biases of 5–10 DU and 5–20 DU for parameterized and original SGWCB data, respectively. Compared to BDM retrievals, ozone profiles retrieved with BP/SGWCB data on average show large altitude-dependent oscillating differences of up to ±20–40% biases below ∼20 km with almost opposite bias patterns. Validation with ozonesonde observations demonstrates that the BDM retrievals agree well with ozonesondes, to typically within 10%, while both BP and SGWCB retrievals consistently show large altitude-dependent biases of up to ±20–70% below 20 km. Therefore, we recommend using the BDM dataset for ozone profile retrievals from UV measurements. Its improved performance is likely due to its

Vertical Distribution of Aersols and Water Vapor Using CRISM Limb Observations

Science.gov (United States)

Smith, Michael D.; Wolff, Michael J.; Clancy, R. Todd

2011-01-01

Near-infrared spectra taken in a limb-viewing geometry by the Compact Reconnaissance Imaging Spectrometer for Mars (CRISM) on-board the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) provide a useful tool for probing atmospheric structure. Specifically, the observed radiance as a function of wavelength and height above the limb allows the vertical distribution of both dust and ice aerosols to be retrieved. These data serve as an important supplement to the aerosol profiling provided by the MRO/MCS instrument allowing independent validation and giving additional information on particle physical and scattering properties through multi-wavelength studies. A total of at least ten CRISM limb observations have been taken so far covering a full Martian year. Each set of limb observations nominally contains about four dozen scans across the limb giving pole-to-pole coverage for two orbits at roughly 100 and 290 W longitude over the Tharsis and Syrtis/Hellas regions, respectively. At each longitude, limb scans are spaced roughly 10 degrees apart in latitude, with a vertical spatial resolution on the limb of roughly 800 m. Radiative transfer modeling is used to model the observations. We compute synthetic CRISM limb spectra using a discrete-ordinates radiative transfer code that accounts for multiple scattering from aerosols and accounts for spherical geometry of the limb observations by integrating the source functions along curved paths in that coordinate system. Retrieved are 14-point vertical profiles for dust and water ice aerosols with resolution of 0.4 scale heights between one and six scale heights above the surface. After the aerosol retrieval is completed, the abundances of C02 (or surface pressure) and H20 gas are retrieved by matching the depth of absorption bands at 2000 nm for carbon dioxide and at 2600 run for water vapor. In addition to the column abundance of water vapor, limited information on its vertical structure can also be retrieved depending on the signal

Vertical Soil Profiling Using a Galvanic Contact Resistivity Scanning Approach

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Luan Pan

2014-07-01

Full Text Available Proximal sensing of soil electromagnetic properties is widely used to map spatial land heterogeneity. The mapping instruments use galvanic contact, capacitive coupling or electromagnetic induction. Regardless of the type of instrument, the geometrical configuration between signal transmitting and receiving elements typically defines the shape of the depth response function. To assess vertical soil profiles, many modern instruments use multiple transmitter-receiver pairs. Alternatively, vertical electrical sounding can be used to measure changes in apparent soil electrical conductivity with depth at a specific location. This paper examines the possibility for the assessment of soil profiles using a dynamic surface galvanic contact resistivity scanning approach, with transmitting and receiving electrodes configured in an equatorial dipole-dipole array. An automated scanner system was developed and tested in agricultural fields with different soil profiles. While operating in the field, the distance between current injecting and measuring pairs of rolling electrodes was varied continuously from 40 to 190 cm. The preliminary evaluation included a comparison of scan results from 20 locations to shallow (less than 1.2 m deep soil profiles and to a two-layer soil profile model defined using an electromagnetic induction instrument.

Development of an autonomous vertical profiler for oceanographic studies

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Dabholkar, N.; Desa, E.; Afzulpurkar, S.; Madhan, R.; Mascarenhas, A.A.M.Q.; Navelkar, G.; Maurya, P.K.; Prabhudesai, S.; Nagvekar, S.; Martins, H.; Sawkar, G.; Fernandes, P.; Manoj, K.K.

groups. This paper is based on a concept patent on a thruster driven Autonomous Vertical profiler [AVP], and describes the developmental steps being taken on the integration of sensors, control electronics, communications and a Graphical User interface...

Tropospheric mercury vertical profiles between 500 and 10 000 m in central Europe

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

A. Weigelt

2016-03-01

Full Text Available The knowledge of the vertical distribution of atmospheric mercury (Hg plays an important role in determining the transport and cycling of mercury. However, measurements of the vertical distribution are rare, because airborne measurements are expensive and labour intensive. Consequently, only a few vertical Hg profile measurements have been reported since the 1970s. Besides the Civil Aircraft for the Regular Investigation of the atmosphere Based on an Instrument Container (CARIBIC observations, the latest vertical profile over Europe was measured in 1996. Within the Global Mercury Observation System (GMOS project, four vertical profiles were taken on board research aircraft (CASA-212 in August 2013 in background air over different locations in Slovenia and Germany. Each vertical profile consists of at least seven 5 min horizontal flight sections from 500 m above ground to 3000 m a.s.l. Gaseous elemental mercury (GEM and total gaseous mercury (TGM were measured with Tekran 2537X and Tekran 2537B analysers. In addition to the mercury measurements, SO2, CO, O3, NO, and NO2, basic meteorological parameters (pressure, temperature, relative humidity have been measured. Additional ground-based mercury measurements at the GMOS master site in Waldhof, Germany and measurements onboard the CARIBIC passenger aircraft were used to extend the profile to the ground and upper troposphere respectively. No vertical gradient was found inside the well-mixed boundary layer (variation of less than 0.1 ng m−3 at different sites, with GEM varying from location to location between 1.4 and 1.6 ng m−3 (standard temperature and pressure, STP: T  =  273.15 K, p  =  1013.25 hPa. At all locations GEM dropped to 1.3 ng m−3 (STP when entering the free troposphere and remained constant at higher altitudes. The combination of the vertical profile, measured on 21 August 2013 over Leipzig, Germany, with the CARIBIC measurements during ascent and descent to

Retrieval of stratospheric and tropospheric BrO profiles and columns using ground-based zenith-sky DOAS observations at Harestua, 60° N

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

J. A. Pyle

2007-09-01

Full Text Available A profiling algorithm based on the optimal estimation method is applied to ground-based zenith-sky UV-visible measurements from Harestua, Southern Norway (60° N, 11° E in order to retrieve BrO vertical profiles. The sensitivity of the zenith-sky observations to the tropospheric BrO detection is increased by using for the spectral analysis a fixed reference spectrum corresponding to clear-sky noon summer conditions. The information content and retrieval errors are characterized and it is shown that the retrieved stratospheric profiles and total columns are consistent with correlative balloon and satellite observations, respectively. Tropospheric BrO columns are derived from profiles retrieved at 80° solar zenith angle during sunrise and sunset for the 2000–2006 period. They show a marked seasonality with mean column value ranging from 1.52±0.62×1013 molec/cm² in late winter/early spring to 0.92±0.38×1013 molec/cm² in summer, which corresponds to 1.0±0.4 and 0.6±0.2 pptv, respectively, if we assume that BrO is uniformly mixed in the troposphere. These column values are also consistent with previous estimates made from balloon, satellite, and other ground-based observations. Daytime (10:30 LT tropospheric BrO columns are compared to the p-TOMCAT 3-D tropospheric chemical transport model (CTM for the 2002–2003 period. p-TOMCAT shows a good agreement with the retrieved columns except in late winter/early spring where an underestimation by the model is obtained. This finding could be explained by the non-inclusion of sea-ice bromine sources in the current version of p-TOMCAT. Therefore the model cannot reproduce the possible transport of air-masses with enhanced BrO concentration due to bromine explosion events from the polar region to Harestua. The daytime stratospheric BrO columns are compared to the SLIMCAT stratospheric 3-D-CTM. The model run used in this study, which assumes 21.2 pptv for the Bry loading (15 pptv for long

Modeling the vertical soil organic matter profile using Bayesian parameter estimation

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Braakhekke, M.C.; Wutzler, T.; Beer, C.; Kattge, J.; Schrumpf, M.; Schöning, I.; Hoosbeek, M.R.; Kruijt, B.; Kabat, P.

2012-01-01

The vertical distribution of soil organic matter (SOM) in the profile may constitute a significant factor for soil carbon cycling. However, the formation of the SOM profile is currently poorly understood due to equifinality, caused by the entanglement of several processes: input from roots, mixing

Modeling the vertical soil organic matter profile using Bayesian parameter estimation

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Braakhekke, M.C.; Wutzler, T.; Beer, C.; Kattge, J.; Schrumpf, M.; Ahrens, B.; Schoning, I.; Hoosbeek, M.R.; Kruijt, B.; Kabat, P.; Reichstein, M.

2013-01-01

The vertical distribution of soil organic matter (SOM) in the profile may constitute an important factor for soil carbon cycling. However, the formation of the SOM profile is currently poorly understood due to equifinality, caused by the entanglement of several processes: input from roots, mixing

CAMEX-3 AIRBORNE VERTICAL ATMOSPHERE PROFILING SYSTEM (AVAPS) V1

Data.gov (United States)

National Aeronautics and Space Administration — The CAMEX-3 DC-8 Airborne Vertical Atmosphere Profiling System (AVAPS) uses dropwindsonde and Global Positioning System (GPS) receivers to measure the atmospheric...

Vertical profiles of black carbon measured by a micro-aethalometer in summer in the North China Plain

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

L. Ran

2016-08-01

Full Text Available Black carbon (BC is a dominant absorber in the visible spectrum and a potent factor in climatic effects. Vertical profiles of BC were measured using a micro-aethalometer attached to a tethered balloon during the Vertical Observations of trace Gases and Aerosols (VOGA field campaign, in summer 2014 at a semirural site in the North China Plain (NCP. The diurnal cycle of BC vertical distributions following the evolution of the mixing layer (ML was investigated for the first time in the NCP region. Statistical parameters including identified mixing height (Hm and average BC mass concentrations within the ML (Cm and in the free troposphere (Cf were obtained for a selected dataset of 67 vertical profiles. Hm was usually lower than 0.2 km in the early morning and rapidly rose thereafter due to strengthened turbulence. The maximum height of the ML was reached in the late afternoon. The top of a full developed ML exceeded 1 km on sunny days in summer, while it stayed much lower on cloudy  days. The sunset triggered the collapse of the ML, and a stable nocturnal boundary layer (NBL gradually formed. Accordingly, the highest level Cm was found in the early morning and the lowest was found in the afternoon. In the daytime, BC was almost uniformly distributed within the ML and significantly decreased above the ML. During the field campaign, Cm averaged about 5.16 ± 2.49 µg m−3, with a range of 1.12 to 14.49 µg m−3, comparable with observational results in many polluted urban areas such as Milan in Italy and Shanghai in China. As evening approached, BC gradually built up near the surface and exponentially declined with height. In contrast to the large variability found both in Hm and Cm, Cf stayed relatively unaffected through the day. Cf was less than 10 % of the ground level under clean conditions, while it amounted to half of the ground level in some polluted cases. In situ measurements of BC vertical profiles would hopefully

AirMOSS P-Band Radar Retrieval of Subcanopy Soil Moisture Profile

Science.gov (United States)

Tabatabaeenejad, A.; Burgin, M. S.; Duan, X.; Moghaddam, M.

2013-12-01

Knowledge of soil moisture, as a key variable of the Earth system, plays an important role in our under-standing of the global water, energy, and carbon cycles. The importance of such knowledge has led NASA to fund missions such as Soil Moisture Active and Passive (SMAP) and Airborne Microwave Observatory of Subcanopy and Subsurface (AirMOSS). The AirMOSS mission seeks to improve the estimates of the North American Net Ecosystem Exchange (NEE) by providing high-resolution observations of the root zone soil moisture (RZSM) over regions representative of the major North American biomes. AirMOSS flies a P-band SAR to penetrate vegetation and into the root zone to provide estimates of RZSM. The flights cover areas containing flux tower sites in regions from the boreal forests in Saskatchewan, Canada, to the tropical forests in La Selva, Costa Rica. The radar snapshots are used to generate estimates of RZSM via inversion of a scattering model of vegetation overlying soils with variable moisture profiles. These retrievals will be used to generate a time record of RZSM, which will be integrated with an ecosystem demography model in order to estimate the respiration and photosynthesis carbon fluxes. The aim of this work is the retrieval of the moisture profile over AirMOSS sites using the collected P-band radar data. We have integrated layered-soil scattering models into a forest scattering model; for the backscattering from ground and for the trunk-ground double-bounce mechanism, we have used a layered small perturbation method and a coherent scattering model of layered soil, respectively. To estimate the soil moisture profile, we represent it as a second-order polynomial in the form of az2 + bz + c, where z is the depth and a, b, and c are the coefficients to be retrieved from radar measurements. When retrieved, these coefficients give us the soil moisture up to a prescribed depth of validity. To estimate the unknown coefficients of the polynomial, we use simulated

RADIALLY MAGNETIZED PROTOPLANETARY DISK: VERTICAL PROFILE

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Russo, Matthew; Thompson, Christopher

2015-01-01

This paper studies the response of a thin accretion disk to an external radial magnetic field. Our focus is on protoplanetary disks (PPDs), which are exposed during their later evolution to an intense, magnetized wind from the central star. A radial magnetic field is mixed into a thin surface layer, wound up by the disk shear, and pushed downward by a combination of turbulent mixing and ambipolar and ohmic drift. The toroidal field reaches much greater strengths than the seed vertical field that is usually invoked in PPD models, even becoming superthermal. Linear stability analysis indicates that the disk experiences the magnetorotational instability (MRI) at a higher magnetization than a vertically magnetized disk when both the effects of ambipolar and Hall drift are taken into account. Steady vertical profiles of density and magnetic field are obtained at several radii between 0.06 and 1 AU in response to a wind magnetic field B r ∼ (10 −4 –10 −2 )(r/ AU) −2 G. Careful attention is given to the radial and vertical ionization structure resulting from irradiation by stellar X-rays. The disk is more strongly magnetized closer to the star, where it can support a higher rate of mass transfer. As a result, the inner ∼1 AU of a PPD is found to evolve toward lower surface density. Mass transfer rates around 10 −8 M ⊙ yr −1 are obtained under conservative assumptions about the MRI-generated stress. The evolution of the disk and the implications for planet migration are investigated in the accompanying paper

Vertical microphysical profiles of convective clouds as a tool for obtaining aerosol cloud-mediated climate forcings

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Rosenfeld, Daniel [Hebrew Univ. of Jerusalem (Israel)

2015-12-23

Quantifying the aerosol/cloud-mediated radiative effect at a global scale requires simultaneous satellite retrievals of cloud condensation nuclei (CCN) concentrations and cloud base updraft velocities (Wb). Hitherto, the inability to do so has been a major cause of high uncertainty regarding anthropogenic aerosol/cloud-mediated radiative forcing. This can be addressed by the emerging capability of estimating CCN and Wb of boundary layer convective clouds from an operational polar orbiting weather satellite. Our methodology uses such clouds as an effective analog for CCN chambers. The cloud base supersaturation (S) is determined by Wb and the satellite-retrieved cloud base drop concentrations (Ndb), which is the same as CCN(S). Developing and validating this methodology was possible thanks to the ASR/ARM measurements of CCN and vertical updraft profiles. Validation against ground-based CCN instruments at the ARM sites in Oklahoma, Manaus, and onboard a ship in the northeast Pacific showed a retrieval accuracy of ±25% to ±30% for individual satellite overpasses. The methodology is presently limited to boundary layer not raining convective clouds of at least 1 km depth that are not obscured by upper layer clouds, including semitransparent cirrus. The limitation for small solar backscattering angles of <25º restricts the satellite coverage to ~25% of the world area in a single day. This methodology will likely allow overcoming the challenge of quantifying the aerosol indirect effect and facilitate a substantial reduction of the uncertainty in anthropogenic climate forcing.

Retrieval of the vertical column of an atmospheric constituent from data fusion of remote sensing measurements

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ceccherini, Simone; Carli, Bruno; Cortesi, Ugo; Del Bianco, Samuele; Raspollini, Piera

2010-01-01

Techniques of data fusion are presently being considered with increasing interest for application to atmospheric observations from space because of their capability to optimally exploit the complementary information provided by different instruments operating aboard on-going and future satellite missions. The task of combining measurements of the same target, when carried out at the level of the retrieved state vectors, faces with two major problems: the need to interpolate the products represented on different retrieval grids which determines a loss of information and the presence of a priori information in the products that can determine a bias in the product of the data fusion. The measurement space solution method avoids these problems. Based on this method we present a novel approach to retrieve the vertical column of an atmospheric constituent from data fusion of remote sensing measurements. We apply the method to retrieve the ozone column from the fusion of simulated measurements of the IASI nadir-viewing spectrometer onboard the METOP-A platform and of the MIPAS limb sounder onboard the ENVISAT satellite. The performance of the method is evaluated in terms of retrieval errors and averaging kernels of the products. The results show the evidence of improved retrieval quality when comparing the outcome of data fusion with that of the inversion process applied to spectra from either of the two instruments.

Thermal structure of the Martian atmosphere retrieved from the IR- spectrometry in the 15 mkm CO2 band

Science.gov (United States)

Zasova, L.; Formisano, V.; Grassi, D.; Igantiev, N.; Moroz, V.

Thermal IR spectrometry is one of the methods of the Martian atmosphere investigation below 55 km. The temperature profiles retrieved from the 15 μm CO2 band may be used for MIRA database. This approach gives the vertical resolution of several kilometers and accuracy of several Kelvins. An aerosol abundance, which influences the temperature profiles, is obtained from the continuum of the same spectrum. It is taken into account in the temperature retrieval procedure in a self- consistent way. Although this method has limited vertical resolution it possesses some advantages. For example, the radio occultation method gives the temperature profiles with higher spectral resolution, but the radio observations are sparse in space and local time. Direct measurements, which give the most accurate results, enable to obtain the temperature profiles only for some chosen points (landing places). Actually, the thermal IR-spectrometry is the only method, which allows to monitor the temperature profiles with good coverage both in space and local time. The first measurements of this kind were fulfilled by IRIS, installed on board of Mariner 9. This spectrometer was characterized by rather high spectral resolution (2.4 cm-1). The temperature profiles vs. local time dependencies for different latitudes and seasons were retrieved, including dust storm conditions, North polar night, Tharsis volcanoes. The obtained temperature profiles have been compared with the temperature profiles for the same conditions, taken from Climate Data Base (European GCM). The Planetary Fourier Spectrometer onboard Mars Express (which is planned to be launched in 2003) has the spectral range 1.2-45 μm and spectral resolution of 1.5 cm- 1. Temperature retrieval is one of the main scientific goals of the experiment. It opens a possibility to get a series of temperature profiles taken for different conditions, which can later be used in MIRA producing.

Mechanistic modelling of the vertical soil organic matter profile

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Braakhekke, M.C.

2014-01-01

Soil organic matter (SOM) constitutes a large global pool of carbon that may play a considerable role for future climate. The vertical distribution of SOM in the profile may be important due to depth-dependence of physical, chemical, and biological conditions, and links to physical processes

RADIALLY MAGNETIZED PROTOPLANETARY DISK: VERTICAL PROFILE

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Russo, Matthew [Department of Physics, University of Toronto, 60 St. George St., Toronto, ON M5S 1A7 (Canada); Thompson, Christopher [Canadian Institute for Theoretical Astrophysics, 60 St. George St., Toronto, ON M5S 3H8 (Canada)

2015-11-10

This paper studies the response of a thin accretion disk to an external radial magnetic field. Our focus is on protoplanetary disks (PPDs), which are exposed during their later evolution to an intense, magnetized wind from the central star. A radial magnetic field is mixed into a thin surface layer, wound up by the disk shear, and pushed downward by a combination of turbulent mixing and ambipolar and ohmic drift. The toroidal field reaches much greater strengths than the seed vertical field that is usually invoked in PPD models, even becoming superthermal. Linear stability analysis indicates that the disk experiences the magnetorotational instability (MRI) at a higher magnetization than a vertically magnetized disk when both the effects of ambipolar and Hall drift are taken into account. Steady vertical profiles of density and magnetic field are obtained at several radii between 0.06 and 1 AU in response to a wind magnetic field B{sub r} ∼ (10{sup −4}–10{sup −2})(r/ AU){sup −2} G. Careful attention is given to the radial and vertical ionization structure resulting from irradiation by stellar X-rays. The disk is more strongly magnetized closer to the star, where it can support a higher rate of mass transfer. As a result, the inner ∼1 AU of a PPD is found to evolve toward lower surface density. Mass transfer rates around 10{sup −8} M{sub ⊙} yr{sup −1} are obtained under conservative assumptions about the MRI-generated stress. The evolution of the disk and the implications for planet migration are investigated in the accompanying paper.

Bias Correction for Assimilation of Retrieved AIRS Profiles of Temperature and Humidity

Science.gov (United States)

Blakenship, Clay; Zavodsky, Bradley; Blackwell, William

2014-01-01

The Atmospheric Infrared Sounder (AIRS) is a hyperspectral radiometer aboard NASA's Aqua satellite designed to measure atmospheric profiles of temperature and humidity. AIRS retrievals are assimilated into the Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) model over the North Pacific for some cases involving "atmospheric rivers". These events bring a large flux of water vapor to the west coast of North America and often lead to extreme precipitation in the coastal mountain ranges. An advantage of assimilating retrievals rather than radiances is that information in partly cloudy fields of view can be used. Two different Level 2 AIRS retrieval products are compared: the Version 6 AIRS Science Team standard retrievals and a neural net retrieval from MIT. Before assimilation, a bias correction is applied to adjust each layer of retrieved temperature and humidity so the layer mean values agree with a short-term model climatology. WRF runs assimilating each of the products are compared against each other and against a control run with no assimilation. Forecasts are against ERA reanalyses.

More vertical etch profile using a Faraday cage in plasma etching

Science.gov (United States)

Cho, Byeong-Ok; Hwang, Sung-Wook; Ryu, Jung-Hyun; Moon, Sang Heup

1999-05-01

Scanning electron microscope images of sidewalls obtained by plasma etching of an SiO2 film with and without a Faraday cage have been compared. When the substrate film is etched in the Faraday cage, faceting is effectively suppressed and the etch profile becomes more vertical regardless of the process conditions. This is because the electric potential in the cage is nearly uniform and therefore distortion of the electric field at the convex corner of a microfeature is prevented. The most vertical etch profile is obtained when the cage is used in fluorocarbon plasmas, where faceting is further suppressed due to the decrease in the chemical sputtering yield and the increase in the radical/ion flux on the substrate.

Evaluation of SCIAMACHY Level-1 data versions using nadir ozone profile retrievals in the period 2003-2011

Science.gov (United States)

Shah, Sweta; Tuinder, Olaf N. E.; van Peet, Jacob C. A.; de Laat, Adrianus T. J.; Stammes, Piet

2018-04-01

Ozone profile retrieval from nadir-viewing satellite instruments operating in the ultraviolet-visible range requires accurate calibration of Level-1 (L1) radiance data. Here we study the effects of calibration on the derived Level-2 (L2) ozone profiles for three versions of SCanning Imaging Absorption spectroMeter for Atmospheric ChartograpHY (SCIAMACHY) L1 data: version 7 (v7), version 7 with m-factors (v7mfac) and version 8 (v8). We retrieve nadir ozone profiles from the SCIAMACHY instrument that flew on board Envisat using the Ozone ProfilE Retrieval Algorithm (OPERA) developed at KNMI with a focus on stratospheric ozone. We study and assess the quality of these profiles and compare retrieved L2 products from L1 SCIAMACHY data versions from the years 2003 to 2011 without further radiometric correction. From validation of the profiles against ozone sonde measurements, we find that the v8 performs better than v7 and v7mfac due to correction for the scan-angle dependency of the instrument's optical degradation. Validation for the years 2003 and 2009 with ozone sondes shows deviations of SCIAMACHY ozone profiles of 0.8-15 % in the stratosphere (corresponding to pressure range ˜ 100-10 hPa) and 2.5-100 % in the troposphere (corresponding to pressure range ˜ 1000-100 hPa), depending on the latitude and the L1 version used. Using L1 v8 for the years 2003-2011 leads to deviations of ˜ 1-11 % in stratospheric ozone and ˜ 1-45 % in tropospheric ozone. The SCIAMACHY L1 v8 data can still be improved upon in the 265-330 nm range used for ozone profile retrieval. The slit function can be improved with a spectral shift and squeeze, which leads to a few percent residue reduction compared to reference solar irradiance spectra. Furthermore, studies of the ratio of measured to simulated reflectance spectra show that a bias correction in the reflectance for wavelengths below 300 nm appears to be necessary.

Temperature profile retrievals with extended Kalman-Bucy filters

Science.gov (United States)

Ledsham, W. H.; Staelin, D. H.

1979-01-01

The Extended Kalman-Bucy Filter is a powerful technique for estimating non-stationary random parameters in situations where the received signal is a noisy non-linear function of those parameters. A practical causal filter for retrieving atmospheric temperature profiles from radiances observed at a single scan angle by the Scanning Microwave Spectrometer (SCAMS) carried on the Nimbus 6 satellite typically shows approximately a 10-30% reduction in rms error about the mean at almost all levels below 70 mb when compared with a regression inversion.

Ice-Tethered Profiler observations: Vertical profiles of temperature, salinity, oxygen, and ocean velocity from an Ice-Tethered Profiler buoy system

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — This collection contains repeated vertical profiles of ocean temperature and salinity versus pressure, as well as oxygen and velocity for some instruments. Data were...

Retrieval options study

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1980-03-01

This Retrieval Options Study is part of the systems analysis activities of the Office of Nuclear Waste Isolation to develop the scientific and technological bases for radioactive waste repositories in various geologic media. The study considers two waste forms, high level waste and spent fuel, and defines various classes of waste retrieval and recovery. A methodology and data base are developed which allow the relative evaluation of retrieval and recovery costs and the following technical criteria: safety; technical feasibility; ease of retrieval; probable intact retrieval time; safeguards; monitoring; criticality; and licensability. A total of 505 repository options are defined and the cost and technical criteria evaluated utilizing a combination of facts and engineering judgments. The repositories evaluated are selected combinations of the following parameters: Geologic Media (salt, granite, basalt, shale); Retrieval Time after Emplacement (5 and 25 years); Emplacement Design (nominal hole, large hole, carbon steel canister, corrosion resistant canister, backfill in hole, nominal sleeves, thick wall sleeves); Emplacement Configuration (single vertical, multiple vertical, single horizontal, multiple horizontal, vaults; Thermal Considerations; (normal design, reduced density, once-through ventilation, recirculated ventilation); Room Backfill; (none, run-of-mine, early, 5 year delay, 25 year delay, decommissioned); and Rate of Retrieval;

Bias determination and precision validation of ozone profiles from MIPAS-Envisat retrieved with the IMK-IAA processor

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

T. Steck

2007-07-01

Full Text Available This paper characterizes vertical ozone profiles retrieved with the IMK-IAA (Institute for Meteorology and Climate Research, Karlsruhe – Instituto de Astrofisica de Andalucia science-oriented processor from high spectral resolution data (until March 2004 measured by the Michelson Interferometer for Passive Atmospheric Sounding (MIPAS aboard the environmental satellite Envisat. Bias determination and precision validation is performed on the basis of correlative measurements by ground-based lidars, Fourier transform infrared spectrometers, and microwave radiometers as well as balloon-borne ozonesondes, the balloon-borne version of MIPAS, and two satellite instruments (Halogen Occultation Experiment and Polar Ozone and Aerosol Measurement III. Percentage mean differences between MIPAS and the comparison instruments for stratospheric ozone are generally within ±10%. The precision in this altitude region is estimated at values between 5 and 10% which gives an accuracy of 15 to 20%. Below 18 km, the spread of the percentage mean differences is larger and the precision degrades to values of more than 20% depending on altitude and latitude. The main reason for the degraded precision at low altitudes is attributed to undetected thin clouds which affect MIPAS retrievals, and to the influence of uncertainties in the water vapor concentration.

Cloud and Thermodynamic Parameters Retrieved from Satellite Ultraspectral Infrared Measurements

Science.gov (United States)

Zhou, Daniel K.; Smith, William L.; Larar, Allen M.; Liu, Xu; Taylor, Jonathan P.; Schluessel, Peter; Strow, L. Larrabee; Mango, Stephen A.

2008-01-01

Atmospheric-thermodynamic parameters and surface properties are basic meteorological parameters for weather forecasting. A physical geophysical parameter retrieval scheme dealing with cloudy and cloud-free radiance observed with satellite ultraspectral infrared sounders has been developed and applied to the Infrared Atmospheric Sounding Interferometer (IASI) and the Atmospheric InfraRed Sounder (AIRS). The retrieved parameters presented herein are from radiance data gathered during the Joint Airborne IASI Validation Experiment (JAIVEx). JAIVEx provided intensive aircraft observations obtained from airborne Fourier Transform Spectrometer (FTS) systems, in-situ measurements, and dedicated dropsonde and radiosonde measurements for the validation of the IASI products. Here, IASI atmospheric profile retrievals are compared with those obtained from dedicated dropsondes, radiosondes, and the airborne FTS system. The IASI examples presented here demonstrate the ability to retrieve fine-scale horizontal features with high vertical resolution from satellite ultraspectral sounder radiance spectra.

Characterizing the Vertical Distribution of Aerosols using Ground-based Multiwavelength Lidar Data

Science.gov (United States)

Ferrare, R. A.; Thorsen, T. J.; Clayton, M.; Mueller, D.; Chemyakin, E.; Burton, S. P.; Goldsmith, J.; Holz, R.; Kuehn, R.; Eloranta, E. W.; Marais, W.; Newsom, R. K.; Liu, X.; Sawamura, P.; Holben, B. N.; Hostetler, C. A.

2016-12-01

Observations of aerosol optical and microphysical properties are critical for developing and evaluating aerosol transport model parameterizations and assessing global aerosol-radiation impacts on climate. During the Combined HSRL And Raman lidar Measurement Study (CHARMS), we investigated the synergistic use of ground-based Raman lidar and High Spectral Resolution Lidar (HSRL) measurements to retrieve aerosol properties aloft. Continuous (24/7) operation of these co-located lidars during the ten-week CHARMS mission (mid-July through September 2015) allowed the acquisition of a unique, multiwavelength ground-based lidar dataset for studying aerosol properties above the Southern Great Plains (SGP) site. The ARM Raman lidar measured profiles of aerosol backscatter, extinction and depolarization at 355 nm as well as profiles of water vapor mixing ratio and temperature. The University of Wisconsin HSRL simultaneously measured profiles of aerosol backscatter, extinction and depolarization at 532 nm and aerosol backscatter at 1064 nm. Recent advances in both lidar retrieval theory and algorithm development demonstrate that vertically-resolved retrievals using such multiwavelength lidar measurements of aerosol backscatter and extinction can help constrain both the aerosol optical (e.g. complex refractive index, scattering, etc.) and microphysical properties (e.g. effective radius, concentrations) as well as provide qualitative aerosol classification. Based on this work, the NASA Langley Research Center (LaRC) HSRL group developed automated algorithms for classifying and retrieving aerosol optical and microphysical properties, demonstrated these retrievals using data from the unique NASA/LaRC airborne multiwavelength HSRL-2 system, and validated the results using coincident airborne in situ data. We apply these algorithms to the CHARMS multiwavelength (Raman+HSRL) lidar dataset to retrieve aerosol properties above the SGP site. We present some profiles of aerosol effective

Retrieval of Tropospheric Profiles from IR Emission Spectra: Field Experiment and Sensitivity Study

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Theriault, J

1993-01-01

.... The goal of this project was the retrieval of atmospheric temperature and water vapor profiles and possibly over relevant information on clouds and aerosol properties from high resolution IR emission...

Modeling of Aerosol Vertical Profiles Using GIS and Remote Sensing

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kwon Ho Lee

2009-06-01

Full Text Available The use of Geographic Information Systems (GIS and Remote Sensing (RS by climatologists, environmentalists and urban planners for three dimensional modeling and visualization of the landscape is well established. However no previous study has implemented these techniques for 3D modeling of atmospheric aerosols because air quality data is traditionally measured at ground points, or from satellite images, with no vertical dimension. This study presents a prototype for modeling and visualizing aerosol vertical profiles over a 3D urban landscape in Hong Kong. The method uses a newly developed technique for the derivation of aerosol vertical profiles from AERONET sunphotometer measurements and surface visibility data, and links these to a 3D urban model. This permits automated modeling and visualization of aerosol concentrations at different atmospheric levels over the urban landscape in near-real time. Since the GIS platform permits presentation of the aerosol vertical distribution in 3D, it can be related to the built environment of the city. Examples are given of the applications of the model, including diagnosis of the relative contribution of vehicle emissions to pollution levels in the city, based on increased near-surface concentrations around weekday rush-hour times. The ability to model changes in air quality and visibility from ground level to the top of tall buildings is also demonstrated, and this has implications for energy use and environmental policies for the tall mega-cities of the future.

Airborne Vertical Profiling of Mercury Speciation near Tullahoma, TN, USA

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Steve Brooks

2014-08-01

Full Text Available Atmospheric transport and in situ oxidation are important factors influencing mercury concentrations at the surface and wet and dry deposition rates. Contributions of both natural and anthropogenic processes can significantly impact burdens of mercury on local, regional and global scales. To address these key issues in atmospheric mercury research, airborne measurements of mercury speciation and ancillary parameters were conducted over a region near Tullahoma, Tennessee, USA, from August 2012 to June 2013. Here, for the first time, we present vertical profiles of Hg speciation from aircraft for an annual cycle over the same location. These airborne measurements included gaseous elemental mercury (GEM, gaseous oxidized mercury (GOM and particulate bound mercury (PBM, as well as ozone (O3, sulfur dioxide (SO2, condensation nuclei (CN and meteorological parameters. The flights, each lasting ~3 h, were conducted typically one week out of each month to characterize seasonality in mercury concentrations. Data obtained from 0 to 6 km altitudes show that GEM exhibited a relatively constant vertical profile for all seasons with an average concentration of 1.38 ± 0.17 ng∙m−3. A pronounced seasonality of GOM was observed, with the highest GOM concentrations up to 120 pg∙m−3 in the summer flights and lowest (0–20 pg∙m−3 in the winter flights. Vertical profiles of GOM show the maximum levels at altitudes between 2 and 4 km. Limited PBM measurements exhibit similar levels to GOM at all altitudes. HYSPLIT back trajectories showed that the trajectories for elevated GOM (>70 pg∙m−3 or PBM concentrations (>30 pg∙m−3 were largely associated with air masses coming from west/northwest, while events with low GOM (<20 pg∙m−3 or PBM concentrations (<5 pg∙m−3 were generally associated with winds from a wider range of wind directions. This is the first set of speciated mercury vertical profiles collected in a single location over the course

Comparison of Aerosol Classification Results from Airborne High Spectral Resolution Lidar (HSRL) Measurements and the Calipso Vertical Feature Mask

Science.gov (United States)

Burton, S. P.; Ferrare, R. A.; Hostetler, C. A.; Hair, J. W.; Rogers, R. R.; Obland, M. D.; Butler, C. F.; Cook, A. L.; Harper, D. B.; Froyd, K. D.;

Retrieval options study

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

1980-03-01

This Retrieval Options Study is part of the systems analysis activities of the Office of Nuclear Waste Isolation to develop the scientific and technological bases for radioactive waste repositories in various geologic media. The study considers two waste forms, high level waste and spent fuel, and defines various classes of waste retrieval and recovery. A methodology and data base are developed which allow the relative evaluation of retrieval and recovery costs and the following technical criteria: safety; technical feasibility; ease of retrieval; probable intact retrieval time; safeguards; monitoring; criticality; and licensability. A total of 505 repository options are defined and the cost and technical criteria evaluated utilizing a combination of facts and engineering judgments. The repositories evaluated are selected combinations of the following parameters: Geologic Media (salt, granite, basalt, shale); Retrieval Time after Emplacement (5 and 25 years); Emplacement Design (nominal hole, large hole, carbon steel canister, corrosion resistant canister, backfill in hole, nominal sleeves, thick wall sleeves); Emplacement Configuration (single vertical, multiple vertical, single horizontal, multiple horizontal, vaults; Thermal Considerations; (normal design, reduced density, once-through ventilation, recirculated ventilation); Room Backfill; (none, run-of-mine, early, 5 year delay, 25 year delay, decommissioned); and Rate of Retrieval; (same as emplacement, variably slower depending on repository/canister condition).

Analytical models of lateral power devices with arbitrary vertical doping profiles in the drift region

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hua Ting-Ting; Guo Yu-Feng; Yu Ying; Jian Tong; Yao Jia-Fei; Sheu Gene

2013-01-01

By solving the 2D Poisson's equation, analytical models are proposed to calculate the surface potential and electric field distributions of lateral power devices with arbitrary vertical doping profiles. The vertical and the lateral breakdown voltages are formulized to quantify the breakdown characteristic in completely-depleted and partially-depleted cases. A new reduced surface field (RESURF) criterion which can be used in various drift doping profiles is further derived for obtaining the optimal trade-off between the breakdown voltage and the on-resistance. Based on these models and the numerical simulation, the electric field modulation mechanism and the breakdown characteristics of lateral power devices are investigated in detail for the uniform, linear, Gaussian, and some discrete doping profiles along the vertical direction in the drift region. Then, the mentioned vertical doping profiles of these devices with the same geometric parameters are optimized, and the results show that the optimal breakdown voltages and the effective drift doping concentrations of these devices are identical, which are equal to those of the uniform-doped device, respectively. The analytical results of these proposed models are in good agreement with the numerical results and the previous experimental results, confirming the validity of the models presented here. (interdisciplinary physics and related areas of science and technology)

Analytical models of lateral power devices with arbitrary vertical doping profiles in the drift region

Science.gov (United States)

Hua, Ting-Ting; Guo, Yu-Feng; Yu, Ying; Gene, Sheu; Jian, Tong; Yao, Jia-Fei

2013-05-01

By solving the 2D Poisson's equation, analytical models are proposed to calculate the surface potential and electric field distributions of lateral power devices with arbitrary vertical doping profiles. The vertical and the lateral breakdown voltages are formulized to quantify the breakdown characteristic in completely-depleted and partially-depleted cases. A new reduced surface field (RESURF) criterion which can be used in various drift doping profiles is further derived for obtaining the optimal trade-off between the breakdown voltage and the on-resistance. Based on these models and the numerical simulation, the electric field modulation mechanism and the breakdown characteristics of lateral power devices are investigated in detail for the uniform, linear, Gaussian, and some discrete doping profiles along the vertical direction in the drift region. Then, the mentioned vertical doping profiles of these devices with the same geometric parameters are optimized, and the results show that the optimal breakdown voltages and the effective drift doping concentrations of these devices are identical, which are equal to those of the uniform-doped device, respectively. The analytical results of these proposed models are in good agreement with the numerical results and the previous experimental results, confirming the validity of the models presented here.

Vertical profile of fog microphysics : a case study

Science.gov (United States)

Burnet, Frédéric; Brilouet, Pierre-Etienne; Mazoyer, Marie; Bourrianne, Thierry; Etcheberry, Jean-Michel; Gaillard, Brigitte; Legain, Dominique; Tzanos, Diane; Barrié, Joel; Barrau, Sébastien; Defoy, Stephan

2016-04-01

The occurrence and development of fogs result from the non-linear interaction of competing radiative, thermodynamic, microphysical and dynamical processes and the forecasting of their life cycle still remains a challenging issue. Several field campaigns have been carried out at the SIRTA observatory in the Paris suburb area (France). These experiments have shown that fog events exhibit large differences of the microphysical properties and various evolutions during their life cycle. To better understand relationships between the different processes and to validate numerical simulations it is necessary however to document the vertical profile of the fog microphysics. A CDP (Cloud Droplet Spectrometer) from DMT (Droplet Measurement Technology, Boulder, CO) has been modified to allow measurements of the droplet size distribution in fog layers with a tethered balloon. This instrumental set-up has been used during a field campaign during the winter 2013-214 in the Landes area in the South West of France. To validate the vertical profiles provided by the modified CDP, a mast was equipped with microphysical instruments at 2 altitude levels with an another CDP at 24 m and a Fog Monitor FM100 at 42 m. The instrumental set-up deployed during this campaign is presented. Data collected during a fog event that occurred during the night of 5-6 March 2014 are analysed. We show that microphysical properties such as droplet number concentration, LWC and mean droplet size, exhibit different time evolution during the fog life cycle depending on the altitude level. Droplet size distribution measurements are also investigated. They reveal sharp variations along the vertical close to the top of the fog layer. In addition it is shown that the shape of the size distributions at the top follows a time evolution typical of a quasi-adiabatic droplet growth.

Evaluation of turbulent dissipation rate retrievals from Doppler Cloud Radar

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

M. D. Shupe

2012-06-01

Full Text Available Turbulent dissipation rate retrievals from cloud radar Doppler velocity measurements are evaluated using independent, in situ observations in Arctic stratocumulus clouds. In situ validation data sets of dissipation rate are derived using sonic anemometer measurements from a tethered balloon and high frequency pressure variation observations from a research aircraft, both flown in proximity to stationary, ground-based radars. Modest biases are found among the data sets in particularly low- or high-turbulence regimes, but in general the radar-retrieved values correspond well with the in situ measurements. Root mean square differences are typically a factor of 4–6 relative to any given magnitude of dissipation rate. These differences are no larger than those found when comparing dissipation rates computed from tethered-balloon and meteorological tower-mounted sonic anemometer measurements made at spatial distances of a few hundred meters. Temporal lag analyses suggest that approximately half of the observed differences are due to spatial sampling considerations, such that the anticipated radar-based retrieval uncertainty is on the order of a factor of 2–3. Moreover, radar retrievals are clearly able to capture the vertical dissipation rate structure observed by the in situ sensors, while offering substantially more information on the time variability of turbulence profiles. Together these evaluations indicate that radar-based retrievals can, at a minimum, be used to determine the vertical structure of turbulence in Arctic stratocumulus clouds.

Utility of CrIS/ATMS profiles to diagnose extratropical transition

Science.gov (United States)

Berndt, Emily; Folmer, Michael

2018-03-01

Anticipating changes in hurricane intensity can be challenging in data sparse regions of the North Atlantic Ocean. Hyperspectral infrared retrieved profiles have the potential to provide a wealth of information about the vertical structure of thermodynamic characteristics of the atmosphere such as temperature and moisture which can impact hurricane intensity. Increased forecaster situational awareness and identification of moist or dry layers in the near-storm environment can indicate impending changes in storm intensity. This investigation demonstrates the utility and value of hyperspectral infrared retrieved profiles to diagnose thermodynamic characteristics of the near-storm environment to anticipate changes in hurricane intensity.

Vertical profile of aerosols in the Himalayan region using an ultralight aircraft platform

Science.gov (United States)

Singh, A.; Mahata, K.; Rupakheti, M.; Lawrence, M. G.; Junkermann, W.

2017-12-01

Indo-gangetic plain (IGP) and Himalayan foothills have large spatial and temporal heterogeneity in aerosols characteristics. Regional meteorology around 850-500 mb plays an important role in the transformation and transportation of aerosols from west Asia to IGP, into Himalayan foothill, as well to high-altitude region of the Himalayas. In order to quantify the vertical and horizontal variation of aerosol properties in the Himalayan , an airborne campaign was carried out in the Pokhara Valley/Nepal (83°50'-84°10' E, 25°7'-28°15' N, 815 masl ) in two phases: test flights during May 2016 and an intensive airborne sampling flight in December-January 2017. This paper provides an overview of airborne measurement campaign from the first phase of measurements in May 2016. A two-seater microlight aircraft (IKARUS C 42) was used as the aerial platform. This was deemed the feasible option in Nepal for an aerial campaign; technical specification of the aircraft include an approximately 6 hrs of flying time, short-take off run, > 100 kgs of payload, suitable for spiral upward and downward profiling. The instrument package consist of GRIMM 1.108 for particle size distribution from 0.3 to 20 um at 6 seconds time resolution, and TSI CPC 3375 for total ultrafine particle (UFP) concentration at 1 s. The package also includes a Magee Scientific Aethalometer (AE42) for aerosol absorption at seven different wavelengths. Meteorological parameters include temperature and dew point at a sampling rate of 1 Hz or higher. The paper provides a snapshot of observed vertical profile (from 800 to 4500masl) of aerosols size, number and black carbon over one of populated mountain valley in Nepal during the pre-monsoon season. During the airborne measurement, local fires- mostly agriculture burn were observed, however no large scale forest fire was captured. Sharp morning and afternoon gradients were observed in the vertical profile for aerosol number and size, mostly dominated by 2000 masl

Nine-component vertical seismic profiling at Yucca Mountain, Nevada

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Balch, A.H.; Erdemir, C.; Spengler, R.W.; Hunter, W.C.

1996-01-01

Nine-component vertical seismic profiling has been conducted at the UE-25 UZ No. 16 borehole at Yucca Mountain, Nevada, in support of investigation of the hydrologic significance of fault and fracture systems. A large data set from multi-component sources and receivers allows state-of-the-art advances in processing using polarization filtering and reverse time migration, for enhanced interpretation of geologic features

Modeling the vertical soil organic matter profile using Bayesian parameter estimation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

M. C. Braakhekke

2013-01-01

Full Text Available The vertical distribution of soil organic matter (SOM in the profile may constitute an important factor for soil carbon cycling. However, the formation of the SOM profile is currently poorly understood due to equifinality, caused by the entanglement of several processes: input from roots, mixing due to bioturbation, and organic matter leaching. In this study we quantified the contribution of these three processes using Bayesian parameter estimation for the mechanistic SOM profile model SOMPROF. Based on organic carbon measurements, 13 parameters related to decomposition and transport of organic matter were estimated for two temperate forest soils: an Arenosol with a mor humus form (Loobos, the Netherlands, and a Cambisol with mull-type humus (Hainich, Germany. Furthermore, the use of the radioisotope ²¹⁰Pb_ex as tracer for vertical SOM transport was studied. For Loobos, the calibration results demonstrate the importance of organic matter transport with the liquid phase for shaping the vertical SOM profile, while the effects of bioturbation are generally negligible. These results are in good agreement with expectations given in situ conditions. For Hainich, the calibration offered three distinct explanations for the observations (three modes in the posterior distribution. With the addition of ²¹⁰Pb_ex data and prior knowledge, as well as additional information about in situ conditions, we were able to identify the most likely explanation, which indicated that root litter input is a dominant process for the SOM profile. For both sites the organic matter appears to comprise mainly adsorbed but potentially leachable material, pointing to the importance of organo-mineral interactions. Furthermore, organic matter in the mineral soil appears to be mainly derived from root litter, supporting previous studies that highlighted the importance of root input for soil carbon sequestration. The ²¹⁰

Analysis of the Tikhonov regularization to retrieve thermal conductivity depth-profiles from infrared thermography data

Science.gov (United States)

Apiñaniz, Estibaliz; Mendioroz, Arantza; Salazar, Agustín; Celorrio, Ricardo

2010-09-01

We analyze the ability of the Tikhonov regularization to retrieve different shapes of in-depth thermal conductivity profiles, usually encountered in hardened materials, from surface temperature data. Exponential, oscillating, and sigmoidal profiles are studied. By performing theoretical experiments with added white noises, the influence of the order of the Tikhonov functional and of the parameters that need to be tuned to carry out the inversion are investigated. The analysis shows that the Tikhonov regularization is very well suited to reconstruct smooth profiles but fails when the conductivity exhibits steep slopes. We check a natural alternative regularization, the total variation functional, which gives much better results for sigmoidal profiles. Accordingly, a strategy to deal with real data is proposed in which we introduce this total variation regularization. This regularization is applied to the inversion of real data corresponding to a case hardened AISI1018 steel plate, giving much better anticorrelation of the retrieved conductivity with microindentation test data than the Tikhonov regularization. The results suggest that this is a promising way to improve the reliability of local inversion methods.

Eight-component retrievals from ground-based MAX-DOAS observations

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H. Irie

2011-06-01

Full Text Available We attempt for the first time to retrieve lower-tropospheric vertical profile information for 8 quantities from ground-based Multi-Axis Differential Optical Absorption Spectroscopy (MAX-DOAS observations. The components retrieved are the aerosol extinction coefficients at two wavelengths, 357 and 476 nm, and NO₂, HCHO, CHOCHO, H₂O, SO₂, and O₃ volume mixing ratios. A Japanese MAX-DOAS profile retrieval algorithm, version 1 (JM1, is applied to observations performed at Cabauw, the Netherlands (51.97° N, 4.93° E, in June–July 2009 during the Cabauw Intercomparison campaign of Nitrogen Dioxide measuring Instruments (CINDI. Of the retrieved profiles, we focus here on the lowest-layer data (mean values at altitudes 0–1 km, where the sensitivity is usually highest owing to the longest light path. In support of the capability of the multi-component retrievals, we find reasonable overall agreement with independent data sets, including a regional chemical transport model (CHIMERE and in situ observations performed near the surface (2–3 m and at the 200-m height level of the tall tower in Cabauw. Plumes of enhanced HCHO and SO₂ were likely affected by biogenic and ship emissions, respectively, and an improvement in their emission strengths is suggested for better agreement between CHIMERE simulations and MAX-DOAS observations. Analysis of air mass factors indicates that the horizontal spatial representativeness of MAX-DOAS observations is about 3–15 km (depending mainly on aerosol extinction, comparable to or better than the spatial resolution of current UV-visible satellite observations and model calculations. These demonstrate that MAX-DOAS provides multi-component data useful for the evaluation of satellite observations and model calculations and can play an important role in bridging different data sets having different spatial resolutions.

Off-Nadir Hyperspectral Sensing for Estimation of Vertical Profile of Leaf Chlorophyll Content within Wheat Canopies.

Science.gov (United States)

Kong, Weiping; Huang, Wenjiang; Casa, Raffaele; Zhou, Xianfeng; Ye, Huichun; Dong, Yingying

2017-11-23

Monitoring the vertical profile of leaf chlorophyll (Chl) content within winter wheat canopies is of significant importance for revealing the real nutritional status of the crop. Information on the vertical profile of Chl content is not accessible to nadir-viewing remote or proximal sensing. Off-nadir or multi-angle sensing would provide effective means to detect leaf Chl content in different vertical layers. However, adequate information on the selection of sensitive spectral bands and spectral index formulas for vertical leaf Chl content estimation is not yet available. In this study, all possible two-band and three-band combinations over spectral bands in normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI)-, simple ratio (SR)- and chlorophyll index (CI)-like types of indices at different viewing angles were calculated and assessed for their capability of estimating leaf Chl for three vertical layers of wheat canopies. The vertical profiles of Chl showed top-down declining trends and the patterns of band combinations sensitive to leaf Chl content varied among different vertical layers. Results indicated that the combinations of green band (520 nm) with NIR bands were efficient in estimating upper leaf Chl content, whereas the red edge (695 nm) paired with NIR bands were dominant in quantifying leaf Chl in the lower layers. Correlations between published spectral indices and all NDVI-, SR- and CI-like types of indices and vertical distribution of Chl content showed that reflectance measured from 50°, 30° and 20° backscattering viewing angles were the most promising to obtain information on leaf Chl in the upper-, middle-, and bottom-layer, respectively. Three types of optimized spectral indices improved the accuracy for vertical leaf Chl content estimation. The optimized three-band CI-like index performed the best in the estimation of vertical distribution of leaf Chl content, with R² of 0.84-0.69, and RMSE of 5.37-5.56 µg/cm² from the top to the bottom layers

Utility of CrIS/ATMS profiles to diagnose extratropical transition

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Emily Berndt

2018-03-01

Full Text Available Anticipating changes in hurricane intensity can be challenging in data sparse regions of the North Atlantic Ocean. Hyperspectral infrared retrieved profiles have the potential to provide a wealth of information about the vertical structure of thermodynamic characteristics of the atmosphere such as temperature and moisture which can impact hurricane intensity. Increased forecaster situational awareness and identification of moist or dry layers in the near-storm environment can indicate impending changes in storm intensity. This investigation demonstrates the utility and value of hyperspectral infrared retrieved profiles to diagnose thermodynamic characteristics of the near-storm environment to anticipate changes in hurricane intensity. Keywords: Hurricane, Sounding, Satellite

New dynamic NNORSY ozone profile climatology

Science.gov (United States)

Kaifel, A. K.; Felder, M.; Declercq, C.; Lambert, J.-C.

2012-01-01

Climatological ozone profile data are widely used as a-priori information for total ozone using DOAS type retrievals as well as for ozone profile retrieval using optimal estimation, for data assimilation or evaluation of 3-D chemistry-transport models and a lot of other applications in atmospheric sciences and remote sensing. For most applications it is important that the climatology represents not only long term mean values but also the links between ozone and dynamic input parameters. These dynamic input parameters should be easily accessible from auxiliary datasets or easily measureable, and obviously should have a high correlation with ozone. For ozone profile these parameters are mainly total ozone column and temperature profile data. This was the outcome of a user consultation carried out in the framework of developing a new, dynamic ozone profile climatology. The new ozone profile climatology is based on the Neural Network Ozone Retrieval System (NNORSY) widely used for ozone profile retrieval from UV and IR satellite sounder data. NNORSY allows implicit modelling of any non-linear correspondence between input parameters (predictors) and ozone profile target vector. This paper presents the approach, setup and validation of a new family of ozone profile climatologies with static as well as dynamic input parameters (total ozone and temperature profile). The neural network training relies on ozone profile measurement data of well known quality provided by ground based (ozonesondes) and satellite based (SAGE II, HALOE, and POAM-III) measurements over the years 1995-2007. In total, four different combinations (modes) for input parameters (date, geolocation, total ozone column and temperature profile) are available. The geophysical validation spans from pole to pole using independent ozonesonde, lidar and satellite data (ACE-FTS, AURA-MLS) for individual and time series comparisons as well as for analysing the vertical and meridian structure of different modes of

Vertical distribution of ozone at the terminator on Mars

Science.gov (United States)

Maattanen, Anni; Lefevre, Franck; Guilbon, Sabrina; Listowski, Constantino; Montmessin, Franck

2016-10-01

The SPICAM/Mars Express UV solar occultation dataset gives access to the ozone vertical distribution via the ozone absorption in the Hartley band (220-280 nm). We present the retrieved ozone profiles and compare them to the LMD Mars Global Climate Model (LMD-MGCM) results.Due to the photochemical reactivity of ozone, a classical comparison of local density profiles is not appropriate for solar occultations that are acquired at the terminator, and we present here a method often used in the Earth community. The principal comparison is made via the slant profiles (integrated ozone concentration on the line-of-sight), since the spherical symmetry hypothesis made in the onion-peeling vertical inversion method is not valid for photochemically active species (e.g., ozone) around terminator. For each occultation, we model the ozone vertical and horizontal distribution with high solar zenith angle (or local time) resolution around the terminator and then integrate the model results following the lines-of-sight of the occultation to construct the modeled slant profile. We will also discuss the difference of results between the above comparison method and a comparison using the local density profiles, i.e., the observed ones inverted by using the spherical symmetry hypothesis and the modeled ones extracted from the LMD-MGCM exactly at the terminator. The method and the results will be presented together with the full dataset.SPICAM is funded by the French Space Agency CNES and this work has received funding from the European Union's Horizon 2020 Programme (H2020-Compet-08-2014) under grant agreement UPWARDS-633127.

Vertical profiles of aerosol absorption coefficient from micro-Aethalometer data and Mie calculation over Milan.

Science.gov (United States)

Ferrero, L; Mocnik, G; Ferrini, B S; Perrone, M G; Sangiorgi, G; Bolzacchini, E

2011-06-15

Vertical profiles of aerosol number-size distribution and black carbon (BC) concentration were measured between ground-level and 500m AGL over Milan. A tethered balloon was fitted with an instrumentation package consisting of the newly-developed micro-Aethalometer (microAeth® Model AE51, Magee Scientific, USA), an optical particle counter, and a portable meteorological station. At the same time, PM(2.5) samples were collected both at ground-level and at a high altitude sampling site, enabling particle chemical composition to be determined. Vertical profiles and PM(2.5) data were collected both within and above the mixing layer. Absorption coefficient (b(abs)) profiles were calculated from the Aethalometer data: in order to do so, an optical enhancement factor (C), accounting for multiple light-scattering within the filter of the new microAeth® Model AE51, was determined for the first time. The value of this parameter C (2.05±0.03 at λ=880nm) was calculated by comparing the Aethalometer attenuation coefficient and aerosol optical properties determined from OPC data along vertical profiles. Mie calculations were applied to the OPC number-size distribution data, and the aerosol refractive index was calculated using the effective medium approximation applied to aerosol chemical composition. The results compare well with AERONET data. The BC and b(abs) profiles showed a sharp decrease at the mixing height (MH), and fairly constant values of b(abs) and BC were found above the MH, representing 17±2% of those values measured within the mixing layer. The BC fraction of aerosol volume was found to be lower above the MH: 48±8% of the corresponding ground-level values. A statistical mean profile was calculated, both for BC and b(abs), to better describe their behaviour; the model enabled us to compute their average behaviour as a function of height, thus laying the foundations for valid parametrizations of vertical profile data which can be useful in both remote sensing

Vertical profiles of black carbon concentration and particle number size distribution in the North China Plain

Science.gov (United States)

Ran, L.; Deng, Z.

2013-12-01

The vertical distribution of aerosols is of great importance to our understanding in the impacts of aerosols on radiation balance and climate, as well as air quality and public health. To better understand and estimate the effects of atmospheric components including trace gases and aerosols on atmospheric environment and climate, an intensive field campaign, Vertical Observations of trace Gases and Aerosols in the North China Plain (VOGA-NCP), was carried out from late July to early August 2013 over a rural site in the polluted NCP. During the campaign, vertical profiles of black carbon (BC) concentration and particle number size distribution were measured respectively by a micro-Aethalometer and an optical particle counter attached to a tethered balloon within 1000 m height. Meteorological parameters, including temperature, relative humidity, wind speed and wind direction, were measured simultaneously by a radiosonde also attached to the tethered balloon. Preliminary results showed distinct diurnal variations of the vertical distribution of aerosol total number concentration and BC concentration, following the development of the mixing layer. Generally, there was a well mixing of aerosols within the mixing layer and a sharp decrease above the mixing layer. Particularly, a small peak of BC concentrations was observed around 400-500 m height for several profiles. Further analysis would be needed to explain such phenomenon. It was also found that measured vertical profiles of BC using the filter-based method might be affected by the vertical distribution of relative humidity.

Field evaluation of a direct push deployed sensor probe for vertical soil water content profiling

Science.gov (United States)

Vienken, Thomas; Reboulet, Ed; Leven, Carsten; Kreck, Manuel; Zschornack, Ludwig; Dietrich, Peter

2015-04-01

Reliable high-resolution information about vertical variations in soil water content, i.e. total porosity in the saturated zone, is essential for flow and transport predictions within the subsurface. However, porosity measurements are often associated with high efforts and high uncertainties, e.g. caused by soil disturbance during sampling or sensor installation procedures. In hydrogeological practice, commonly applied tools for the investigation of vertical soil water content distribution include gravimetric laboratory analyses of soil samples and neutron probe measurements. A yet less well established technique is the use of direct push-deployed sensor probes. Each of these methods is associated with inherent advantages and limitations due to their underlying measurement principles and operation modes. The presented study describes results of a joint field evaluation of the individual methods under different depositional and hydrogeological conditions with special focus on the performance on the direct push-deployed water content profiler. Therefore, direct push-profiling results from three different test sites are compared with results obtained from gravimetric analysis of soil cores and neutron probe measurements. In direct comparison, the applied direct push-based sensor probe proved to be a suitable alternative for vertical soil water content profiling to neutron probe technology, and, in addition, proved to be advantageous over gravimetric analysis in terms vertical resolution and time efficiency. Results of this study identify application-specific limitations of the methods and thereby highlight the need for careful data evaluation, even though neutron probe measurements and gravimetric analyses of soil samples are well established techniques (see Vienken et al. 2013). Reference: Vienken, T., Reboulet, E., Leven, C., Kreck, M., Zschornack, L., Dietrich, P., 2013. Field comparison of selected methods for vertical soil water content profiling. Journal of

Experimental study of vertical stress profiles of a confined granular bed under static and dynamic conditions.

Science.gov (United States)

Mandato, S; Cuq, B; Ruiz, T

2012-07-01

In a wet agglomeration process inside a low shear mixer, the blade function is to induce i) homogenization of the liquid sprayed on the powder surface and ii) a stress field able to transfer the mechanical energy at the particle scale. In this work we study the mechanical state of a confined powder bed through the analysis of stress distributions (by force measurements) in a rectangular cell in two cases: for a classical model powder (i.e. glass beads) and a complex powder (i.e. wheat semolina). Two types of vertical stress profiles are obtained according to the type of measurements carried out in the powder bed, either locally (at different positions in the cell) or globally (at the entire base). The global vertical stress profile follows Janssen's model and the local vertical stress profile highlights a critical length, identified as the percolation threshold of the force network, and a shielding length near the bottom, which is similar to an influence length of the side walls. In the context of wet agglomeration, the results allow to consider the role of the characteristic lengths in the mixing bowl under vertical mechanical solicitation.

GOME-2A retrievals of tropospheric NO2 in different spectral ranges – influence of penetration depth

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L. K. Behrens

2018-05-01

Full Text Available In this study, we present a novel nitrogen dioxide (NO2 differential optical absorption spectroscopy (DOAS retrieval in the ultraviolet (UV spectral range for observations from the Global Ozone Monitoring Instrument 2 on board EUMETSAT's MetOp-A (GOME-2A satellite. We compare the results to those from an established NO2 retrieval in the visible (vis spectral range from the same instrument and investigate how differences between the two are linked to the NO2 vertical profile shape in the troposphere.As expected, radiative transfer calculations for satellite geometries show that the sensitivity close to the ground is higher in the vis than in the UV spectral range. Consequently, NO2 slant column densities (SCDs in the vis are usually higher than in the UV if the NO2 is close to the surface. Therefore, these differences in NO2 SCDs between the two spectral ranges contain information on the vertical distribution of NO2 in the troposphere. We combine these results with radiative transfer calculations and simulated NO2 fields from the TM5-MP chemistry transport model to evaluate the simulated NO2 vertical distribution.We investigate regions representative of both anthropogenic and biomass burning NO2 pollution. Anthropogenic air pollution is mostly located in the boundary layer close to the surface, which is reflected by large differences between UV and vis SCDs of  ∼  60 %. Biomass burning NO2 in contrast is often uplifted into elevated layers above the boundary layer. This is best seen in tropical Africa south of the Equator, where the biomass burning NO2 is well observed in the UV, and the SCD difference between the two spectral ranges is only  ∼  36 %. In tropical Africa north of the Equator, however, the biomass burning NO2 is located closer to the ground, reducing its visibility in the UV.While not enabling a full retrieval of the vertical NO2 profile shape in the troposphere, our results can help to constrain the vertical

Evaluation of OMI operational standard NO2 column retrievals using in situ and surface-based NO2 observations

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L. N. Lamsal

2014-11-01

Full Text Available We assess the standard operational nitrogen dioxide (NO2 data product (OMNO2, version 2.1 retrieved from the Ozone Monitoring Instrument (OMI onboard NASA's Aura satellite using a combination of aircraft and surface in~situ measurements as well as ground-based column measurements at several locations and a bottom-up NOx emission inventory over the continental US. Despite considerable sampling differences, NO2 vertical column densities from OMI are modestly correlated (r = 0.3–0.8 with in situ measurements of tropospheric NO2 from aircraft, ground-based observations of NO2 columns from MAX-DOAS and Pandora instruments, in situ surface NO2 measurements from photolytic converter instruments, and a bottom-up NOx emission inventory. Overall, OMI retrievals tend to be lower in urban regions and higher in remote areas, but generally agree with other measurements to within ± 20%. No consistent seasonal bias is evident. Contrasting results between different data sets reveal complexities behind NO2 validation. Since validation data sets are scarce and are limited in space and time, validation of the global product is still limited in scope by spatial and temporal coverage and retrieval conditions. Monthly mean vertical NO2 profile shapes from the Global Modeling Initiative (GMI chemistry-transport model (CTM used in the OMI retrievals are highly consistent with in situ aircraft measurements, but these measured profiles exhibit considerable day-to-day variation, affecting the retrieved daily NO2 columns by up to 40%. This assessment of OMI tropospheric NO2 columns, together with the comparison of OMI-retrieved and model-simulated NO2 columns, could offer diagnostic evaluation of the model.

Employing Beam-Gas Interaction Vertices for Transverse Profile Measurements

CERN Document Server

Rihl, Mariana; Baglin, Vincent; Barschel, Colin; Bay, Aurelio; Blanc, Frederic; Bravin, Enrico; Bregliozzi, Giuseppe; Chritin, Nicolas; Dehning, Bernd; Ferro-Luzzi, Massimiliano; Gaspar, Clara; Gianì, Sebastiana; Giovannozzi, Massimo; Greim, Roman; Haefeli, Guido; Hopchev, Plamen; Jacobsson, Richard; Jensen, Lars; Jones, Owain Rhodri; Jurado, Nicolas; Kain, Verena; Karpinski, Waclaw; Kirn, Thomas; Kuhn, Maria; Luthi, Berengere; Magagnin, Paolo; Matev, Rosen; Nakada, Tatsuya; Neufeld, Niko; Panman, Jaap; Rakotomiaramanana, Barinjaka; Salustino Guimaraes, Valdir; Salvant, Benoit; Schael, Stefan; Schneider, Olivier; Schwering, Georg; Tobin, Mark; Veness, Raymond; Veyrat, Quentin; Vlachos, Sotiris; Wlochal, Michael; Xu, Zhirui; von Dratzig, Arndt

2016-01-01

Interactions of high-energy beam particles with residual gas offer a unique opportunity to measure the beam profile in a non-intrusive fashion. Such a method was successfully pioneered* at the LHCb experiment using a silicon microstrip vertex detector. During the recent Large Hadron Collider shutdown at CERN, a demonstrator Beam-Gas Vertexing system based on eight scintillating-fibre modules was designed**, constructed and installed on Ring 2 to be operated as a pure beam diagnostics device. The detector signals are read out and collected with LHCb-type front-end electronics and a DAQ system consisting of a CPU farm. Tracks and vertices will be reconstructed to obtain a beam profile in real time. Here, first commissioning results are reported. The advantages and potential for future applications of this technique are discussed.

Development of a Climatology of Vertically Complete Wind Profiles from Doppler Radar Wind Profiler Systems

Science.gov (United States)

Barbre, Robert E., Jr.

2015-01-01

This paper describes in detail the QC and splicing methodology for KSC's 50- and 915-MHz DRWP measurements that generates an extensive archive of vertically complete profiles from 0.20-18.45 km. The concurrent POR from each archive extends from April 2000 to December 2009. MSFC NE applies separate but similar QC processes to each of the 50- and 915-MHz DRWP archives. DRWP literature and data examination provide the basis for developing and applying the automated and manual QC processes on both archives. Depending on the month, the QC'ed 50- and 915-MHz DRWP archives retain 52-65% and 16-30% of the possible data, respectively. The 50- and 915-MHz DRWP QC archives retain 84-91% and 85-95%, respectively, of all the available data provided that data exist in the non- QC'ed archives. Next, MSFC NE applies an algorithm to splice concurrent measurements from both DRWP sources. Last, MSFC NE generates a composite profile from the (up to) five available spliced profiles to effectively characterize boundary layer winds and to utilize all possible 915-MHz DRWP measurements at each timestamp. During a given month, roughly 23,000-32,000 complete profiles exist from 0.25-18.45 km from the composite profiles' archive, and approximately 5,000- 27,000 complete profiles exist from an archive utilizing an individual 915-MHz DRWP. One can extract a variety of profile combinations (pairs, triplets, etc.) from this sample for a given application. The sample of vertically complete DRWP wind measurements not only gives launch vehicle customers greater confidence in loads and trajectory assessments versus using balloon output, but also provides flexibility to simulate different DOL situations across applicable altitudes. In addition to increasing sample size and providing more flexibility for DOL simulations in the vehicle design phase, the spliced DRWP database provides any upcoming launch vehicle program with the capability to utilize DRWP profiles on DOL to compute vehicle steering

Mesospheric Water Vapor Retrieved from SABER/TIMED Measurements

Science.gov (United States)

Feofilov, Arte, G.; Yankovsky, Valentine A.; Marshall, Benjamin T.; Russell, J. M., III; Pesnell, W. D.; Kutepov, Alexander A.; Goldberg, Richard A.; Gordley, Larry L.; Petelina, Svetlama; Mauilova, Rada O.;

Advances in simultaneous atmospheric profile and cloud parameter regression based retrieval from high-spectral resolution radiance measurements

Science.gov (United States)

Weisz, Elisabeth; Smith, William L.; Smith, Nadia

2013-06-01

The dual-regression (DR) method retrieves information about the Earth surface and vertical atmospheric conditions from measurements made by any high-spectral resolution infrared sounder in space. The retrieved information includes temperature and atmospheric gases (such as water vapor, ozone, and carbon species) as well as surface and cloud top parameters. The algorithm was designed to produce a high-quality product with low latency and has been demonstrated to yield accurate results in real-time environments. The speed of the retrieval is achieved through linear regression, while accuracy is achieved through a series of classification schemes and decision-making steps. These steps are necessary to account for the nonlinearity of hyperspectral retrievals. In this work, we detail the key steps that have been developed in the DR method to advance accuracy in the retrieval of nonlinear parameters, specifically cloud top pressure. The steps and their impact on retrieval results are discussed in-depth and illustrated through relevant case studies. In addition to discussing and demonstrating advances made in addressing nonlinearity in a linear geophysical retrieval method, advances toward multi-instrument geophysical analysis by applying the DR to three different operational sounders in polar orbit are also noted. For any area on the globe, the DR method achieves consistent accuracy and precision, making it potentially very valuable to both the meteorological and environmental user communities.

Vertical separation of the atmospheric aerosol components by using poliphon retrieval in polarized micro pulse lidar (P-MPL) measurements: case studies of specific climate-relevant aerosol types

Science.gov (United States)

Córdoba-Jabonero, Carmen; Sicard, Michaël; Ansmann, Albert; Águila, Ana del; Baars, Holger

2018-04-01

POLIPHON (POlarization-LIdar PHOtometer Networking) retrieval consists in the vertical separation of two/three particle components in aerosol mixtures, highlighting their relative contributions in terms of the optical properties and mass concentrations. This method is based on the specific particle linear depolarization ratio given for different types of aerosols, and is applied to the new polarized Micro-Pulse Lidar (P-MPL). Case studies of specific climate-relevant aerosols (dust particles, fire smoke, and pollen aerosols, including a clean case as reference) observed over Barcelona (Spain) are presented in order to evaluate firstly the potential of P-MPLs measurements in combination with POLIPHON for retrieving the vertical separation of those particle components forming aerosol mixtures and their properties.

Aerosol Extinction Profile Mapping with Lognormal Distribution Based on MPL Data

Science.gov (United States)

Lin, T. H.; Lee, T. T.; Chang, K. E.; Lien, W. H.; Liu, G. R.; Liu, C. Y.

2017-12-01

This study intends to challenge the profile mapping of aerosol vertical distribution by mathematical function. With the similarity in distribution pattern, lognormal distribution is examined for mapping the aerosol extinction profile based on MPL (Micro Pulse LiDAR) in situ measurements. The variables of lognormal distribution are log mean (μ) and log standard deviation (σ), which will be correlated with the parameters of aerosol optical depht (AOD) and planetary boundary layer height (PBLH) associated with the altitude of extinction peak (Mode) defined in this study. On the base of 10 years MPL data with single peak, the mapping results showed that the mean error of Mode and σ retrievals are 16.1% and 25.3%, respectively. The mean error of σ retrieval can be reduced to 16.5% under the cases of larger distance between PBLH and Mode. The proposed method is further applied to MODIS AOD product in mapping extinction profile for the retrieval of PM2.5 in terms of satellite observations. The results indicated well agreement between retrievals and ground measurements when aerosols under 525 meters are well-mixed. The feasibility of proposed method to satellite remote sensing is also suggested by the case study. Keyword: Aerosol extinction profile, Lognormal distribution, MPL, Planetary boundary layer height (PBLH), Aerosol optical depth (AOD), Mode

Influence of controlled encoding and retrieval facilitation on memory performance in patients with different profiles of mild cognitive impairment.

Science.gov (United States)

Perri, Roberta; Monaco, Marco; Fadda, Lucia; Serra, Laura; Marra, Camillo; Caltagirone, Carlo; Bruni, Amalia C; Curcio, Sabrina; Bozzali, M; Carlesimo, Giovanni A

2015-01-01

Memory tests able to differentiate encoding and retrieval processes from the memoranda storing ones should be used to differentiate patients in a very early phase of AD. In fact, individuals with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) can be characterized by two different memory profiles: a pure amnestic one (with poor learning and retrieval and poor improvement when encoding is assisted and retrieval is facilitated) and a dysexecutive one (with inefficient encoding and/or poor retrieval strategies and improvement with assisted encoding and retrieval). The amnestic profile characterizes subjects affected by medio-temporal atrophy typical of AD. In this study, a Grober-Buschke memory procedure was used to evaluate normal controls and MCI patients with different cognitive profiles: pure amnestic (aMCIsd), amnestic plus other cognitive impairments (aMCImd) and non-amnestic (naMCI). An index of sensitivity of cueing (ISC) measured the advantage passing from free to cued recall. Results showed that both strategic and consolidation abilities were impaired in the aMCIsd and aMCImd groups and were preserved in the naMCI group. aMCImd, however, compensated the memory deficit with assisted encoding and retrieval, but aMCIsd performed very poorly. When MCI subjects were defined according to the ISC value, subjects with poor ISC were primarily in the aMCIsd group and, to a lesser extent, in the aMCImd group and the naMCI group. Finally, patients with a poor ISC showed cerebral atrophy documented in the precocious phase of AD and the retrosplenial cerebral areas seemed to be the most useful areas for identifying patients in the early phase of AD.

Wellhead bowl protector and retrieving tool

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Young, J.A.

1991-01-01

This patent describes improvement in a wellhead protection system including a wear bushing and a retrieving tool. The improvement comprises a wear bushing supported within the wellhead, wherein the wear bushing includes an enlarged upper end having an external support shoulder for engagement with an internal support shoulder formed in the wellhead; wherein the wear bushing further includes an internal circumferential slot intersected by at least one vertically extending slot, the vertical slot extending from the circumferential slot to the upper end of the wear bushing; a retrieving tool having at least one outwardly biased, retractable lug member mounted thereon; and wherein the retrieving tool includes an enlarged portion adapted to be received within the enlarged upper end of the wear bushing. This patent also describes a method of retrieving a wear bushing from a wellhead comprising the steps of: lowering a retrieving tool into the wellhead for locking engagement with the wear bushing; aligning the retrieving tool with the wear bushing for automatically forcing lug members carried by the retrieving tool outwardly into locking engagement with the wear bushing; monitoring drill string weight for determining engagement of the retrieving tool with the wear bushing, wherein a substantial decrease in drill string weight is an indication that the retrieving tool is engaged with the wear bushing; and removing the wear bushing from the wellhead

Using Airborne High Spectral Resolution Lidar Data to Evaluate Combined Active Plus Passive Retrievals of Aerosol Extinction Profiles

Science.gov (United States)

Burton, S. P.; Ferrare, R. A.; Hostetler, C. A.; Hair, J. W.; Kittaka, C.; Vaughn, M. A.; Remer, L. A.

2010-01-01

We derive aerosol extinction profiles from airborne and space-based lidar backscatter signals by constraining the retrieval with column aerosol optical thickness (AOT), with no need to rely on assumptions about aerosol type or lidar ratio. The backscatter data were acquired by the NASA Langley Research Center airborne High Spectral Resolution Lidar (HSRL) and by the Cloud-Aerosol Lidar with Orthogonal Polarization (CALIOP) instrument on the Cloud-Aerosol Lidar and Infrared Pathfinder Satellite Observation (CALIPSO) satellite. The HSRL also simultaneously measures aerosol extinction coefficients independently using the high spectral resolution lidar technique, thereby providing an ideal data set for evaluating the retrieval. We retrieve aerosol extinction profiles from both HSRL and CALIOP attenuated backscatter data constrained with HSRL, Moderate-Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS), and Multiangle Imaging Spectroradiometer column AOT. The resulting profiles are compared with the aerosol extinction measured by HSRL. Retrievals are limited to cases where the column aerosol thickness is greater than 0.2 over land and 0.15 over water. In the case of large AOT, the results using the Aqua MODIS constraint over water are poorer than Aqua MODIS over land or Terra MODIS. The poorer results relate to an apparent bias in Aqua MODIS AOT over water observed in August 2007. This apparent bias is still under investigation. Finally, aerosol extinction coefficients are derived from CALIPSO backscatter data using AOT from Aqua MODIS for 28 profiles over land and 9 over water. They agree with coincident measurements by the airborne HSRL to within +/-0.016/km +/- 20% for at least two-thirds of land points and within +/-0.028/km +/- 20% for at least two-thirds of ocean points.

Retrieval of Electron Density Profile for KOMPSAT-5 GPS Radio Occultation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Woo-Kyoung Lee

2007-12-01

Full Text Available The AOPOD (Atmosphere Occultation and Precision Orbit Determination system, the secondary payload of KOMPSAT (KOrea Multi-Purpose SATellite-5 scheduled to be launched in 2010, shall provide GPS radio occultation data. In this paper, we simulated the GPS radio occultation characteristic of KOMPSAT-5 and retrieved electron density profiles using KROPS (KASI Radio Occultation Processing Software. The electron density retrieved from CHAMP (CHAllenging Minisatellite Payload GPS radio occultation data on June 20, 2004 was compared with IRI (International Reference Ionosphere - 2001, PLP (Planar Langmuir Probe, and ionosonde measurements. When the result was compared with ionosonde measurements, the discrepancies were 5 km on the F_2 peak height (hmF_2 and 3×10^{10} el/m^3 on the electron density of the F_2 peak height (NmF_2. By comparing with the Langmuir Probe measurements of CHAMP satellite (PLP, both agrees with 1.6×10^{11} el/m^3 at the height of 365.6 km.

Analysis of photonic spot profile converter and bridge structure on SOI platform for horizontal and vertical integration

Science.gov (United States)

Majumder, Saikat; Jha, Amit Kr.; Biswas, Aishik; Banerjee, Debasmita; Ganguly, Dipankar; Chakraborty, Rajib

2017-08-01

Horizontal spot size converter required for horizontal light coupling and vertical bridge structure required for vertical integration are designed on high index contrast SOI platform in order to form more compact integrated photonic circuits. Both the structures are based on the concept of multimode interference. The spot size converter can be realized by successive integration of multimode interference structures with reducing dimension on horizontal plane, whereas the optical bridge structure consists of a number of vertical multimode interference structure connected by single mode sections. The spot size converter can be modified to a spot profile converter when the final single mode waveguide is replaced by a slot waveguide. Analysis have shown that by using three multimode sections in a spot size converter, an Gaussian input having spot diameter of 2.51 μm can be converted to a spot diameter of 0.25 μm. If the output single mode section is replaced by a slot waveguide, this input profile can be converted to a flat top profile of width 50 nm. Similarly, vertical displacement of 8μm is possible by using a combination of two multimode sections and three single mode sections in the vertical bridge structure. The analyses of these two structures are carried out for both TE and TM modes at 1550 nm wavelength using the semi analytical matrix method which is simple and fast in computation time and memory. This work shows that the matrix method is equally applicable for analysis of horizontally as well as vertically integrated photonic circuit.

Advancing NASA’s AirMOSS P-Band Radar Root Zone Soil Moisture Retrieval Algorithm via Incorporation of Richards’ Equation

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Morteza Sadeghi

2016-12-01

Full Text Available P-band radar remote sensing applied during the Airborne Microwave Observatory of Subcanopy and Subsurface (AirMOSS mission has shown great potential for estimation of root zone soil moisture. When retrieving the soil moisture profile (SMP from P-band radar observations, a mathematical function describing the vertical moisture distribution is required. Because only a limited number of observations are available, the number of free parameters of the mathematical model must not exceed the number of observed data. For this reason, an empirical quadratic function (second order polynomial is currently applied in the AirMOSS inversion algorithm to retrieve the SMP. The three free parameters of the polynomial are retrieved for each AirMOSS pixel using three backscatter observations (i.e., one frequency at three polarizations of Horizontal-Horizontal, Vertical-Vertical and Horizontal-Vertical. In this paper, a more realistic, physically-based SMP model containing three free parameters is derived, based on a solution to Richards’ equation for unsaturated flow in soils. Evaluation of the new SMP model based on both numerical simulations and measured data revealed that it exhibits greater flexibility for fitting measured and simulated SMPs than the currently applied polynomial. It is also demonstrated that the new SMP model can be reduced to a second order polynomial at the expense of fitting accuracy.

The effect of cloud screening on MAX-DOAS aerosol retrievals.

Science.gov (United States)

Gielen, Clio; Van Roozendael, Michel; Hendrik, Francois; Fayt, Caroline; Hermans, Christian; Pinardi, Gaia; De Backer, Hugo; De Bock, Veerle; Laffineur, Quentin; Vlemmix, Tim

2014-05-01

In recent years, ground-based multi-axis differential absorption spectroscopy (MAX-DOAS) has shown to be ideally suited for the retrieval of tropospheric trace gases and deriving information on the aerosol properties. These measurements are invaluable to our understanding of the physics and chemistry of the atmospheric system, and the impact on the Earth's climate. Unfortunately, MAX-DOAS measurements are often performed under strong non-clear-sky conditions, causing strong data quality degradation and uncertainties on the retrievals. Here we present the result of our cloud-screening method, using the colour index (CI), on aerosol retrievals from MAX-DOAS measurements (AOD and vertical profiles). We focus on two large data sets, from the Brussels and Beijing area. Using the CI we define 3 different sky conditions: bad (=full thick cloud cover/extreme aerosols), mediocre (=thin clouds/aerosols) and good (=clear sky). We also flag the presence of broken/scattered clouds. We further compare our cloud-screening method with results from cloud-cover fractions derived from thermic infrared measurements. In general, our method shows good results to qualify the sky and cloud conditions of MAX-DOAS measurements, without the need for other external cloud-detection systems. Removing data under bad-sky and broken-cloud conditions results in a strongly improved agreement, in both correlation and slope, between the MAX-DOAS aerosol retrievals and data from other instruments (e.g. AERONET, Brewer). With the improved AOD retrievals, the seasonal and diurnal variations of the aerosol content and vertical distribution at both sites can be investigated in further detail. By combining with additional information derived by other instruments (Brewer, lidar, ...) operated at the stations, we will further study the observed aerosol characteristics, and their influence on and by meteorological conditions such as clouds and/or the boundary layer height.

The influence of turbulence and vertical wind profile in wind turbine power curve

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Honrubia, A.; Gomez-Lazaro, E. [Castilla-La Mancha Univ., Albacete (Spain). Renewable Energy Research Inst.; Vigueras-Rodriguez, A. [Albacete Science and Technolgy Park, Albacete (Spain)

2012-07-01

To identify the influence of turbulence and vertical wind profile in wind turbine performance, wind speed measurements at different heights have been performed. Measurements have been developed using a cup anemometer and a LIDAR equipment, specifically a pulsed wave one. The wind profile has been recorded to study the effect of the atmospheric conditions over the energy generated by a wind turbine located close to the LIDAR system. The changes in the power production of the wind turbine are relevant. (orig.)

A high-resolution and observationally constrained OMI NO2 satellite retrieval

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Goldberg, Daniel L.; Lamsal, Lok N.; Loughner, Christopher P.

2017-01-01

Here, this work presents a new high-resolution NO 2 dataset derived from the NASA Ozone Monitoring Instrument (OMI) NO 2 version 3.0 retrieval that can be used to estimate surface-level concentrations. The standard NASA product uses NO 2 vertical profile shape factors from a 1.25° × 1° (~110 km × 110 km) resolution Global Model Initiative (GMI) model simulation to calculate air mass factors, a critical value used to determine observed tropospheric NO 2 vertical columns. To better estimate vertical profile shape factors, we use a high-resolution (1.33 km × 1.33 km) Community Multi-scale Air Quality (CMAQ) model simulation constrained by in situ aircraft observations to recalculate tropospheric air mass factors and tropospheric NO 2 vertical columns during summertime in the eastern US. In this new product, OMI NO 2 tropospheric columns increase by up to 160% in city centers and decrease by 20–50 % in the rural areas outside of urban areas when compared to the operational NASA product. Our new product shows much better agreement with the Pandora NO 2 and Airborne Compact Atmospheric Mapper (ACAM) NO 2 spectrometer measurements acquired during the DISCOVER-AQ Maryland field campaign. Furthermore, the correlation between our satellite product and EPA NO 2 monitors in urban areas has improved dramatically: r 2 = 0.60 in the new product vs. r 2 = 0.39 in the operational product, signifying that this new product is a better indicator of surface concentrations than the operational product. Our work emphasizes the need to use both high-resolution and high-fidelity models in order to recalculate satellite data in areas with large spatial heterogeneities in NO x emissions. Although the current work is focused on the eastern US, the methodology developed in this work can be applied to other world regions to produce high-quality region-specific NO 2 satellite retrievals.

Aerosol Retrievals from Proposed Satellite Bistatic Lidar Observations: Algorithm and Information Content

Science.gov (United States)

Alexandrov, M. D.; Mishchenko, M. I.

2017-12-01

Accurate aerosol retrievals from space remain quite challenging and typically involve solving a severely ill-posed inverse scattering problem. We suggested to address this ill-posedness by flying a bistatic lidar system. Such a system would consist of formation flying constellation of a primary satellite equipped with a conventional monostatic (backscattering) lidar and an additional platform hosting a receiver of the scattered laser light. If successfully implemented, this concept would combine the measurement capabilities of a passive multi-angle multi-spectral polarimeter with the vertical profiling capability of a lidar. Thus, bistatic lidar observations will be free of deficiencies affecting both monostatic lidar measurements (caused by the highly limited information content) and passive photopolarimetric measurements (caused by vertical integration and surface reflection).We present a preliminary aerosol retrieval algorithm for a bistatic lidar system consisting of a high spectral resolution lidar (HSRL) and an additional receiver flown in formation with it at a scattering angle of 165 degrees. This algorithm was applied to synthetic data generated using Mie-theory computations. The model/retrieval parameters in our tests were the effective radius and variance of the aerosol size distribution, complex refractive index of the particles, and their number concentration. Both mono- and bimodal aerosol mixtures were considered. Our algorithm allowed for definitive evaluation of error propagation from measurements to retrievals using a Monte Carlo technique, which involves random distortion of the observations and statistical characterization of the resulting retrieval errors. Our tests demonstrated that supplementing a conventional monostatic HSRL with an additional receiver dramatically increases the information content of the measurements and allows for a sufficiently accurate characterization of tropospheric aerosols.

Using JPSS Retrievals to Implement a Multisensor, Synoptic, Layered Water Vapor Product for Forecasters

Science.gov (United States)

Forsythe, J. M.; Jones, A. S.; Kidder, S. Q.; Fuell, K.; LeRoy, A.; Bikos, D.; Szoke, E.

2015-12-01

Forecasters have been using the NOAA operational blended total precipitable water (TPW) product, developed by the Cooperative Institute for Research in the Atmosphere (CIRA), since 2009. Blended TPW has a wide variety of uses related to heavy precipitation and flooding, such as measuring the amount of moisture in an atmospheric river originating in the tropics. But blended TPW conveys no information on the vertical distribution of moisture, which is relevant to a variety of forecast concerns. Vertical profile information is particularly lacking over the oceans for landfalling storms. A blended six-satellite, four-layer, layered water vapor product demonstrated by CIRA and the NASA Short-term Prediction Research and Transition Center (SPoRT) in allows forecasters to see the vertical distribution of water vapor in near real-time. National Weather Service (NWS) forecaster feedback indicated that this new, vertically-resolved view of water vapor has a substantial impact on forecasts. This product uses NOAA investments in polar orbiting satellite sounding retrievals from passive microwave radiances, in particular, the Microwave Integrated Retrieval System (MIRS). The product currently utilizes data from the NOAA-18 and -19 spacecraft, Metop-A and -B, and the Defense Meteorological Program (DMSP) F18 spacecraft. The sounding instruments onboard the Suomi-NPP and JPSS spacecraft will be cornerstone instruments in the future evolution of this product. Applications of the product to heavy rain cases will be presented and compared to commonly used data such as radiosondes and Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite (GOES) water vapor channel imagery. Research is currently beginning to implement advective blending, where model winds are used to move the water vapor profiles to a common time. Interactions with the NOAA Satellite Analysis Branch (SAB), National Center for Environmental Prediction (NCEP) centers including the Ocean Prediction Center (OPC) and Weather

Global mapping of vertical injection profiles of wild-fire emission

Science.gov (United States)

Sofiev, M.; Vankevich, R.; Ermakova, T.; Hakkarainen, J.

2012-08-01

A problem of a characteristic vertical profile of smoke released from wild-land fires is considered. A methodology for bottom-up evaluation of this profile is suggested and a corresponding global dataset is calculated. The profile estimation is based on: (i) a semi-empirical formula for plume-top height recently suggested by the authors, (ii) MODIS satellite observations of active wild-land fires, and (iii) meteorological conditions evaluated at each fireplace using output of ECMWF weather prediction model. Plumes from all fires recorded globally during two arbitrarily picked years 2001 and 2008 are evaluated and their smoke injection profiles are estimated with a time step of 3 h. The resulting 4-dimensional dataset is split to day- and night-time subsets. Each of the subsets is projected to global grid with resolution 1° × 1° × 500 m, averaged to monthly level, and normalised with total emission. Evaluation of the obtained dataset was performed at several levels. Firstly, the quality of the semi-empirical formula for plume-top computations was evaluated using recent additions to the MISR fire plume-height dataset. Secondly, the obtained maps of injection profiles are compared with another global distribution available from literature. Thirdly, the upper percentiles of the profiles are compared with an independent dataset of space-based lidar CALIOP. Finally, the stability of the calculated profiles with regard to inter-annual variations of the fire activity and meteorological conditions is roughly estimated by comparing the sub-sets for 2001 and 2008.

Multifractal analysis of vertical profiles of soil penetration resistance at the field scale

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G. M. Siqueira

2013-07-01

Full Text Available Soil penetration resistance (PR is widely used as an indirect indicator of soil strength. Soil PR is linked to basic soil properties and correlated to root growth and plant production, and as such it is extensively used as a practical tool for assessing soil compaction and to evaluate the effects of soil management. This study investigates how results from multifractal analysis can quantify key elements of depth-dependent soil PR profiles and how this information can be used at the field scale. We analysed multifractality of 50 PR vertical profiles, measured from 0 to 60 cm depth and randomly located on a 6.5 ha sugar cane field in northeastern Brazil. The scaling property of each profile was typified by singularity, and Rényi spectra estimated by the method of moments. The Hurst exponent was used to parameterize the autocorrelation of the vertical PR data sets. The singularity and Rènyi spectra showed that the vertical PR data sets exhibited a well-defined multifractal structure. Hurst exponent values were close to 1, ranging from 0.944 to 0.988, indicating strong persistence in PR variation with soil depth. Also, the Hurst exponent was negatively and significantly correlated to coefficient of variation (CV, skewness and maximum values of the depth-dependent PR. Multifractal analysis added valuable information to describe the spatial arrangement of depth-dependent penetrometer data sets, which was not taken into account by classical statistical indices. Multifractal parameters were mapped over the experimental field and compared with mean and maximum values of PR. Combination of spatial variability survey and multifractal analysis appear to be useful to manage soil compaction.

Multifractal analysis of vertical profiles of soil penetration resistance at the field scale

Science.gov (United States)

Siqueira, G. M.; Silva, E. F. F.; Montenegro, A. A. A.; Vidal Vázquez, E.; Paz-Ferreiro, J.

2013-07-01

Soil penetration resistance (PR) is widely used as an indirect indicator of soil strength. Soil PR is linked to basic soil properties and correlated to root growth and plant production, and as such it is extensively used as a practical tool for assessing soil compaction and to evaluate the effects of soil management. This study investigates how results from multifractal analysis can quantify key elements of depth-dependent soil PR profiles and how this information can be used at the field scale. We analysed multifractality of 50 PR vertical profiles, measured from 0 to 60 cm depth and randomly located on a 6.5 ha sugar cane field in northeastern Brazil. The scaling property of each profile was typified by singularity, and Rényi spectra estimated by the method of moments. The Hurst exponent was used to parameterize the autocorrelation of the vertical PR data sets. The singularity and Rènyi spectra showed that the vertical PR data sets exhibited a well-defined multifractal structure. Hurst exponent values were close to 1, ranging from 0.944 to 0.988, indicating strong persistence in PR variation with soil depth. Also, the Hurst exponent was negatively and significantly correlated to coefficient of variation (CV), skewness and maximum values of the depth-dependent PR. Multifractal analysis added valuable information to describe the spatial arrangement of depth-dependent penetrometer data sets, which was not taken into account by classical statistical indices. Multifractal parameters were mapped over the experimental field and compared with mean and maximum values of PR. Combination of spatial variability survey and multifractal analysis appear to be useful to manage soil compaction.

Synergistic multi-sensor and multi-frequency retrieval of cloud ice water path constrained by CloudSat collocations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Islam, Tanvir; Srivastava, Prashant K.

2015-01-01

The cloud ice water path (IWP) is one of the major parameters that have a strong influence on earth's radiation budget. Onboard satellite sensors are recognized as valuable tools to measure the IWP in a global scale. Albeit, active sensors such as the Cloud Profiling Radar (CPR) onboard the CloudSat satellite has better capability to measure the ice water content profile, thus, its vertical integral, IWP, than any passive microwave (MW) or infrared (IR) sensors. In this study, we investigate the retrieval of IWP from MW and IR sensors, including AMSU-A, MHS, and HIRS instruments on-board the N19 satellite, such that the retrieval is consistent with the CloudSat IWP estimates. This is achieved through the collocations between the passive satellite measurements and CloudSat scenes. Potential benefit of synergistic multi-sensor multi-frequency retrieval is investigated. Two modeling approaches are explored for the IWP retrieval – generalized linear model (GLM) and neural network (NN). The investigation has been carried out over both ocean and land surface types. The MW/IR synergy is found to be retrieved more accurate IWP than the individual AMSU-A, MHS, or HIRS measurements. Both GLM and NN approaches have been able to exploit the synergistic retrievals. - Highlights: • MW/IR synergy is investigated for IWP retrieval. • The IWP retrieval is modeled using CloudSat collocations. • Two modeling approaches are explored – GLM and ANN. • MW/IR synergy performs better than the MW or IR only retrieval

Relationships among cloud occurrence frequency, overlap, and effective thickness derived from CALIPSO and CloudSat merged cloud vertical profiles

Science.gov (United States)

Kato, Seiji; Sun-Mack, Sunny; Miller, Walter F.; Rose, Fred G.; Chen, Yan; Minnis, Patrick; Wielicki, Bruce A.

2010-01-01

A cloud frequency of occurrence matrix is generated using merged cloud vertical profiles derived from the satellite-borne Cloud-Aerosol Lidar with Orthogonal Polarization (CALIOP) and cloud profiling radar. The matrix contains vertical profiles of cloud occurrence frequency as a function of the uppermost cloud top. It is shown that the cloud fraction and uppermost cloud top vertical profiles can be related by a cloud overlap matrix when the correlation length of cloud occurrence, which is interpreted as an effective cloud thickness, is introduced. The underlying assumption in establishing the above relation is that cloud overlap approaches random overlap with increasing distance separating cloud layers and that the probability of deviating from random overlap decreases exponentially with distance. One month of Cloud-Aerosol Lidar and Infrared Pathfinder Satellite Observation (CALIPSO) and CloudSat data (July 2006) support these assumptions, although the correlation length sometimes increases with separation distance when the cloud top height is large. The data also show that the correlation length depends on cloud top hight and the maximum occurs when the cloud top height is 8 to 10 km. The cloud correlation length is equivalent to the decorrelation distance introduced by Hogan and Illingworth (2000) when cloud fractions of both layers in a two-cloud layer system are the same. The simple relationships derived in this study can be used to estimate the top-of-atmosphere irradiance difference caused by cloud fraction, uppermost cloud top, and cloud thickness vertical profile differences.

Calibration of a TCCON FTS at Armstrong Flight Research Center (AFRC) Using Multiple Airborne Profiles

Science.gov (United States)

Hillyard, P. W.; Iraci, L. T.; Podolske, J. R.; Tanaka, T.; Yates, E. L.; Roehl, C. M.; Wunch, D.; Wennberg, P. O.; Albertson, R. T.; Blake, D. R.; Meinardi, S.; Marrero, J. E.; Yang, M. M.; Beyersdorf, A. J.; Wofsy, S. C.; Pittman, J. V.; Daube, B. C.

2014-12-01

Satellite missions including GOSAT, OCO-2 and ASCENDS measure column abundances of greenhouse gases. It is crucial to have calibrated ground-based measurements to which these satellite measurements can compare and refine their retrieval algorithms. To this end, a Fourier Transform Spectrometer has been deployed to the Armstrong Flight Research Center (AFRC) in Edwards, CA as a member of the Total Carbon Column Observing Network (TCCON). This location was selected due to its proximity to a highly reflective lakebed. Such surfaces have proven to be difficult for accurate satellite retrievals. This facility has been in operation since July 2013. The data collected to date at this site will be presented. In order to ensure the validity of the measurements made at this site, multiple vertical profiles have been performed using the Alpha jet, DC-8, and ER-2 as part of the AJAX (ongoing), SEAC4RS (August 2013), and SARP (July 2014) field campaigns. The integrated in-situ vertical profiles for CO2 and CH4 have been analyzed and compared with the TCCON FTS measurements, where good agreement between TCCON data and vertically-integrated aircraft in-situ data has been found.

Validation of the CrIS fast physical NH3 retrieval with ground-based FTIR

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

E. Dammers

2017-07-01

Full Text Available Presented here is the validation of the CrIS (Cross-track Infrared Sounder fast physical NH3 retrieval (CFPR column and profile measurements using ground-based Fourier transform infrared (FTIR observations. We use the total columns and profiles from seven FTIR sites in the Network for the Detection of Atmospheric Composition Change (NDACC to validate the satellite data products. The overall FTIR and CrIS total columns have a positive correlation of r  =  0.77 (N  =  218 with very little bias (a slope of 1.02. Binning the comparisons by total column amounts, for concentrations larger than 1.0  ×  1016 molecules cm−2, i.e. ranging from moderate to polluted conditions, the relative difference is on average ∼ 0–5 % with a standard deviation of 25–50 %, which is comparable to the estimated retrieval uncertainties in both CrIS and the FTIR. For the smallest total column range (< 1.0  × 1016 molecules cm−2 where there are a large number of observations at or near the CrIS noise level (detection limit the absolute differences between CrIS and the FTIR total columns show a slight positive column bias. The CrIS and FTIR profile comparison differences are mostly within the range of the single-level retrieved profile values from estimated retrieval uncertainties, showing average differences in the range of  ∼ 20 to 40 %. The CrIS retrievals typically show good vertical sensitivity down into the boundary layer which typically peaks at  ∼ 850 hPa (∼ 1.5 km. At this level the median absolute difference is 0.87 (std  =  ±0.08 ppb, corresponding to a median relative difference of 39 % (std  =  ±2 %. Most of the absolute and relative profile comparison differences are in the range of the estimated retrieval uncertainties. At the surface, where CrIS typically has lower sensitivity, it tends to overestimate in low-concentration conditions and underestimate

Validation of GOME (ERS-2) NO2 vertical column data with ground-based measurements at Issyk-Kul (Kyrgyzstan)

Science.gov (United States)

Ionov, D.; Sinyakov, V.; Semenov, V.

Starting from 1995 the global monitoring of atmospheric nitrogen dioxide is carried out by the measurements of nadir-viewing GOME spectrometer aboard ERS-2 satellite. Continuous validation of that data by means of comparisons with well-controlled ground-based measurements is important to ensure the quality of GOME data products and improve related retrieval algorithms. At the station of Issyk-Kul (Kyrgyzstan) the ground-based spectroscopic observations of NO2 vertical column have been started since 1983. The station is located on the northern shore of Issyk-Kul lake, 1650 meters above the sea level (42.6 N, 77.0 E). The site is equipped with grating spectrometer for the twilight measurements of zenith-scattered solar radiation in the visible range, and applies the DOAS technique to retrieve NO2 vertical column. It is included in the list of NDSC stations as a complementary one. The present study is focused on validation of GOME NO2 vertical column data, based on 8-year comparison with correlative ground-based measurements at Issyk-Kul station in 1996-2003. Within the investigation, an agreement of both individual and monthly averaged GOME measurements with corresponding twilight ground-based observations is examined. Such agreement is analyzed with respect to different conditions (season, sun elevation), temporal/spatial criteria choice (actual overpass location, correction for diurnal variation) and data processing (GDP version 2.7, 3.0). In addition, NO2 vertical columns were integrated from simultaneous stratospheric profile measurements by NASA HALOE and SAGE-II/III satellite instruments and introduced to explain the differences with ground-based observations. In particular cases, NO2 vertical profiles retrieved from the twilight ground-based measurements at Issuk-Kul were also included into comparison. Overall, summertime GOME NO2 vertical columns were found to be systematicaly lower than ground-based data. This work was supported by International Association

Retrieving 3D Wind Field from Phased Array Radar Rapid Scans

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Xiaobin Qiu

2013-01-01

Full Text Available The previous two-dimensional simple adjoint method for retrieving horizontal wind field from a time sequence of single-Doppler scans of reflectivity and/or radial velocity is further developed into a new method to retrieve both horizontal and vertical winds at high temporal and spatial resolutions. This new method performs two steps. First, the horizontal wind field is retrieved on the conical surface at each tilt (elevation angle of radar scan. Second, the vertical velocity field is retrieved in a vertical cross-section along the radar beam with the horizontal velocity given from the first step. The method is applied to phased array radar (PAR rapid scans of the storm winds and reflectivity in a strong microburst event and is shown to be able to retrieve the three-dimensional wind field around a targeted downdraft within the storm that subsequently produced a damaging microburst. The method is computationally very efficient and can be used for real-time applications with PAR rapid scans.

Retrieval of daytime [O3] altitude profile from measurements of 1.27 μm O2 emission in the mesosphere: a comparison of methods

Science.gov (United States)

Yankovsky, Valentine A.; Manuilova, Rada O.

2017-11-01

The altitude profiles of ozone concentration are retrieved from measurements of the volume emission rate in the 1.27 μm oxygen band in the TIMED-SABER experiment. In this study we compare the methods of retrieval of daytime [O3] altitude profile in the framework of two models: electronic-vibrational kinetics and a purely electronic kinetics of excited products of ozone and oxygen photolysis. In order to retrieve the [O3] altitude profile from the measurements of the intensity of the O2 band in the region of 1.27 μm correctly, it is necessary to use the photochemical model of the electronic-vibrational kinetics of excited products of ozone and oxygen photolysis in the mesosphere and lower thermosphere.

Temperature and Relative Humidity Vertical Profiles within Planetary Boundary Layer in Winter Urban Airshed

Science.gov (United States)

Bendl, Jan; Hovorka, Jan

2017-12-01

The planetary boundary layer is a dynamic system with turbulent flow where horizontal and vertical air mixing depends mainly on the weather conditions and geomorphology. Normally, air temperature from the Earth surface decreases with height but inversion situation may occur, mainly during winter. Pollutant dispersion is poor during inversions so air pollutant concentration can quickly rise, especially in urban closed valleys. Air pollution was evaluated by WHO as a human carcinogen (mostly by polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons) and health effects are obvious. Knowledge about inversion layer height is important for estimation of the pollution impact and it can give us also information about the air pollution sources. Temperature and relative humidity vertical profiles complement ground measurements. Ground measurements were conducted to characterize comprehensively urban airshed in Svermov, residential district of the city of Kladno, about 30 km NW of Prague, from the 2nd Feb. to the 3rd of March 2016. The Svermov is an air pollution hot-spot for long time benzo[a]pyrene (B[a]P) limit exceedances, reaching the highest B[a]P annual concentration in Bohemia - west part of the Czech Republic. Since the Svermov sits in a shallow valley, frequent vertical temperature inversion in winter and low emission heights of pollution sources prevent pollutant dispersal off the valley. Such orography is common to numerous small settlements in the Czech Republic. Ground measurements at the sports field in the Svermov were complemented by temperature and humidity vertical profiles acquired by a Vaisala radiosonde positioned at tethered He-filled balloon. Total number of 53 series of vertical profiles up to the height of 300 m was conducted. Meteorology parameters were acquired with 4 Hz frequency. The measurements confirmed frequent early-morning and night formation of temperature inversion within boundary layer up to the height of 50 m. This rather shallow inversion had significant

Retrieval of NO2 stratospheric profiles from ground-based zenith-sky uv-visible measurements at 60°N

Science.gov (United States)

Hendrick, F.; van Roozendael, M.; Lambert, J.-C.; Fayt, C.; Hermans, C.; de Mazière, M.

2003-04-01

Nitrogen dioxide (NO_2) plays an important role in controlling ozone abundances in the stratosphere, either directly through the NOx (NO+NO_2) catalytic cycle, either indirectly by reaction with the radical ClO to form the reservoir species ClONO_2. In this presentation, NO_2 stratospheric profiles are retrieved from ground-based UV-visible NO_2 slant column abundances measured since 1998 at the complementary NDSC station of Harestua (Norway, 60^oN). The retrieval algorithm is based on the Rodgers optimal estimation inversion method and a forward model consisting in the IASB-BIRA stacked box photochemical model PSCBOX coupled to the radiative transfer package UVspec/DISORT. This algorithm has been applied to a set of about 50 sunrises and sunsets for which spatially and temporally coincident NO_2 measurements made by the HALOE (Halogen Occultation Experiment) instrument on board the Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite (UARS) are available. The consistency between retrieved and HALOE profiles is discussed in term of the different seasonal conditions investigated which are spring with and without chlorine activation, summer, and fall.

Iterative maximum a posteriori (IMAP-DOAS for retrieval of strongly absorbing trace gases: Model studies for CH4 and CO2 retrieval from near infrared spectra of SCIAMACHY onboard ENVISAT

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

C. Frankenberg

2005-01-01

Full Text Available In the past, differential optical absorption spectroscopy (DOAS has mostly been employed for atmospheric trace gas retrieval in the UV/Vis spectral region. New spectrometers such as SCIAMACHY onboard ENVISAT also provide near infrared channels and thus allow for the detection of greenhouse gases like CH4, CO2, or N2O. However, modifications of the classical DOAS algorithm are necessary to account for the idiosyncrasies of this spectral region, i.e. the temperature and pressure dependence of the high resolution absorption lines. Furthermore, understanding the sensitivity of the measurement of these high resolution, strong absorption lines by means of a non-ideal device, i.e. having finite spectral resolution, is of special importance. This applies not only in the NIR, but can also prove to be an issue for the UV/Vis spectral region. This paper presents a modified iterative maximum a posteriori-DOAS (IMAP-DOAS algorithm based on optimal estimation theory introduced to the remote sensing community by rodgers76. This method directly iterates the vertical column densities of the absorbers of interest until the modeled total optical density fits the measurement. Although the discussion in this paper lays emphasis on satellite retrieval, the basic principles of the algorithm also hold for arbitrary measurement geometries. This new approach is applied to modeled spectra based on a comprehensive set of atmospheric temperature and pressure profiles. This analysis reveals that the sensitivity of measurement strongly depends on the prevailing pressure-height. The IMAP-DOAS algorithm properly accounts for the sensitivity of measurement on pressure due to pressure broadening of the absorption lines. Thus, biases in the retrieved vertical columns that would arise in classical algorithms, are obviated. Here, we analyse and quantify these systematic biases as well as errors due to variations in the temperature and pressure profiles, which is indispensable for

An improvement of the retrieval of temperature and relative humidity profiles from a combination of active and passive remote sensing

Science.gov (United States)

Che, Yunfei; Ma, Shuqing; Xing, Fenghua; Li, Siteng; Dai, Yaru

2018-03-01

This paper focuses on an improvement of the retrieval of atmospheric temperature and relative humidity profiles through combining active and passive remote sensing. Ground-based microwave radiometer and millimeter-wavelength cloud radar were used to acquire the observations. Cloud base height and cloud thickness determinations from cloud radar were added into the atmospheric profile retrieval process, and a back-propagation neural network method was used as the retrieval tool. Because a substantial amount of data are required to train a neural network, and as microwave radiometer data are insufficient for this purpose, 8 years of radiosonde data from Beijing were used as the database. The monochromatic radiative transfer model was used to calculate the brightness temperatures in the same channels as the microwave radiometer. Parts of the cloud base heights and cloud thicknesses in the training data set were also estimated using the radiosonde data. The accuracy of the results was analyzed through a comparison with L-band sounding radar data and quantified using the mean bias, root-mean-square error (RMSE), and correlation coefficient. The statistical results showed that an inversion with cloud information was the optimal method. Compared with the inversion profiles without cloud information, the RMSE values after adding cloud information reduced to varying degrees for the vast majority of height layers. These reductions were particularly clear in layers with clouds. The maximum reduction in the RMSE for the temperature profile was 2.2 K, while that for the humidity profile was 16%.

Space-based retrieval of NO2 over biomass burning regions: quantifying and reducing uncertainties

Science.gov (United States)

Bousserez, N.

2014-10-01

The accuracy of space-based nitrogen dioxide (NO2) retrievals from solar backscatter radiances critically depends on a priori knowledge of the vertical profiles of NO2 and aerosol optical properties. This information is used to calculate an air mass factor (AMF), which accounts for atmospheric scattering and is used to convert the measured line-of-sight "slant" columns into vertical columns. In this study we investigate the impact of biomass burning emissions on the AMF in order to quantify NO2 retrieval errors in the Ozone Monitoring Instrument (OMI) products over these sources. Sensitivity analyses are conducted using the Linearized Discrete Ordinate Radiative Transfer (LIDORT) model. The NO2 and aerosol profiles are obtained from a 3-D chemistry-transport model (GEOS-Chem), which uses the Fire Locating and Monitoring of Burning Emissions (FLAMBE) daily biomass burning emission inventory. Aircraft in situ data collected during two field campaigns, the Arctic Research of the Composition of the Troposphere from Aircraft and Satellites (ARCTAS) and the Dust and Biomass-burning Experiment (DABEX), are used to evaluate the modeled aerosol optical properties and NO2 profiles over Canadian boreal fires and West African savanna fires, respectively. Over both domains, the effect of biomass burning emissions on the AMF through the modified NO2 shape factor can be as high as -60%. A sensitivity analysis also revealed that the effect of aerosol and shape factor perturbations on the AMF is very sensitive to surface reflectance and clouds. As an illustration, the aerosol correction can range from -20 to +100% for different surface reflectances, while the shape factor correction varies from -70 to -20%. Although previous studies have shown that in clear-sky conditions the effect of aerosols on the AMF was in part implicitly accounted for by the modified cloud parameters, here it is suggested that when clouds are present above a surface layer of scattering aerosols, an explicit

Vertical profiles of nitrous acid in the nocturnal urban atmosphere of Houston, TX

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

K. W. Wong

2011-04-01

Full Text Available Nitrous acid (HONO often plays an important role in tropospheric photochemistry as a major precursor of the hydroxyl radical (OH in early morning hours and potentially during the day. However, the processes leading to formation of HONO and its vertical distribution at night, which can have a considerable impact on daytime ozone formation, are currently poorly characterized by observations and models. Long-path differential optical absorption spectroscopy (LP-DOAS measurements of HONO during the 2006 TexAQS II Radical and Aerosol Measurement Project (TRAMP, near downtown Houston, TX, show nocturnal vertical profiles of HONO, with mixing ratios of up to 2.2 ppb near the surface and below 100 ppt aloft. Three nighttime periods of HONO, NO₂ and O₃ observations during TRAMP were used to perform model simulations of vertical mixing ratio profiles. By adjusting vertical mixing and NO_x emissions the modeled NO₂ and O₃ mixing ratios showed very good agreement with the observations.

Using a simple conversion of NO₂ to HONO on the ground, direct HONO emissions, as well as HONO loss at the ground and on aerosol, the observed HONO profiles were reproduced by the model for 1–2 and 7–8 September in the nocturnal boundary layer (NBL. The unobserved increase of HONO to NO₂ ratio (HONO/NO₂ with altitude that was simulated by the initial model runs was found to be due to HONO uptake being too small on aerosol and too large on the ground. Refined model runs, with adjusted HONO uptake coefficients, showed much better agreement of HONO and HONO/NO₂ for two typical nights, except during morning rush hour, when other HONO formation pathways are most likely active. One of the nights analyzed showed an increase of HONO mixing ratios together with decreasing NO₂ mixing ratios that the model was unable to reproduce, most likely due to the impact of

Glyoxal Vertical Column Retrievals from the GOME-2/METOP-A European Spaceborne Sensor and Comparisons with the IMAGESv2 CT Model

Science.gov (United States)

Lerot, C.; Stavrakou, T.; de Smedt, I.; Muller, J. J.; van Roozendael, M.

2010-12-01

Glyoxal is mostly formed in our atmosphere as an intermediate product in the oxidation of non-methane volatile organic compounds (NMVOC). To a lesser extent, it is also directly emitted from biomass burning events and from fossil- and bio-fuel combustion processes. Several studies have estimated its atmospheric lifetime to 2-3 hours, which makes of glyoxal a good indicator for short-lived NMVOC emissions. Glyoxal is also known to be a precursor for secondary organic aerosols and could help to reduce the gap between observations and models for organic aerosol abundances. The three absorption bands of glyoxal in the visible region allow applying the DOAS (Differential Optical Absorption Spectroscopy) technique to retrieve its vertical column densities from the nadir backscattered light measurements performed by the GOME-2 satellite sensor. This instrument has been launched in October 2006 on board of the METOP-A platform and is characterized by a spatial resolution of 80 km x 40 km and by a large scan-width (1920 km) leading to a global coverage reached in 1.5 day. The GOME-2 glyoxal retrieval algorithm developed at BIRA-IASB accounts for the liquid water absorption and provides geophysically sound column measurements not only over lands but also over oceanic regions where spectral interferences between glyoxal and liquid water have been shown to be significant. The a-priori glyoxal vertical distribution required for the slant to vertical column conversion is provided by the global chemical transport model IMAGESv2. The highest glyoxal vertical column densities are mainly observed in continental tropical regions, while the mid-latitude columns strongly depend on the season with maximum values during warm months. An anthropogenic signature is also observed in highly populated regions of Asia. Comparisons with glyoxal columns simulated with IMAGESv2 in different regions of the world generally point to a missing glyoxal source in current models. As already reported from

Inter-comparison of lidar and ceilometer retrievals for aerosol and Planetary Boundary Layer profiling over Athens, Greece

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

G. Tsaknakis

2011-06-01

Full Text Available This study presents an inter-comparison of two active remote sensors (lidar and ceilometer to determine the mixing layer height and structure of the Planetary Boundary Layer (PBL and to retrieve tropospheric aerosol vertical profiles over Athens, Greece. This inter-comparison was performed under various strongly different aerosol loads/types (urban air pollution, biomass burning and Saharan dust event, implementing two different lidar systems (one portable Raymetrics S.A. lidar system running at 355 nm and one multi-wavelength Raman lidar system running at 355 nm, 532 nm and 1064 nm and one CL31 Vaisala S.A. ceilometer (running at 910 nm. Spectral conversions of the ceilometer's data were performed using the Ångström exponent estimated by ultraviolet multi-filter radiometer (UV-MFR measurements. The inter-comparison was based on two parameters: the mixing layer height determined by the presence of the suspended aerosols and the attenuated backscatter coefficient. Additionally, radiosonde data were used to derive the PBL height. In general, a good agreement was found between the ceilometer and the lidar techniques in both inter-compared parameters in the height range from 500 m to 5000 m, while the limitations of each instrument are also examined.

Retrieval method of aerosol extinction coefficient profile by an integral lidar system and case study

Science.gov (United States)

Shan, Huihui; Zhang, Hui; Liu, Junjian; Wang, Shenhao; Ma, Xiaomin; Zhang, Lianqing; Liu, Dong; Xie, Chenbo; Tao, Zongming

2018-02-01

Aerosol extinction coefficient profile is an essential parameter for atmospheric radiation model. But it is difficult to get the full aerosol extinction profile from the ground to the tropopause especially in near ground precisely using backscattering lidar. A combined measurement of side-scattering, backscattering and Raman-scattering lidar is proposed to retrieve the aerosol extinction coefficient profile from the surface to the tropopause which covered a dynamic range of 5 orders. The side-scattering technique solves the dead zone and the overlap problem caused by the traditional lidar in the near range. Using the Raman-scattering the aerosol lidar ratio (extinction to backscatter ratio) can be obtained. The cases studies in this paper show the proposed method is reasonable and feasible.

Mid-upper tropospheric methane retrieval from IASI and its validation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

X. Xiong

2013-09-01

Full Text Available Mid-upper tropospheric methane (CH4, as an operational product at NOAA's (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Comprehensive Large Array-data Stewardship System (CLASS, has been retrieved from the Infrared Atmospheric Sounding Interferometer (IASI since 2008. This paper provides a description of the retrieval method and the validation using 596 CH4 vertical profiles from aircraft measurements by the HIAPER Pole-to-Pole Observations (HIPPO program over the Pacific Ocean. The number of degrees of freedom for the CH4 retrieval is mostly less than 1.5, and it decreases under cloudy conditions. The retrievals show greatest sensitivity between 100–600 hPa in the tropics and 200–750 hPa in the mid- to high latitude. Validation is accomplished using aircraft measurements (convolved by applying the monthly mean averaging kernels collocated with all the retrieved profiles within 200 km and on the same day, and the results show that, on average, a larger error of CH4 occurs at 300–500 hPa. The bias in the trapezoid of 374–477 hPa is −1.74% with a residual standard deviation of 1.20%, and at layer 596–753 hPa the bias is −0.69% with a residual standard deviation of 1.07%. The retrieval error is relatively larger in the high northern latitude regions and/or under cloudy conditions. The main reasons for this negative bias include the uncertainty in the spectroscopy near the methane Q branch and/or the empirical bias correction, plus residual cloud contamination in the cloud-cleared radiances. It is expected for NOAA to generate the CH4 product for 20 + years using a similar algorithm from three similar thermal infrared sensors: Atmospheric Infrared Sounder (AIRS, IASI and the Cross-track Infrared Sounder (CrIS. Such a unique product will provide a supplementary to the current ground-based observation network, particularly in the Arctic, for monitoring the CH4 cycle, its transport and trend associated with climate change.

Utility of CrIS/ATMS profiles to diagnose extratropical transition

OpenAIRE

Emily Berndt; Michael Folmer

2018-01-01

Anticipating changes in hurricane intensity can be challenging in data sparse regions of the North Atlantic Ocean. Hyperspectral infrared retrieved profiles have the potential to provide a wealth of information about the vertical structure of thermodynamic characteristics of the atmosphere such as temperature and moisture which can impact hurricane intensity. Increased forecaster situational awareness and identification of moist or dry layers in the near-storm environment can indicate impendi...

Structure retrieval in HREM

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gribelyuk, M.A.

1991-01-01

A new iteration method for direct structure retrieval starting from the exit plane-wave function Ψ e (r) is proposed and tested on models. The imaginary part of the potential cannot be retrieved. The effects of the limited resolution of Ψ e (r) as well as neglect of high-order Laue-zone effects and the choice of the starting potential on the result are discussed. The procedure is found to be preferable to that based on the subsequent approximation method with respect to a higher convergence rate. It is shown that an error as low as 10% may be obtained for the real part of the retrieved potential up to vertical strokeσV(r)tvertical stroke<5. (orig.)

Relation of Cloud Occurrence Frequency, Overlap, and Effective Thickness Derived from CALIPSO and CloudSat Merged Cloud Vertical Profiles

Science.gov (United States)

Kato, Seiji; Sun-Mack, Sunny; Miller, Walter F.; Rose, Fred G.; Chen, Yan; Minnis, Patrick; Wielicki, Bruce A.

2009-01-01

A cloud frequency of occurrence matrix is generated using merged cloud vertical profile derived from Cloud-Aerosol Lidar with Orthogonal Polarization (CALIOP) and Cloud Profiling Radar (CPR). The matrix contains vertical profiles of cloud occurrence frequency as a function of the uppermost cloud top. It is shown that the cloud fraction and uppermost cloud top vertical pro les can be related by a set of equations when the correlation distance of cloud occurrence, which is interpreted as an effective cloud thickness, is introduced. The underlying assumption in establishing the above relation is that cloud overlap approaches the random overlap with increasing distance separating cloud layers and that the probability of deviating from the random overlap decreases exponentially with distance. One month of CALIPSO and CloudSat data support these assumptions. However, the correlation distance sometimes becomes large, which might be an indication of precipitation. The cloud correlation distance is equivalent to the de-correlation distance introduced by Hogan and Illingworth [2000] when cloud fractions of both layers in a two-cloud layer system are the same.

Comparing airborne and satellite retrievals of cloud optical thickness and particle effective radius using a spectral radiance ratio technique: two case studies for cirrus and deep convective clouds

Science.gov (United States)

Krisna, Trismono C.; Wendisch, Manfred; Ehrlich, André; Jäkel, Evelyn; Werner, Frank; Weigel, Ralf; Borrmann, Stephan; Mahnke, Christoph; Pöschl, Ulrich; Andreae, Meinrat O.; Voigt, Christiane; Machado, Luiz A. T.

2018-04-01

Solar radiation reflected by cirrus and deep convective clouds (DCCs) was measured by the Spectral Modular Airborne Radiation Measurement System (SMART) installed on the German High Altitude and Long Range Research Aircraft (HALO) during the Mid-Latitude Cirrus (ML-CIRRUS) and the Aerosol, Cloud, Precipitation, and Radiation Interaction and Dynamic of Convective Clouds System - Cloud Processes of the Main Precipitation Systems in Brazil: A Contribution to Cloud Resolving Modelling and to the Global Precipitation Measurement (ACRIDICON-CHUVA) campaigns. On particular flights, HALO performed measurements closely collocated with overpasses of the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) aboard the Aqua satellite. A cirrus cloud located above liquid water clouds and a DCC topped by an anvil cirrus are analyzed in this paper. Based on the nadir spectral upward radiance measured above the two clouds, the optical thickness τ and particle effective radius reff of the cirrus and DCC are retrieved using a radiance ratio technique, which considers the cloud thermodynamic phase, the vertical profile of cloud microphysical properties, the presence of multilayer clouds, and the heterogeneity of the surface albedo. For the cirrus case, the comparison of τ and reff retrieved on the basis of SMART and MODIS measurements yields a normalized mean absolute deviation of up to 1.2 % for τ and 2.1 % for reff. For the DCC case, deviations of up to 3.6 % for τ and 6.2 % for reff are obtained. The larger deviations in the DCC case are mainly attributed to the fast cloud evolution and three-dimensional (3-D) radiative effects. Measurements of spectral upward radiance at near-infrared wavelengths are employed to investigate the vertical profile of reff in the cirrus. The retrieved values of reff are compared with corresponding in situ measurements using a vertical weighting method. Compared to the MODIS observations, measurements of SMART provide more information on the

Validation of water vapour profiles (version 13 retrieved by the IMK/IAA scientific retrieval processor based on full resolution spectra measured by MIPAS on board Envisat

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

M. Milz

2009-07-01

Full Text Available Vertical profiles of stratospheric water vapour measured by the Michelson Interferometer for Passive Atmospheric Sounding (MIPAS with the full resolution mode between September 2002 and March 2004 and retrieved with the IMK/IAA scientific retrieval processor were compared to a number of independent measurements in order to estimate the bias and to validate the existing precision estimates of the MIPAS data. The estimated precision for MIPAS is 5 to 10% in the stratosphere, depending on altitude, latitude, and season. The independent instruments were: the Halogen Occultation Experiment (HALOE, the Atmospheric Chemistry Experiment Fourier Transform Spectrometer (ACE-FTS, the Improved Limb Atmospheric Spectrometer-II (ILAS-II, the Polar Ozone and Aerosol Measurement (POAM III instrument, the Middle Atmospheric Water Vapour Radiometer (MIAWARA, the Michelson Interferometer for Passive Atmospheric Sounding, balloon-borne version (MIPAS-B, the Airborne Microwave Stratospheric Observing System (AMSOS, the Fluorescent Stratospheric Hygrometer for Balloon (FLASH-B, the NOAA frostpoint hygrometer, and the Fast In Situ Hygrometer (FISH. For the in-situ measurements and the ground based, air- and balloon borne remote sensing instruments, the measurements are restricted to central and northern Europe. The comparisons to satellite-borne instruments are predominantly at mid- to high latitudes on both hemispheres. In the stratosphere there is no clear indication of a bias in MIPAS data, because the independent measurements in some cases are drier and in some cases are moister than the MIPAS measurements. Compared to the infrared measurements of MIPAS, measurements in the ultraviolet and visible have a tendency to be high, whereas microwave measurements have a tendency to be low. The results of χ²-based precision validation are somewhat controversial among the comparison estimates. However, for comparison instruments whose error budget also includes

One Year of Vertical Wind Profiles Measurements at a Mediterranean Coastal Site of South Italy

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Calidonna, Claudia Roberta; Gullì, Daniel; Avolio, Elenio

2015-01-01

To exploit wind energy both onshore and offshore in coastal area the effect of the coastal discontinuity is important. The shape of the vertical wind profiles and the related c parameter of the Weibull distribution are impacted by the atmospheric internal boundary layers developing from the coast...

Validation of vertical profile from atmosphere using ATOVS products and its impact over Indian region.

Science.gov (United States)

Mahandru, Riddhi; Kumar, Adarsh; Mitra, Ashim kumar

This research paper summarizes the validation of atmospheric vertical profile using NOAA(National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration)/ MetOp satellite derived data over India with radiosonde observations over a span of 8 months. NOAA's International Advanced Television and Infrared Observations satellite Vertical Sounder (ATOVS) processing package (IAPP) obtains temperature and moisture profiles in different pressure levels ranging from 1000hpa to 10hpa from real time direct broadcast (DB) receiving system installed at India Meteorological department. Different pressure levels were substituted to the same pressure levels for calculations of standard deviation, bias and RMSE (root mean square error) The sounder derived products like Total precipitable water vapor (TPW) and Lifting index(LI) from NOAA Satellite was also validated with radiosonde data which provided significant results for weather forecasting. The validation shows that the sounder provides unique information about the state of atmosphere and monitoring the convective environment for severe weather forecasting In addition to this, case study on severe weather events was analyzed using ATOVS products.

Ten years of MIPAS measurements with ESA Level 2 processor V6 – Part 1: Retrieval algorithm and diagnostics of the products

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

P. Raspollini

2013-09-01

Full Text Available The MIPAS (Michelson Interferometer for Passive Atmospheric Sounding instrument on the Envisat (Environmental satellite satellite has provided vertical profiles of the atmospheric composition on a global scale for almost ten years. The MIPAS mission is divided in two phases: the full resolution phase, from 2002 to 2004, and the optimized resolution phase, from 2005 to 2012, which is characterized by a finer vertical and horizontal sampling attained through a reduction of the spectral resolution. While the description and characterization of the products of the ESA processor for the full resolution phase has been already described in previous papers, in this paper we focus on the performances of the latest version of the ESA (European Space Agency processor, named ML2PP V6 (MIPAS Level 2 Prototype Processor, which has been used for reprocessing the entire mission. The ESA processor had to perform the operational near real time analysis of the observations and its products needed to be available for data assimilation. Therefore, it has been designed for fast, continuous and automated analysis of observations made in quite different atmospheric conditions and for a minimum use of external constraints in order to avoid biases in the products. The dense vertical sampling of the measurements adopted in the second phase of the MIPAS mission resulted in sampling intervals finer than the instantaneous field of view of the instrument. Together with the choice of a retrieval grid aligned with the vertical sampling of the measurements, this made ill-conditioned the retrieval problem of the MIPAS operational processor. This problem has been handled with minimal changes to the original retrieval approach but with significant improvements nonetheless. The Levenberg–Marquardt method, already present in the retrieval scheme for its capability to provide fast convergence for nonlinear problems, is now also exploited for the reduction of the ill-conditioning of

Quantitative precipitation estimation in complex orography using quasi-vertical profiles of dual polarization radar variables

Science.gov (United States)

Montopoli, Mario; Roberto, Nicoletta; Adirosi, Elisa; Gorgucci, Eugenio; Baldini, Luca

2017-04-01

Weather radars are nowadays a unique tool to estimate quantitatively the rain precipitation near the surface. This is an important task for a plenty of applications. For example, to feed hydrological models, mitigate the impact of severe storms at the ground using radar information in modern warning tools as well as aid the validation studies of satellite-based rain products. With respect to the latter application, several ground validation studies of the Global Precipitation Mission (GPM) products have recently highlighted the importance of accurate QPE from ground-based weather radars. To date, a plenty of works analyzed the performance of various QPE algorithms making use of actual and synthetic experiments, possibly trained by measurement of particle size distributions and electromagnetic models. Most of these studies support the use of dual polarization variables not only to ensure a good level of radar data quality but also as a direct input in the rain estimation equations. Among others, one of the most important limiting factors in radar QPE accuracy is the vertical variability of particle size distribution that affects at different levels, all the radar variables acquired as well as rain rates. This is particularly impactful in mountainous areas where the altitudes of the radar sampling is likely several hundred of meters above the surface. In this work, we analyze the impact of the vertical profile variations of rain precipitation on several dual polarization radar QPE algorithms when they are tested a in complex orography scenario. So far, in weather radar studies, more emphasis has been given to the extrapolation strategies that make use of the signature of the vertical profiles in terms of radar co-polar reflectivity. This may limit the use of the radar vertical profiles when dual polarization QPE algorithms are considered because in that case all the radar variables used in the rain estimation process should be consistently extrapolated at the surface

Experimental investigation and numerical simulations of void profile development in a vertical cylindrical pipe

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Grossetete, Claudie

1995-01-01

We present here an experimental investigation and some numerical simulations of void profile development in a vertical cylindrical pipe. This study is motivated by the lack of information dealing with the influence of entrance effects and bubble size evolution upon the multidimensional development of upward bubbly flow in pipe. The axial development of two-phase air-water upward bubbly and bubbly-to-slug transition flows in a vertical pipe is investigated experimentally first. Profiles of liquid mean velocity, liquid axial turbulent intensity, void fraction, bubble frequency, bubble velocity, mean equivalent bubble diameter and volumetric interfacial area are determined along the same test section at three axial locations. It is found that the bubbly-to-slug transition can be deduced from the simultaneous analysis of the different measured profiles. Local analysis of the studied bubbly flows shows that their development does not depend on the shape of the void distribution at the inlet. However, it is found that the bubble size evolution strongly affects the void distribution. Secondly, multidimensional numerical simulations of bubbly flows with very different gas injection modes are made with the help of the tri dimensional two-fluid ASTRID code. It is shown that the classical models used to close the transverse momentum equations of the two-fluid model (lift and dispersion forces) do not capture the physical phenomena of bubble migration in pipe flows. (author) [fr

Experimental investigation and numerical simulations of void profile development in a vertical cylindrical pipe

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Grossetete, C.

1995-12-01

We present here an experimental investigation and some numerical simulations of void profile development in a vertical cylindrical pipe. This study is motivated by the lack of information dealing with the influence of entrance effects and bubble size evolution upon the multidimensional development of upward bubbly flow in pipe. The axial development of two-phase air-water upward bubbly and bubbly-to-slug transition flows in a vertical pipe is investigated experimentally first. Profiles of liquid mean velocity, liquid axial turbulent intensity, void fraction, bubble frequency, bubble velocity, mean equivalent bubble diameter and volumetric interfacial area are determined along the same test section at three axial locations. It is found that the bubbly-to-slug transition can be deduced from the simultaneous analysis of the different measured profiles. Local analysis of the studied bubbly flows shows that their development does not depend on the shape of the void distribution at the inlet. However, it is found that the bubble size evolution strongly affects the void distribution. Secondly, multidimensional numerical simulations of bubbly flows with very different gas injection modes are made with the help of the tridimensional two-fluid ASTRID code. It is shown that the classical models used to close the transverse momentum equations of the two-fluid model (lift and dispersion forces) do not capture the physical phenomena of bubble migration in pipe flows

Accounting for surface reflectance anisotropy in satellite retrievals of tropospheric NO₂

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Zhou, Yipin; Brunner, D.; Spurr, R.J.D.; Boersma, K.F.; Sneep, M.; Popp, C.; Buchmann, B.

2010-01-01

Surface reflectance is a key parameter in satellite trace gas retrievals in the UV/visible range and in particular for the retrieval of nitrogen dioxide (NO2) vertical tropospheric columns (VTCs). Current operational retrievals rely on coarse-resolution reflectance data and do not account for the

Impact of Vertical Canopy Position on Leaf Spectral Properties and Traits across Multiple Species

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Tawanda W. Gara

2018-02-01

Full Text Available Understanding the vertical pattern of leaf traits across plant canopies provide critical information on plant physiology, ecosystem functioning and structure and vegetation response to climate change. However, the impact of vertical canopy position on leaf spectral properties and subsequently leaf traits across the entire spectrum for multiple species is poorly understood. In this study, we examined the ability of leaf optical properties to track variability in leaf traits across the vertical canopy profile using Partial Least Square Discriminatory Analysis (PLS-DA. Leaf spectral measurements together with leaf traits (nitrogen, carbon, chlorophyll, equivalent water thickness and specific leaf area were studied at three vertical canopy positions along the plant stem: lower, middle and upper. We observed that foliar nitrogen (N, chlorophyll (Cab, carbon (C, and equivalent water thickness (EWT were higher in the upper canopy leaves compared with lower shaded leaves, while specific leaf area (SLA increased from upper to lower canopy leaves. We found that leaf spectral reflectance significantly (P ≤ 0.05 shifted to longer wavelengths in the ‘red edge’ spectrum (685–701 nm in the order of lower > middle > upper for the pooled dataset. We report that spectral bands that are influential in the discrimination of leaf samples into the three groups of canopy position, based on the PLS-DA variable importance projection (VIP score, match with wavelength regions of foliar traits observed to vary across the canopy vertical profile. This observation demonstrated that both leaf traits and leaf reflectance co-vary across the vertical canopy profile in multiple species. We conclude that canopy vertical position has a significant impact on leaf spectral properties of an individual plant’s traits, and this finding holds for multiple species. These findings have important implications on field sampling protocols, upscaling leaf traits to canopy level

ACTRIS aerosol vertical profile data and observations: potentiality and first examples of integrated studies with models

Science.gov (United States)

Mona, Lucia; Benedetti, Angela; D'Amico, Giuseppe; Myhre, Cathrine Lund; Schulz, Michael; Wandinger, Ulla; Laj, Paolo; Pappalardo, Gelsomina

2016-04-01

The ACTRIS-2 project, funded by Horizon 2020, addresses the scope of integrating state-of-the-art European ground-based stations for long term observations of aerosols, clouds and short lived gases, capitalizing on the work of FP7-ACTRIS. It aims at achieving the construction of a user-oriented RI, unique in the EU-RI landscape for providing 4-D integrated high-quality data from near-surface to high altitude (vertical profiles and total-column) which are relevant to climate and air-quality research. ACTRIS-2 develops and implements, in a large network of stations in Europe and beyond, observational protocols that permit the harmonization of collected data and their dissemination. ACTRIS secures provision and dissemination of a unique set of data and data-products that would not otherwise be available with the same level of quality and standardization. This results from a 10-year plus effort in constructing a research infrastructure capable of responding to community needs and requirements, and has been engaged since the start of the FP5 EU commission program. ACTRIS ensures compliance with reporting requirements (timing, format, traceability) defined by the major global observing networks. EARLINET (European Aerosol research Lidar NETwork), the aerosol vertical profiling component of ACTRIS, is providing since May 2000 vertical profiles of aerosol extinction and backscatter over Europe. A new structure of the EARLINET database has been designed in a more user oriented approach reporting new data products which are more effective for specific uses of different communities. In particular, a new era is starting with the Copernicus program during which the aerosol vertical profiling capability will be fundamental for assimilation and validation purposes. The new data products have been designed thanks to a strong link with EARLINET data users, first of all modeling and satellite communities, established since the beginning of EARLINET and re-enforced within ACTRIS2

Constraining the 0-20 km Vertical Profile of Water Vapor in the Martian Atmosphere with MGS-TES Limb Sounding

Science.gov (United States)

McConnochie, T. H.; Smith, M. D.; McDonald, G. D.

2016-12-01

The vertical profile of water vapor in the lower atmosphere of Mars is a crucial but poorly-measured detail of the water cycle. Most of our existing water vapor data sets (e.g. Smith, 2002, JGR 107; Smith et al., 2009, JGR 114; Maltagliati et al., 2011, Icarus 213) rely on the traditional assumption of uniform mass mixing from the surface up to a saturation level, but GCM models (Richardson et al., 2002, JGR 107; Navarro et al., 2014, JGR 119) imply that this is not the case in at least some important seasons and locations. For example at the equator during northern summer the water vapor mixing ratio in aforementioned GCMs increases upwards by a factor of two to three in the bottom scale height. This might influence the accuracy of existing precipitable water column (PWC) data sets. Even if not, the correct vertical distribution is critical for determining the extent to which high-altitude cold trapping interferes with inter-hemispheric transport, and its details in the lowest scale heights will be a critical test of the accuracy of modeled water vapor transport. Meanwhile attempts to understand apparent interactions of water vapor with surface soils (e.g. Ojha et al. 2015, Nature Geoscience 8; Savijärvi et al., 2016, Icarus 265) need an estimate for the amount of water vapor in the boundary layer, and existing PWC data sets can't provide this unless the lower atmospheric vertical distribution is known or constrained. Maltagliati et al. (2013, Icarus 223) have obtained vertical profiles of water vapor at higher altitudes with SPICAM on Mars Express, but these are commonly limited to altitudes greater 20 km and they never extend below 10 km. We have previously used Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) Thermal Emission Spectrometer (TES) limb-sounding to measure the vertical profile of water vapor (e.g. McConnochie and Smith, 2009, Fall AGU #P54B-06), but these preliminary results were clearly not quantitatively accurate in the lower atmosphere. We will present improved TES

EFFECTS OF NITROGEN PHOTOABSORPTION CROSS SECTION RESOLUTION ON MINOR SPECIES VERTICAL PROFILES IN TITAN’S UPPER ATMOSPHERE

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Luspay-Kuti, A.; Mandt, K. E.; Greathouse, T. K.; Plessis, S.

2015-01-01

The significant variations in both measured and modeled densities of minor species in Titan’s atmosphere call for the evaluation of possible influencing factors in photochemical modeling. The effect of nitrogen photoabsorption cross section selection on the modeled vertical profiles of minor species is analyzed here, with particular focus on C 2 H 6 and HCN. Our results show a clear impact of cross sections used on all neutral and ion species studied. Affected species include neutrals and ions that are not primary photochemical products, including species that do not even contain nitrogen. The results indicate that photochemical models that employ low-resolution cross sections may significantly miscalculate the vertical profiles of minor species. Such differences are expected to have important implications for Titan’s overall atmospheric structure and chemistry

EFFECTS OF NITROGEN PHOTOABSORPTION CROSS SECTION RESOLUTION ON MINOR SPECIES VERTICAL PROFILES IN TITAN’S UPPER ATMOSPHERE

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Luspay-Kuti, A.; Mandt, K. E.; Greathouse, T. K. [Space Science and Engineering Division, Southwest Research Institute, 6220 Culebra Road, San Antonio, TX 78238 (United States); Plessis, S., E-mail: aluspaykuti@swri.edu [ICES, The University of Texas at Austin, 201 East 24th Street, Austin, TX 78712 (United States)

2015-03-01

The significant variations in both measured and modeled densities of minor species in Titan’s atmosphere call for the evaluation of possible influencing factors in photochemical modeling. The effect of nitrogen photoabsorption cross section selection on the modeled vertical profiles of minor species is analyzed here, with particular focus on C{sub 2}H{sub 6} and HCN. Our results show a clear impact of cross sections used on all neutral and ion species studied. Affected species include neutrals and ions that are not primary photochemical products, including species that do not even contain nitrogen. The results indicate that photochemical models that employ low-resolution cross sections may significantly miscalculate the vertical profiles of minor species. Such differences are expected to have important implications for Titan’s overall atmospheric structure and chemistry.

Vertical profiles of aerosol and black carbon in the Arctic: a seasonal phenomenology along 2 years (2011–2012 of field campaigns

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

L. Ferrero

2016-10-01

Full Text Available We present results from a systematic study of vertical profiles of aerosol number size distribution and black carbon (BC concentrations conducted in the Arctic, over Ny-Ålesund (Svalbard. The campaign lasted 2 years (2011–2012 and resulted in 200 vertical profiles measured by means of a tethered balloon (up to 1200 m a.g.l. during the spring and summer seasons. In addition, chemical analysis of filter samples, aerosol size distribution and a full set of meteorological parameters were determined at ground. The collected experimental data allowed a classification of the vertical profiles into different typologies, which allowed us to describe the seasonal phenomenology of vertical aerosol properties in the Arctic. During spring, four main types of profiles were found and their behavior was related to the main aerosol and atmospheric dynamics occurring at the measuring site. Background conditions generated homogenous profiles. Transport events caused an increase of aerosol concentration with altitude. High Arctic haze pollution trapped below thermal inversions promoted a decrease of aerosol concentration with altitude. Finally, ground-based plumes of locally formed secondary aerosol determined profiles with decreasing aerosol concentration located at different altitude as a function of size. During the summer season, the impact from shipping caused aerosol and BC pollution plumes to be constrained close to the ground, indicating that increasing shipping emissions in the Arctic could bring anthropogenic aerosol and BC in the Arctic summer, affecting the climate.

Error analysis for mesospheric temperature profiling by absorptive occultation sensors

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

M. J. Rieder

unprecedented accuracy and vertical resolution. A major part of the error analysis also applies to refractive (e.g., Global Navigation Satellite System based occultations as well as to any temperature profile retrieval based on air density or major species density measurements (e.g., from Rayleigh lidar or falling sphere techniques.

Key words. Atmospheric composition and structure (pressure, density, and temperature; instruments and techniques – Radio science (remote sensing

Error analysis for mesospheric temperature profiling by absorptive occultation sensors

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

M. J. Rieder

2001-01-01

unprecedented accuracy and vertical resolution. A major part of the error analysis also applies to refractive (e.g., Global Navigation Satellite System based occultations as well as to any temperature profile retrieval based on air density or major species density measurements (e.g., from Rayleigh lidar or falling sphere techniques.Key words. Atmospheric composition and structure (pressure, density, and temperature; instruments and techniques – Radio science (remote sensing

Impact of the vertical emission profiles on background gas-phase pollution simulated from the EMEP emissions over Europe

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S. Mailler

2013-06-01

Full Text Available Five one-year air quality simulations over a domain covering Europe have been performed using the CHIMERE chemistry transport model and the EMEP emission dataset for Europe. These five simulations differ only by the representation of the effective emission heights for anthropogenic emissions: one has been run using the EMEP standard recommendations, three others with vertical injection profiles derived from the EMEP recommendations but multiplying the injection height by 0.75, 0.50 and 0.25, respectively, while the last one uses vertical profiles derived from the recent literature. It is shown that using injection heights lower than the EMEP recommendations leads to significantly improved simulation of background SO2, NO2 and O3 concentrations when compared to the Airbase station measurements.

Two Years of Ozone Vertical Profiles Collected from Aircraft over California and the Pacific Ocean

Science.gov (United States)

Austerberry, D.; Yates, E. L.; Roby, M.; Chatfield, R. B.; Iraci, L. T.; Pierce, B.; Fairlie, T. D.; Johnson, B. J.; Ives, M.

2012-12-01

Tropospheric ozone transported across the Pacific Ocean has been strongly suggested to contribute substantially to surface ozone levels at several sites within Northern California's Sacramento Valley. Because this contribution can affect a city's ability to meet regulatory ozone limits, the influence of Pacific ozone transport has implications for air quality control strategies in the San Joaquin Valley (SJV). The Alpha Jet Atmospheric Experiment is designed to collect a multi-year data set of tropospheric ozone vertical profiles. Forty-four flights with ozone profiles were conducted between February 2nd, 2011 and August 9th, 2012, and approximately ten more flights are expected in the remainder of 2012. Twenty marine air profiles have been collected at sites including Trinidad Head and two locations tens of kilometers offshore at 37° N latitude. Good agreement is seen with ozonesondes launched from Trinidad Head. Additional profiles over Merced, California were obtained on many of these flight days. These in-situ measurements were conducted during spiral descents of H211's Alpha Jet at mid-day local times using a 2B Technologies Dual Beam Ozone Monitor. Hourly surface ambient ozone data were obtained from the California Air Resources Board's SJV monitoring sites. For each site, the Pearson linear correlation coefficient was calculated between ozone in a 300m vertical layer of an offshore profile and the surface site at varying time offsets from the time of the profile. Each site's local and regional ozone production component was estimated and removed. The resulting correlations suggest instances of Pacific ozone transport following some of the offshore observations. Real-Time Air Quality Modeling System (RAQMS) products constrained by assimilated satellite data model the transport of ozone enhancements and guide flight planning. RAQMS hindcasts also suggest that ozone transport to the surface of the SJV basin occurred following some of these offshore profiles

Comparisons of Upper Tropospheric Humidity Retrievals from TOVS and METEOSAT

Science.gov (United States)

Escoffier, C.; Bates, J.; Chedin, A.; Rossow, W. B.; Schmetz, J.

1999-01-01

Two different methods for retrieving Upper Tropospheric Humidities (UTH) from the TOVS (TIROS Operational Vertical Sounder) instruments aboard NOAA polar orbiting satellites are presented and compared. The first one, from the Environmental Technology Laboratory, computed by J. Bates and D. Jackson (hereafter BJ method), estimates UTH from a simplified radiative transfer analysis of the upper tropospheric infrared water vapor channel at wavelength measured by HIRS (6.3 micrometer). The second one results from a neural network analysis of the TOVS (HIRS and MSU) data developed at, the Laboratoire de Meteorologie Dynamique (hereafter the 3I (Improved Initialization Inversion) method). Although the two methods give very similar retrievals in temperate regions (30-60 N and S), an absolute bias up to 16% appears in the convective zone of the tropics. The two datasets have also been compared with UTH retrievals from infrared radiance measurements in the 6.3 micrometer channel from the geostationary satellite METEOSAT (hereafter MET method). The METEOSAT retrievals are systematically drier than the TOVS-based results by an absolute bias between 5 and 25%. Despite the biases, the spatial and temporal correlations are very good. The purpose of this study is to explain the deviations observed between the three datasets. The sensitivity of UTH to air temperature and humidity profiles is analysed as are the clouds effects. Overall, the comparison of the three retrievals gives an assessment of the current uncertainties in water vapor amounts in the upper troposphere as determined from NOAA and METEOSAT satellites.

Spectra and gross features of vertical temperature and salinity profiles off the central west coast of India

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Varkey, M.J.; Nagarajan, R.

Continuous vertical profiles of temperature and salinity recorded by a CTD-system from the continental slope and the continental rise off Goa, west coast of India, were used for delineating the gross statistical features of the fine structure...

Effects of wall roughness and entry length on void profile in vertical bubbly flow

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Takamasa, Tomoji

1988-01-01

An experimental study of upward air-water bubbly two-phase flow in an entry region was performed with various rough wall test tubes. The objective of the work is to clarify the effects of wall roughness and entry length on void profile. The fluid flows in the vertical circular test tube of 25 mm I.D. under nearly atmospheric pressure, at room temperature. The void profile changes from a pattern similar in appearance to the saddle shape which has local void peaks near the wall, into the power law shape whose curve is approximated by a power law formula, with increasing wall roughness and/or entry length. That is, wall roughness and entry length have a similar effect upon void profile. There are two patterns in the power law shape, a pattern with sharp center peak and a pattern with obtuse center peak. As wall roughness and/or entry length increase, the void profile changes from the former pattern to the latter pattern. At enough long entry length (L/D ≅ 150), every void profile has almost the same power law shape independent of wall roughness. Some void profiles are asymmetric to the axis. (author)

Vertical profiles of aerosol mass concentration derived by unmanned airborne in situ and remote sensing instruments during dust events

Science.gov (United States)

Mamali, Dimitra; Marinou, Eleni; Sciare, Jean; Pikridas, Michael; Kokkalis, Panagiotis; Kottas, Michael; Binietoglou, Ioannis; Tsekeri, Alexandra; Keleshis, Christos; Engelmann, Ronny; Baars, Holger; Ansmann, Albert; Amiridis, Vassilis; Russchenberg, Herman; Biskos, George

2018-05-01

In situ measurements using unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and remote sensing observations can independently provide dense vertically resolved measurements of atmospheric aerosols, information which is strongly required in climate models. In both cases, inverting the recorded signals to useful information requires assumptions and constraints, and this can make the comparison of the results difficult. Here we compare, for the first time, vertical profiles of the aerosol mass concentration derived from light detection and ranging (lidar) observations and in situ measurements using an optical particle counter on board a UAV during moderate and weak Saharan dust episodes. Agreement between the two measurement methods was within experimental uncertainty for the coarse mode (i.e. particles having radii > 0.5 µm), where the properties of dust particles can be assumed with good accuracy. This result proves that the two techniques can be used interchangeably for determining the vertical profiles of aerosol concentrations, bringing them a step closer towards their systematic exploitation in climate models.

Modification of Turbulent Pipe Flow Equations to Estimate the Vertical Velocity Profiles Under Woody Debris Jams

Science.gov (United States)

Cervania, A.; Knack, I. M. W.

2017-12-01

The presence of woody debris (WD) jams in rivers and streams increases the risk of backwater flooding and reduces the navigability of a channel, but adds fish and macroinvertebrate habitat to the stream. When designing river engineering projects engineers use hydraulic models to predict flow behavior around these obstructions. However, the complexities of flow through and beneath WD jams are still poorly understood. By increasing the ability to predict flow behavior around WD jams, landowners and engineers are empowered to develop sustainable practices regarding the removal or placement of WD in rivers and flood plains to balance the desirable and undesirable effects to society and the environment. The objective of this study is to address some of this knowledge gap by developing a method to estimate the vertical velocity profile of flow under WD jams. When flow passes under WD jams, it becomes affected by roughness elements on all sides, similar to turbulent flows in pipe systems. Therefore, the method was developed using equations that define the velocity profiles of turbulent pipe flows: the law of the wall, the logarithmic law, and the velocity defect law. Flume simulations of WD jams were conducted and the vertical velocity profiles were measured along the centerline. A calculated velocity profile was fit to the measured profile through the calibration of eight parameters. An optimal value or range of values have been determined for several of these parameters using cross-validation techniques. The results indicate there may be some promise to using this method in hydraulic models.

Characterizing the Vertical Profile of Aerosol Particle Extinction and Linear Depolarization over Southeast Asia and the Maritime Continent: The 2007-2009 View from CALIOP

Science.gov (United States)

Campbell, James R.; Reid, Jeffrey S.; Westphal, Douglas L.; Zhang, Jianglong; Tackett, Jason L.; Chew, Boon Ning; Welton, Ellsworth J.; Shimizu, Atsushi; Sugimoto, Nobuo; Aoki, Kazuma;

Vertical Distribution of Water at Phoenix

Science.gov (United States)

Tamppari, L. K.; Lemmon, M. T.

2011-01-01

Phoenix results, combined with coordinated observations from the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter of the Phoenix lander site, indicate that the water vapor is nonuniform (i.e., not well mixed) up to a calculated cloud condensation level. It is important to understand the mixing profile of water vapor because (a) the assumption of a well-mixed atmosphere up to a cloud condensation level is common in retrievals of column water abundances which are in turn used to understand the seasonal and interannual behavior of water, (b) there is a long history of observations and modeling that conclude both that water vapor is and is not well-mixed, and some studies indicate that the water vapor vertical mixing profile may, in fact, change with season and location, (c) the water vapor in the lowest part of the atmosphere is the reservoir that can exchange with the regolith and higher amounts may have an impact on the surface chemistry, and (d) greater water vapor abundances close to the surface may enhance surface exchange thereby reducing regional transport, which in turn has implications to the net transport of water vapor over seasonal and annual timescales.

Validation of three different scientific ozone products retrieved from IASI spectra using ozonesondes

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

G. Dufour

2012-03-01

Full Text Available Three scientific ozone products from the Infrared Atmospheric Sounding Interferometer (IASI aboard MetOp-A, retrieved in three different research teams (LA, LATMOS/ULB, LISA with different retrieval schemes, are characterized and validated using ozonesondes measurements. The characteristics of the products are analyzed in terms of retrieval sensitivity, systematic and random errors, and ability to retrieve the natural variability of ozone and focus on different partial columns from the lower troposphere up to 30 km. The validation covers the midlatitudes and the tropics and the period from January to December 2008. The products present degrees of freedom (DOF in the troposphere between 1 and 1.2 on average in the midlatitudes and between 1 and 1.4 in the tropics. The DOF are distributed differently on the vertical depending on the profiles and the season: summer leading to a better sensitivity to the lower troposphere, as expected. The error estimates range between 10 and 20% from the lower tropospheric partial columns (0–6 km and 0–8 km for the midlatitudes and the tropics respectively to the UTLS partial columns (8–16 km and 11–20 km for the midlatitudes and the tropics respectively for all the products and are about 5% in the stratosphere (16–30 km and for the column up to 30 km. The main feature that arises from the comparison with the ozonesondes is a systematic overestimation of ozone in the UTLS (between 10 and 25% by the three products in the midlatitudes and the tropics, attributed to the moderate vertical resolution of IASI and possibly to spectroscopic inconsistencies. The ability of the products to reproduce natural variability of tropospheric ozone is fairly good and depends on the considered season and region.

Intelligent retrieval of chest X-ray image database using sketches

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hasegawa, Jun-ichi; Okada, Noritake; Toriwaki, Jun-ichiro

1988-01-01

This paper presents further experiments on intelligent retrieval in our chest X-ray image database system using 'sketches'. First, in the previous sketch extraction procedure, vertical-location-invariant thresholding and shape-oriented smoothing are newly developed to improve the precision of lung borders and rib images in each sketch, respectively. Then, two new ways for image retrieval using sketches; (1) image-description retrieval and (2) pattern-matching retrieval, are proposed. In each retrieval way, a procedure for understanding picture queries input through a sketch is described in detail. (author)

Vertical distribution of the particle phase in tropical deep convective clouds as derived from cloud-side reflected solar radiation measurements

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

E. Jäkel

2017-07-01

Full Text Available Vertical profiles of cloud particle phase in tropical deep convective clouds (DCCs were investigated using airborne solar spectral radiation data collected by the German High Altitude and Long Range Research Aircraft (HALO during the ACRIDICON-CHUVA campaign, which was conducted over the Brazilian rainforest in September 2014. A phase discrimination retrieval based on imaging spectroradiometer measurements of DCC side spectral reflectivity was applied to clouds formed in different aerosol conditions. From the retrieval results the height of the mixed-phase layer of the DCCs was determined. The retrieved profiles were compared with in situ measurements and satellite observations. It was found that the depth and vertical position of the mixed-phase layer can vary up to 900 m for one single cloud scene. This variability is attributed to the different stages of cloud development in a scene. Clouds of mature or decaying stage are affected by falling ice particles resulting in lower levels of fully glaciated cloud layers compared to growing clouds. Comparing polluted and moderate aerosol conditions revealed a shift of the lower boundary of the mixed-phase layer from 5.6 ± 0.2 km (269 K; moderate to 6.2 ± 0.3 km (267 K; polluted, and of the upper boundary from 6.8 ± 0.2 km (263 K; moderate to 7.4 ± 0.4 km (259 K; polluted, as would be expected from theory.

Emplacement and retrieval equipment design considerations for a repository in salt

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nair, B.R.; Bahorich, R.J.

1987-01-01

The current design concept for the disposal of nuclear high level waste packages in a repository in salt is based on the emplacement of individual packages in vertical boreholes in the underground mine floor. A key requirement is that the waste packages be capable of being retrieved during the last 26 years of the 76-year repository operating period. The unique design considerations relating to the retrieval of waste packages emplaced in bedded salt are presented in this paper. The information is based on the experience developed during the design of vertical emplacement and retrieval equipment in support of the Sandia Defense High Level Waste experiments at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant. Also included are the impact of retrievability on the design of the equipment, the special salt cutting technology that was developed for this application, and a description of the equipment

Remote sensing of water vapour profiles in the framework of the Total Carbon Column Observing Network (TCCON

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M. Schneider

2010-12-01

Full Text Available We show that the near infrared solar absorption spectra recorded in the framework of the Total Carbon Column Observing Network (TCCON can be used to derive the vertical distribution of tropospheric water vapour. The resolution of the TCCON spectra of 0.02 cm⁻¹ is sufficient for retrieving lower and middle/upper tropospheric water vapour concentrations with a vertical resolution of about 3 and 8 km, respectively. We document the good quality of the remotely-sensed profiles by comparisons with coincident in-situ Vaisala RS92 radiosonde measurements. Due to the high measurement frequency, the TCCON water vapour profile data offer novel opportunities for estimating the water vapour variability at different timescales and altitudes.

Combined ground- and satellite-based profiling of temperature and water vapor

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Stankov, B.B.; Westwater, E.R.; Snider, J.B.; Churnside, J.H.

1994-01-01

The fusion or integration of meteorological and radiative data from a range of instrumentation into a representative picture of temperature, water vapor, and clouds over a CART domain will be a challenging task for four-dimensional data assimilation models. In the work reported here, we have summarized work supported by DOE's algorithm development program including combined RASS and TIROS Operational Vertical Sounder (TOVS) temperature sensing, water vapor profiles from dual-channel radiometers, and neural network radiometric temperature retrievals

HURRICANE AND SEVERE STORM SENTINEL (HS3) GLOBAL HAWK ADVANCED VERTICAL ATMOSPHERIC PROFILING SYSTEM (AVAPS) DROPSONDE SYSTEM V2

Data.gov (United States)

National Aeronautics and Space Administration — The Hurricane and Severe Storm Sentinel (HS3) Global Hawk Advanced Vertical Atmospheric Profiling System (AVAPS) Dropsonde System dataset was collected by the...

Assessment of Mars Atmospheric Temperature Retrievals from the Thermal Emission Spectrometer Radiances

Science.gov (United States)

Hoffman, Matthew J.; Eluszkiewicz, Janusz; Weisenstein, Deborah; Uymin, Gennady; Moncet, Jean-Luc

2012-01-01

Motivated by the needs of Mars data assimilation. particularly quantification of measurement errors and generation of averaging kernels. we have evaluated atmospheric temperature retrievals from Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) Thermal Emission Spectrometer (TES) radiances. Multiple sets of retrievals have been considered in this study; (1) retrievals available from the Planetary Data System (PDS), (2) retrievals based on variants of the retrieval algorithm used to generate the PDS retrievals, and (3) retrievals produced using the Mars 1-Dimensional Retrieval (M1R) algorithm based on the Optimal Spectral Sampling (OSS ) forward model. The retrieved temperature profiles are compared to the MGS Radio Science (RS) temperature profiles. For the samples tested, the M1R temperature profiles can be made to agree within 2 K with the RS temperature profiles, but only after tuning the prior and error statistics. Use of a global prior that does not take into account the seasonal dependence leads errors of up 6 K. In polar samples. errors relative to the RS temperature profiles are even larger. In these samples, the PDS temperature profiles also exhibit a poor fit with RS temperatures. This fit is worse than reported in previous studies, indicating that the lack of fit is due to a bias correction to TES radiances implemented after 2004. To explain the differences between the PDS and Ml R temperatures, the algorithms are compared directly, with the OSS forward model inserted into the PDS algorithm. Factors such as the filtering parameter, the use of linear versus nonlinear constrained inversion, and the choice of the forward model, are found to contribute heavily to the differences in the temperature profiles retrieved in the polar regions, resulting in uncertainties of up to 6 K. Even outside the poles, changes in the a priori statistics result in different profile shapes which all fit the radiances within the specified error. The importance of the a priori statistics prevents

Iterative approach to self-adapting and altitude-dependent regularization for atmospheric profile retrievals.

Science.gov (United States)

Ridolfi, Marco; Sgheri, Luca

2011-12-19

In this paper we present the IVS (Iterative Variable Strength) method, an altitude-dependent, self-adapting Tikhonov regularization scheme for atmospheric profile retrievals. The method is based on a similar scheme we proposed in 2009. The new method does not need any specifically tuned minimization routine, hence it is more robust and faster. We test the self-consistency of the method using simulated observations of the Michelson Interferometer for Passive Atmospheric Sounding (MIPAS). We then compare the new method with both our previous scheme and the scalar method currently implemented in the MIPAS on-line processor, using both synthetic and real atmospheric limb measurements. The IVS method shows very good performances.

Spatial distribution and vertical variation of arsenic in Guangdong soil profiles, China

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhang, H.H.; Yuan, H.X.; Hu, Y.G.; Wu, Z.F.; Zhu, L.A.; Zhu, L.; Li, F.B.; LI, D.Q.

2006-01-01

Total of 260 soil profiles were reported to investigate the arsenic spatial distribution and vertical variation in Guangdong province. The arsenic concentration followed an approximately lognormal distribution. The arsenic geometric mean concentration of 10.4 mg/kg is higher than that of China. An upper baseline concentration of 23.4 mg/kg was estimated for surface soils. The influence of soil properties on arsenic concentration was not important. Arsenic spatial distributions presented similar patterns that high arsenic concentration mainly located in limestone, and sandshale areas, indicating that soil arsenic distribution was dependent on bedrock properties than anthropogenic inputs. Moreover, from A- to C-horizon arsenic geometric mean concentrations had an increasing tendency of 10.4, 10.7 to 11.3 mg/kg. This vertical variation may be related to the lower soil organic matter and soil degradation and erosion. Consequently, the soil arsenic export into surface and groundwaters would reach 1040 t year -1 in the study area. - Soil arsenic movement export is a potential threat to the water quality of the study area

A Bayesian Retrieval of Greenland Ice Sheet Internal Temperature from Ultra-wideband Software-defined Microwave Radiometer (UWBRAD) Measurements

Science.gov (United States)

Duan, Y.; Durand, M. T.; Jezek, K. C.; Yardim, C.; Bringer, A.; Aksoy, M.; Johnson, J. T.

2017-12-01

. Including the fine scale density fluctuation greatly improved the retrieval results. The ice sheet vertical temperature profile, especially the 10m temperature, can be well retrieved via the MCMC process. Future retrieval work will apply the Bayesian approach to UWBRAD airborne measurements.

Vertical velocity and turbulence aspects during Mistral events as observed by UHF wind profilers

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

J.-L. Caccia

2004-11-01

Full Text Available The general purpose of this paper is to experimentally study mesoscale dynamical aspects of the Mistral in the coastal area located at the exit of the Rhône-valley. The Mistral is a northerly low-level flow blowing in southern France along the Rhône-valley axis, located between the French Alps and the Massif Central, towards the Mediterranean Sea. The experimental data are obtained by UHF wind profilers deployed during two major field campaigns, MAP (Mesoscale Alpine Program in autumn 1999, and ESCOMPTE (Expérience sur Site pour COntraindre les Modèles de Pollution atmosphériques et de Transports d'Emission in summer 2001. Thanks to the use of the time evolution of the vertical profile of the horizontal wind vector, recent works have shown that the dynamics of the Mistral is highly dependent on the season because of the occurrence of specific synoptic patterns. In addition, during summer, thermal forcing leads to a combination of sea breeze with Mistral and weaker Mistral due to the enhanced friction while, during autumn, absence of convective turbulence leads to substantial acceleration as low-level jets are generated in the stably stratified planetary boundary layer. At the exit of the Rhône valley, the gap flow dynamics dominates, whereas at the lee of the Alps, the dynamics is driven by the relative contribution of "flow around" and "flow over" mechanisms, upstream of the Alps. This paper analyses vertical velocity and turbulence, i.e. turbulent dissipation rate, with data obtained by the same UHF wind profilers during the same Mistral events. In autumn, the motions are found to be globally and significantly subsident, which is coherent for a dry, cold and stable flow approaching the sea, and the turbulence is found to be of pure dynamical origin (wind shears and mountain/lee wave breaking, which is coherent with non-convective situations. In summer, due to the ground heating and to the interactions with thermal circulation, the

Vertical velocity and turbulence aspects during Mistral events as observed by UHF wind profilers

Science.gov (United States)

Caccia, J.; Guénard, V.; Benech, B.; Campistron, B.; Drobinski, P.

2004-11-01

The general purpose of this paper is to experimentally study mesoscale dynamical aspects of the Mistral in the coastal area located at the exit of the Rhône-valley. The Mistral is a northerly low-level flow blowing in southern France along the Rhône-valley axis, located between the French Alps and the Massif Central, towards the Mediterranean Sea. The experimental data are obtained by UHF wind profilers deployed during two major field campaigns, MAP (Mesoscale Alpine Program) in autumn 1999, and ESCOMPTE (Expérience sur Site pour COntraindre les Modèles de Pollution atmosphériques et de Transports d'Emission) in summer 2001. Thanks to the use of the time evolution of the vertical profile of the horizontal wind vector, recent works have shown that the dynamics of the Mistral is highly dependent on the season because of the occurrence of specific synoptic patterns. In addition, during summer, thermal forcing leads to a combination of sea breeze with Mistral and weaker Mistral due to the enhanced friction while, during autumn, absence of convective turbulence leads to substantial acceleration as low-level jets are generated in the stably stratified planetary boundary layer. At the exit of the Rhône valley, the gap flow dynamics dominates, whereas at the lee of the Alps, the dynamics is driven by the relative contribution of "flow around" and "flow over" mechanisms, upstream of the Alps. This paper analyses vertical velocity and turbulence, i.e. turbulent dissipation rate, with data obtained by the same UHF wind profilers during the same Mistral events. In autumn, the motions are found to be globally and significantly subsident, which is coherent for a dry, cold and stable flow approaching the sea, and the turbulence is found to be of pure dynamical origin (wind shears and mountain/lee wave breaking), which is coherent with non-convective situations. In summer, due to the ground heating and to the interactions with thermal circulation, the vertical motions are

Vertical velocity and turbulence aspects during Mistral events as observed by UHF wind profilers

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Caccia, J.L.; Guenard, V. [LSEET, CNRS/Univ. de Toulon, La Garde (France); Benech, B.; Campistron, B. [CRA/LA, CNRS/Obs. Midi-Pyrenees, Campistrous (France); Drobinski, P. [IPSL/SA, CNRS/Univ. de Paris VI, Paris (France)

2004-07-01

The general purpose of this paper is to experimentally study mesoscale dynamical aspects of the Mistral in the coastal area located at the exit of the Rhone-valley. The Mistral is a northerly low-level flow blowing in southern France along the Rhone-valley axis, located between the French Alps and the Massif Central, towards the Mediterranean Sea. The experimental data are obtained by UHF wind profilers deployed during two major field campaigns, MAP (mesoscale alpine program) in autumn 1999, and ESCOMPTE (Experience sur Site pour COntraindre les Modeles de Pollution atmospheriques et de Transports d'Emission) in summer 2001. Thanks to the use of the time evolution of the vertical profile of the horizontal wind vector, recent works have shown that the dynamics of the Mistral is highly dependent on the season because of the occurrence of specific synoptic patterns. In addition, during summer, thermal forcing leads to a combination of sea breeze with Mistral and weaker Mistral due to the enhanced friction while, during autumn, absence of convective turbulence leads to substantial acceleration as low-level jets are generated in the stably stratified planetary boundary layer. At the exit of the Rhone valley, the gap flow dynamics dominates, whereas at the lee of the Alps, the dynamics is driven by the relative contribution of ''flow around'' and ''flow over'' mechanisms, upstream of the Alps. This paper analyses vertical velocity and turbulence, i.e. turbulent dissipation rate, with data obtained by the same UHF wind profilers during the same Mistral events. In autumn, the motions are found to be globally and significantly subsident, which is coherent for a dry, cold and stable flow approaching the sea, and the turbulence is found to be of pure dynamical origin (wind shears and mountain/lee wave breaking), which is coherent with non-convective situations. In summer, due to the ground heating and to the interactions with

Vertical profiles of ozone, carbon monoxide, and dew-point temperature obtained during GTE/CITE 1, October-November 1983. [Chemical Instrumentation Test and Evaluation

Science.gov (United States)

Fishman, Jack; Gregory, Gerald L.; Sachse, Glen W.; Beck, Sherwin M.; Hill, Gerald F.

1987-01-01

A set of 14 pairs of vertical profiles of ozone and carbon monoxide, obtained with fast-response instrumentation, is presented. Most of these profiles, which were measured in the remote troposphere, also have supporting fast-response dew-point temperature profiles. The data suggest that the continental boundary layer is a source of tropospheric ozone, even in October and November, when photochemical activity should be rather small. In general, the small-scale vertical variability between CO and O3 is in phase. At low latitudes this relationship defines levels in the atmosphere where midlatitude air is being transported to lower latitudes, since lower dew-point temperatures accompany these higher CO and O3 concentrations. A set of profiles which is suggestive of interhemispheric transport is also presented. Independent meteorological analyses support these interpretations.

Vertical profiles of lung deposited surface area concentration of particulate matter measured with a drone in a street canyon.

Science.gov (United States)

Kuuluvainen, Heino; Poikkimäki, Mikko; Järvinen, Anssi; Kuula, Joel; Irjala, Matti; Dal Maso, Miikka; Keskinen, Jorma; Timonen, Hilkka; Niemi, Jarkko V; Rönkkö, Topi

2018-05-23

The vertical profiles of lung deposited surface area (LDSA) concentration were measured in an urban street canyon in Helsinki, Finland, by using an unmanned aerial system (UAS) as a moving measurement platform. The street canyon can be classified as an avenue canyon with an aspect ratio of 0.45 and the UAS was a multirotor drone especially modified for emission measurements. In the experiments of this study, the drone was equipped with a small diffusion charge sensor capable of measuring the alveolar LDSA concentration of particles. The drone measurements were conducted during two days on the same spatial location at the kerbside of the street canyon by flying vertically from the ground level up to an altitude of 50 m clearly above the rooftop level (19 m) of the nearest buildings. The drone data were supported by simultaneous measurements and by a two-week period of measurements at nearby locations with various instruments. The results showed that the averaged LDSA concentrations decreased approximately from 60 μm 2 /cm 3 measured close to the ground level to 36-40 μm 2 /cm 3 measured close to the rooftop level of the street canyon, and further to 16-26 μm 2 /cm 3 measured at 50 m. The high-resolution measurement data enabled an accurate analysis of the functional form of vertical profiles both in the street canyon and above the rooftop level. In both of these regions, exponential fits were used and the parameters obtained from the fits were thoroughly compared to the values found in literature. The results of this study indicated that the role of turbulent mixing caused by traffic was emphasized compared to the street canyon vortex as a driving force of the dispersion. In addition, the vertical profiles above the rooftop level showed a similar exponential decay compared to the profiles measured inside the street canyon. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

3-D x-ray mirror metrology with a vertical scanning long trace profiler

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Takacs, P.Z.; Li, H.; Li, X.; Grindel, M.W.

1996-01-01

The long trace profiler (LTP) was originally developed at Brookhaven National Laboratory for the specific purpose of measuring the surface figure of large cylindrical mirrors used at grazing incidence in synchrotron radiation (SR) beamlines. In its original configuration, it could measure only along one line down the center of the cylinder. A single linear profile is often sufficient to gauge the quality of the optical surface on these kinds of mirrors. For some applications it is necessary to measure the topography of the entire surface, not just along one line but over a grid that covers the entire surface area. We have modified a standard LTP to enable measurement of the complete surface of Wolter telescope optics in a vertical configuration. The vertical scanning LTP (VSLTP) is capable of producing a complete 3-D map of the surface topography errors relative to the ideal desired surface on complete segments of paraboloids and hyperboloids. The instrument uses a penta prism assembly to scan the probe beam in the longitudinal direction parallel to the mirror symmetry axis and uses a precision rotary stage to provide scans in the azimuthal direction. A Risley prism pair and a dove prism are used to orient the probe beam in the proper direction for the azimuthal scans. The repeatability of the prototype instrument is better than 20 nm over trace lengths of 35 mm with a slope measurement accuracy of about 1 microradian. copyright 1996 American Institute of Physics

A new Dobson Umkehr ozone profile retrieval method optimising information content and resolution

Science.gov (United States)

Stone, K.; Tully, M. B.; Rhodes, S. K.; Schofield, R.

2015-03-01

The standard Dobson Umkehr methodology to retrieve coarse-resolution ozone profiles used by the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration uses designated solar zenith angles (SZAs). However, some information may be lost if measurements lie outside the designated SZA range (between 60° and 90°), or do not conform to the fitting technique. Also, while Umkehr measurements can be taken using multiple wavelength pairs (A, C and D), past retrieval methods have focused on a single pair (C). Here we present an Umkehr inversion method that uses measurements at all SZAs (termed operational) and all wavelength pairs. (Although, we caution direct comparison to other algorithms.) Information content for a Melbourne, Australia (38° S, 145° E) Umkehr measurement case study from 28 January 1994, with SZA range similar to that designated in previous algorithms is shown. When comparing the typical single wavelength pair with designated SZAs to the operational measurements, the total degrees of freedom (independent pieces of information) increases from 3.1 to 3.4, with the majority of the information gain originating from Umkehr layers 2 + 3 and 4 (10-20 km and 25-30 km respectively). In addition to this, using all available wavelength pairs increases the total degrees of freedom to 5.2, with the most significant increases in Umkehr layers 2 + 3 to 7 and 9+ (10-40 and 45-80 km). Investigating a case from 13 April 1970 where the measurements extend beyond the 90° SZA range gives further information gain, with total degrees of freedom extending to 6.5. Similar increases are seen in the information content. Comparing the retrieved Melbourne Umkehr time series with ozonesondes shows excellent agreement in layers 2 + 3 and 4 (10-20 and 25-30 km) for both C and A + C + D-pairs. Retrievals in layers 5 and 6 (25-30 and 30-35 km) consistently show lower ozone partial column compared to ozonesondes. This is likely due to stray light effects that are not accounted for in the

Simultaneous retrieval of water vapour, temperature and cirrus clouds properties from measurements of far infrared spectral radiance over the Antarctic Plateau

Science.gov (United States)

Di Natale, Gianluca; Palchetti, Luca; Bianchini, Giovanni; Del Guasta, Massimo

2017-03-01

The possibility separating the contributions of the atmospheric state and ice clouds by using spectral infrared measurements is a fundamental step to quantifying the cloud effect in climate models. A simultaneous retrieval of cloud and atmospheric parameters from infrared wideband spectra will allow the disentanglement of the spectral interference between these variables. In this paper, we describe the development of a code for the simultaneous retrieval of atmospheric state and ice cloud parameters, and its application to the analysis of the spectral measurements acquired by the Radiation Explorer in the Far Infrared - Prototype for Applications and Development (REFIR-PAD) spectroradiometer, which has been in operation at Concordia Station on the Antarctic Plateau since 2012. The code performs the retrieval with a computational time that is comparable with the instrument acquisition time. Water vapour and temperature profiles and the cloud optical and microphysical properties, such as the generalised effective diameter and the ice water path, are retrieved by exploiting the 230-980 cm-1 spectral band. To simulate atmospheric radiative transfer, the Line-By-Line Radiative Transfer Model (LBLRTM) has been integrated with a specifically developed subroutine based on the δ-Eddington two-stream approximation, whereas the single-scattering properties of cirrus clouds have been derived from a database for hexagonal column habits. In order to detect ice clouds, a backscattering and depolarisation lidar, co-located with REFIR-PAD has been used, allowing us to infer the position and the cloud thickness to be used in the retrieval. A climatology of the vertical profiles of water vapour and temperature has been performed by using the daily radiosounding available at the station at 12:00 UTC. The climatology has been used to build an a priori profile correlation to constrain the fitting procedure. An optimal estimation method with the Levenberg-Marquardt approach has been

On the role of visible radiation in ozone profile retrieval from nadir UV/VIS satellite measurements: An experiment with neural network algorithms inverting SCIAMACHY data

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sellitto, P.; Di Noia, A.; Del Frate, F.; Burini, A.; Casadio, S.; Solimini, D.

2012-01-01

Theoretical evidence has been given on the role of visible (VIS) radiation in enhancing the accuracy of ozone retrievals from satellite data, especially in the troposphere. However, at present, VIS is not being systematically used together with ultraviolet (UV) measurements, even when possible with one single instrument, e.g., the SCanning Imaging Absorption spectroMeter for Atmospheric CartograpHY (SCIAMACHY). Reasons mainly reside in the defective performance of optimal estimation and regularization algorithms caused by inaccurate modeling of VIS interaction with aerosols or clouds, as well as in inconsistent intercalibration between UV and VIS measurements. Here we intend to discuss the role of VIS radiation when it feeds a retrieval algorithm based on Neural Networks (NNs) that does not need a forward radiative transfer model and is robust with respect to calibration errors. The NN we designed was trained with a set of ozonesondes (OSs) data and tested over an independent set of OS measurements. We compared the ozone concentration profiles retrieved from UV-only with those retrieved from UV plus VIS nadir data taken by SCIAMACHY. We found that VIS radiation was able to yield more than 10% increase of accuracy and to substantially reduce biases of retrieved profiles at tropospheric levels.

Retrieval and satellite intercomparison of O3 measurements from ground-based FTIR Spectrometer at Equatorial Station: Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

T. von Clarmann

2013-02-01

Full Text Available Since May 2009, high-resolution Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR solar absorption spectra have been recorded at Addis Ababa (9.01° N latitude, 38.76° E longitude, 2443 m altitude above sea level, Ethiopia. The vertical profiles and total column amounts of ozone (O3 are deduced from the spectra by using the retrieval code PROFFIT (V9.5 and regularly determined instrumental line shape (ILS. A detailed error analysis of the O3 retrieval is performed. Averaging kernels of the target gas shows that the major contribution to the retrieved information comes from the measurement. The degrees of freedom for signals is found to be 2.1 on average for the retrieval of O3 from the observed FTIR spectra. The ozone Volume Mixing Ratio (VMR profiles and column amounts retrieved from FTIR spectra are compared with the coincident satellite observations of Microwave Limb Sounding (MLS, Michelson Interferometer for Passive Atmospheric Sounding (MIPAS, Tropospheric Emission Spectrometer (TES, Ozone Monitoring Instrument (OMI, Atmospheric Infrared Sounding (AIRS and Global Ozone Monitoring Experiment (GOME-2 instruments. The mean relative differences in ozone profiles of FTIR from MLS and MIPAS are generally lower than 15% within the altitude range of 27 to 36 km, whereas difference from TES is lower than 1%. Comparisons of measurements of column amounts from the satellite and the ground-based FTIR show very good agreement as exhibited by relative differences within +0.2% to +2.8% for FTIR versus MLS and GOME-2; and −0.9 to −9.0% for FTIR versus OMI, TES and AIRS. The corresponding standard deviations are within 2.0 to 2.8% for FTIR versus MLS and GOME-2 comparisons whereas that of FTIR versus OMI, TES and AIRS are within 3.5 to 7.3%. Thus, the retrieved O3 VMR and column amounts from a tropical site, Addis Ababa, is found to exhibit very good agreement with all coincident satellite observations over an approximate 3-yr period.

Moisture profile measurements of concrete samples in vertical flow by gamma ray attenuation method. Medidas do perfil de umidade de amostras de concreto em infiltracao vertical, atraves da atenuacao de raios gama

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Appoloni, C R; Nardocci, A C; Obuti, M M [Universidade Estadual de Londrina, PR (Brazil). Dept. de Fisica

1988-04-01

This work deals with the study of the water diffusion in concrete by the gamma ray attenuation method. The moisture profiles, [theta] (z,t), of the vertical water flow were determined in concrete samples of different trace and porosity. The data were taken with a vertical and horizontal measurement table, a [sup 60] Co gamma ray source, a NaI (T) scintillation detector and the standard gamma ray spectrometry electronic. The [theta] (z,t) data analysis is presented using a phenomenological model of the moisture profile temporal evolution in heterogeneous materials. Two other models, Cell and Sandwich, were also applied to determine the attenuation coefficient of a non-homogeneous media from the attenuation coefficients of the components, taking into account particles-size effects. (author).

Methanol from TES global observations: retrieval algorithm and seasonal and spatial variability

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

K. E. Cady-Pereira

2012-09-01

Full Text Available We present a detailed description of the TES methanol (CH₃OH retrieval algorithm, along with initial global results showing the seasonal and spatial distribution of methanol in the lower troposphere. The full development of the TES methanol retrieval is described, including microwindow selection, error analysis, and the utilization of a priori and initial guess information provided by the GEOS-Chem chemical transport model. Retrieval simulations and a sensitivity analysis using the developed retrieval strategy show that TES: (i generally provides less than 1.0 piece of information, (ii is sensitive in the lower troposphere with peak sensitivity typically occurring between ~900–700 hPa (~1–3 km at a vertical resolution of ~5 km, (iii has a limit of detectability between 0.5 and 1.0 ppbv Representative Volume Mixing Ratio (RVMR depending on the atmospheric conditions, corresponding roughly to a profile with a maximum concentration of at least 1 to 2 ppbv, and (iv in a simulation environment has a mean bias of 0.16 ppbv with a standard deviation of 0.34 ppbv. Applying the newly derived TES retrieval globally and comparing the results with corresponding GEOS-Chem output, we find generally consistent large-scale patterns between the two. However, TES often reveals higher methanol concentrations than simulated in the Northern Hemisphere spring, summer and fall. In the Southern Hemisphere, the TES methanol observations indicate a model overestimate over the bulk of South America from December through July, and a model underestimate during the biomass burning season.

Full-Physics Inverse Learning Machine for Satellite Remote Sensing of Ozone Profile Shapes and Tropospheric Columns

Science.gov (United States)

Xu, J.; Heue, K.-P.; Coldewey-Egbers, M.; Romahn, F.; Doicu, A.; Loyola, D.

2018-04-01

Characterizing vertical distributions of ozone from nadir-viewing satellite measurements is known to be challenging, particularly the ozone information in the troposphere. A novel retrieval algorithm called Full-Physics Inverse Learning Machine (FP-ILM), has been developed at DLR in order to estimate ozone profile shapes based on machine learning techniques. In contrast to traditional inversion methods, the FP-ILM algorithm formulates the profile shape retrieval as a classification problem. Its implementation comprises a training phase to derive an inverse function from synthetic measurements, and an operational phase in which the inverse function is applied to real measurements. This paper extends the ability of the FP-ILM retrieval to derive tropospheric ozone columns from GOME- 2 measurements. Results of total and tropical tropospheric ozone columns are compared with the ones using the official GOME Data Processing (GDP) product and the convective-cloud-differential (CCD) method, respectively. Furthermore, the FP-ILM framework will be used for the near-real-time processing of the new European Sentinel sensors with their unprecedented spectral and spatial resolution and corresponding large increases in the amount of data.

Influence of Saharan dust outbreaks and atmospheric stability upon vertical profiles of size-segregated aerosols and water vapor

Science.gov (United States)

Giménez, Joaquín; Pastor, Carlos; Castañer, Ramón; Nicolás, José; Crespo, Javier; Carratalá, Adoración

2010-01-01

Vertical profiles of aerosols and meteorological parameters were obtained using a hot air balloon and motorized paraglider. They were studied under anticyclonic conditions in four different contexts. Three flights occurred near sunrise, and one took place in the central hours of the day. The effects of North African dust intrusions were analyzed, whose entrance to the study area took place above the Stable Boundary Layer (SBL) in flight 1 and below it in flight 2. These flights have been compared with a non-intrusion situation (flight 3). A fourth flight characterized the profiles in the central hours of the day with a well-formed Convective Boundary Layer (CBL). With respect to the particle number distribution, the results show that not all sizes increase within the presence of an intrusion; during the first flight the smallest particles were not affected. The particle sizes affected in the second flight fell within the 0.35-2.5 μm interval. Under situations of convective dynamics, the reduction percentage of the particle number concentration reduces with increasing altitude, independently of their size, with respect to stability conditions. The negative vertical gradient for aerosols and water vapor, characteristic of a highly stable SBL (flight 3) becomes a constant profile within a CBL (flight 4). There are two situations that seem to alter the negative vertical gradient of the water vapor mixing ratio within the SBL: the presence of an intrusion and the possible stratification of the SBL based on different degrees of stability.

Application of vertical advection-diffusion model for studying CO2 and O2 profiles in central Arabian Sea

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

AnilKumar, N.; Singbal, S.Y.S.

The vertical advection-diffusion model proposed by Craig has been applied to the study of CO sub(2) and O sub(2) profiles in Central Arabian Sea. Distributions of total CO Sub(2) and O sub(2) are explained better by expressions involving exponential...

Retrieving moisture profiles from precipitable water measurements using a variational data assimilation approach

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Guo, Y.R.; Zou, X.; Kuo, Y.H. [National Center for Atmospheric Research, Boulder, CO (United States)

1996-04-01

Atmospheric moisture distribution is directly related to the formation of clouds and precipitation and affects the atmospheric radiation and climate. Currently, several remote sensing systems can measure precipitable water (PW) with fairly high accuracy. As part of the development of an Integrated Data Assimilation and Sounding System in support of the Atmospheric Radiation Measurement Program, retrieving the 3-D water vapor fields from PW measurements is an important problem. A new four dimensional variational (4DVAR) data assimilation system based on the Penn State/National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) mesoscale model (MM5) has been developed by Zou et al. (1995) with the adjoint technique. In this study, we used this 4DVAR system to retrieve the moisture profiles. Because we do not have a set of real observed PW measurements now, the special soundings collected during the Severe Environmental Storm and Mesoscale Experiment (SESAME) in 1979 were used to simulate a set of PW measurements, which were then assimilated into the 4DVAR system. The accuracy of the derived water vapor fields was assessed by direct comparison with the detailed specific humidity soundings. The impact of PW assimilation on precipitation forecast was examined by conducting a series of model forecast experiments started from the different initial conditions with or without data assimilation.

Retrieval of humidity and temperature profiles over the oceans from ...

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

Indian Institute of Technology Madras, Chennai 600 036, India. ... inspired many researchers and the power of invok- ing prior knowledge in .... to accelerate the process of retrieval if direct ANN ... to drive a more robust retrieval algorithm. Fur-.

Vertical velocity and turbulence aspects during Mistral events as observed by UHF wind profilers

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

J.-L. Caccia

2004-11-01

Full Text Available The general purpose of this paper is to experimentally study mesoscale dynamical aspects of the Mistral in the coastal area located at the exit of the Rhône-valley. The Mistral is a northerly low-level flow blowing in southern France along the Rhône-valley axis, located between the French Alps and the Massif Central, towards the Mediterranean Sea. The experimental data are obtained by UHF wind profilers deployed during two major field campaigns, MAP (Mesoscale Alpine Program in autumn 1999, and ESCOMPTE (Expérience sur Site pour COntraindre les Modèles de Pollution atmosphériques et de Transports d'Emission in summer 2001.

Thanks to the use of the time evolution of the vertical profile of the horizontal wind vector, recent works have shown that the dynamics of the Mistral is highly dependent on the season because of the occurrence of specific synoptic patterns. In addition, during summer, thermal forcing leads to a combination of sea breeze with Mistral and weaker Mistral due to the enhanced friction while, during autumn, absence of convective turbulence leads to substantial acceleration as low-level jets are generated in the stably stratified planetary boundary layer. At the exit of the Rhône valley, the gap flow dynamics dominates, whereas at the lee of the Alps, the dynamics is driven by the relative contribution of "flow around" and "flow over" mechanisms, upstream of the Alps. This paper analyses vertical velocity and turbulence, i.e. turbulent dissipation rate, with data obtained by the same UHF wind profilers during the same Mistral events.

In autumn, the motions are found to be globally and significantly subsident, which is coherent for a dry, cold and stable flow approaching the sea, and the turbulence is found to be of pure dynamical origin (wind shears and mountain/lee wave breaking, which is coherent with non-convective situations.

Measurement of the wetting profile in concrete samples with vertical water by gamma radiation transmission method

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Silva, L.M. da; Rocha, M.C. da; Appoloni, C.R.; Portezan Filho, O.; Lopes, F.; Melquiades, F.L.; Santos, E.A. dos; Santos, A.O. dos; Moreira, A.C.; Poetker, W.E.; Almeida, E. de; Tannous, C.Q.; Kuramoto, R.; Cavalcante, F.H. de M.; Barbieri, P.F.

2000-01-01

Samples of concrete for popular habitation (0,1x0,03x0,1 m) and cellular concrete (0,1x0,05x0,1 m) were submitted to water vertical ascending infiltration. The moisture content spatial and temporal evolution of each sample it was monitored in three halfway positions in a same horizontal line, applying the gamma rays transmission method. The data were taken with a 137 Cs (3,7x10 10 Bq, 0662 MeV) source, NaI (Tl) of 2x2' detector coupled to between wetting profiles and concrete strength. The cellular concrete showed a wetting profile compatible to its greater porosity. (author)

Modeling of radial gas fraction profiles for bubble flow in vertical pipes

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lucas, D.; Krepper, E.; Prasser, H.-M. [Forschungszentrum Rossendorf e.V., Institute of Safety Research, Dresden (Germany)

2001-07-01

The paper presents a method for the prediction of radial gas fraction profiles from a given bubble size distribution. The method is based on the assumption of the equilibrium of the forces acting on a bubble perpendicularly to the flow direction. Assuming a large number of bubble size classes radial distributions are calculated separately for all bubble classes. The sum of these distributions is the radial profile of the gas fraction. The results of the model are compared with experimental data for a number of gas and liquid volume flow rates. The experiments were performed at a vertical test loop (inner diameter 50 mm) in FZ-Rossendorf using a wire mesh sensor. The sensor enables the determination of void distributions in the cross section of the loop. A special evaluation procedure supplies bubble size distributions as well as local distributions of bubbles within a predefined interval of bubble sizes. There is a good agreement between experimental and calculated data. In particular the change from wall peaking to core peaking is well predicted. (authors)

Modeling of radial gas fraction profiles for bubble flow in vertical pipes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lucas, D.; Krepper, E.; Prasser, H.-M.

2001-01-01

The paper presents a method for the prediction of radial gas fraction profiles from a given bubble size distribution. The method is based on the assumption of the equilibrium of the forces acting on a bubble perpendicularly to the flow direction. Assuming a large number of bubble size classes radial distributions are calculated separately for all bubble classes. The sum of these distributions is the radial profile of the gas fraction. The results of the model are compared with experimental data for a number of gas and liquid volume flow rates. The experiments were performed at a vertical test loop (inner diameter 50 mm) in FZ-Rossendorf using a wire mesh sensor. The sensor enables the determination of void distributions in the cross section of the loop. A special evaluation procedure supplies bubble size distributions as well as local distributions of bubbles within a predefined interval of bubble sizes. There is a good agreement between experimental and calculated data. In particular the change from wall peaking to core peaking is well predicted. (authors)

Exploring Database Improvements for GPM Constellation Precipitation Retrievals

Science.gov (United States)

Ringerud, S.; Kidd, C.; Skofronick Jackson, G.

2017-12-01

The Global Precipitation Measurement Mission (GPM) offers an unprecedented opportunity for understanding and mapping of liquid and frozen precipitation on a global scale. GPM mission development of physically based retrieval algorithms, for application consistently across the constellation radiometers, relies on combined active-passive retrievals from the GPM core satellite as a transfer standard. Radiative transfer modeling is then utilized to compute a priori databases at the frequency and footprint geometry of each individual radiometer. The Goddard Profiling Algorithm (GPROF) performs constellation retrievals across the GPM databases in a Bayesian framework, constraining searches using model data on a pixel-by-pixel basis. This work explores how the retrieval might be enhanced with additional information available within the brightness temperature observations themselves. In order to better exploit available information content, model water vapor is replaced with retrieved water vapor. Rather than treating each footprint as a 1D profile alone in space, information regarding Tb variability in the horizontal is added as well as variability in the time dimension. This additional information is tested and evaluated for retrieval improvement in the context of the Bayesian retrieval scheme. Retrieval differences are presented as a function of precipitation and surface type for evaluation of where the added information proves most effective.

The TEXT upgrade vertical interferometer

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hallock, G.A.; Gartman, M.L.; Li, W.; Chiang, K.; Shin, S.; Castles, R.L.; Chatterjee, R.; Rahman, A.S.

1992-01-01

A far-infrared interferometer has been installed on TEXT upgrade to obtain electron density profiles. The primary system views the plasma vertically through a set of large (60-cm radialx7.62-cm toroidal) diagnostic ports. A 1-cm channel spacing (59 channels total) and fast electronic time response is used, to provide high resolution for radial profiles and perturbation experiments. Initial operation of the vertical system was obtained late in 1991, with six operating channels

Thermodynamic and cloud parameter retrieval using infrared spectral data

Science.gov (United States)

Zhou, Daniel K.; Smith, William L., Sr.; Liu, Xu; Larar, Allen M.; Huang, Hung-Lung A.; Li, Jun; McGill, Matthew J.; Mango, Stephen A.

2005-01-01

High-resolution infrared radiance spectra obtained from near nadir observations provide atmospheric, surface, and cloud property information. A fast radiative transfer model, including cloud effects, is used for atmospheric profile and cloud parameter retrieval. The retrieval algorithm is presented along with its application to recent field experiment data from the NPOESS Airborne Sounding Testbed - Interferometer (NAST-I). The retrieval accuracy dependence on cloud properties is discussed. It is shown that relatively accurate temperature and moisture retrievals can be achieved below optically thin clouds. For optically thick clouds, accurate temperature and moisture profiles down to cloud top level are obtained. For both optically thin and thick cloud situations, the cloud top height can be retrieved with an accuracy of approximately 1.0 km. Preliminary NAST-I retrieval results from the recent Atlantic-THORPEX Regional Campaign (ATReC) are presented and compared with coincident observations obtained from dropsondes and the nadir-pointing Cloud Physics Lidar (CPL).

MIPAS IMK/IAA carbon tetrachloride (CCl4) retrieval and first comparison with other instruments

Science.gov (United States)

Eckert, Ellen; von Clarmann, Thomas; Laeng, Alexandra; Stiller, Gabriele P.; Funke, Bernd; Glatthor, Norbert; Grabowski, Udo; Kellmann, Sylvia; Kiefer, Michael; Linden, Andrea; Babenhauserheide, Arne; Wetzel, Gerald; Boone, Christopher; Engel, Andreas; Harrison, Jeremy J.; Sheese, Patrick E.; Walker, Kaley A.; Bernath, Peter F.

2017-07-01

MIPAS thermal limb emission measurements were used to derive vertically resolved profiles of carbon tetrachloride (CCl4). Level-1b data versions MIPAS/5.02 to MIPAS/5.06 were converted into volume mixing ratio profiles using the level-2 processor developed at Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) Institute of Meteorology and Climate Research (IMK) and Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC), Instituto de Astrofísica de Andalucía (IAA). Consideration of peroxyacetyl nitrate (PAN) as an interfering species, which is jointly retrieved, and CO2 line mixing is crucial for reliable retrievals. Parts of the CO2 Q-branch region that overlap with the CCl4 signature were omitted, since large residuals were still found even though line mixing was considered in the forward model. However, the omitted spectral region could be narrowed noticeably when line mixing was accounted for. A new CCl4 spectroscopic data set leads to slightly smaller CCl4 volume mixing ratios. In general, latitude-altitude cross sections show the expected CCl4 features with highest values of around 90 pptv at altitudes at and below the tropical tropopause and values decreasing with altitude and latitude due to stratospheric decomposition. Other patterns, such as subsidence in the polar vortex during winter and early spring, are also visible in the distributions. The decline in CCl4 abundance during the MIPAS Envisat measurement period (July 2002 to April 2012) is clearly reflected in the altitude-latitude cross section of trends estimated from the entire retrieved data set.

MIPAS IMK/IAA carbon tetrachloride (CCl4 retrieval and first comparison with other instruments

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

E. Eckert

2017-07-01

Full Text Available MIPAS thermal limb emission measurements were used to derive vertically resolved profiles of carbon tetrachloride (CCl4. Level-1b data versions MIPAS/5.02 to MIPAS/5.06 were converted into volume mixing ratio profiles using the level-2 processor developed at Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT Institute of Meteorology and Climate Research (IMK and Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC, Instituto de Astrofísica de Andalucía (IAA. Consideration of peroxyacetyl nitrate (PAN as an interfering species, which is jointly retrieved, and CO2 line mixing is crucial for reliable retrievals. Parts of the CO2 Q-branch region that overlap with the CCl4 signature were omitted, since large residuals were still found even though line mixing was considered in the forward model. However, the omitted spectral region could be narrowed noticeably when line mixing was accounted for. A new CCl4 spectroscopic data set leads to slightly smaller CCl4 volume mixing ratios. In general, latitude–altitude cross sections show the expected CCl4 features with highest values of around 90 pptv at altitudes at and below the tropical tropopause and values decreasing with altitude and latitude due to stratospheric decomposition. Other patterns, such as subsidence in the polar vortex during winter and early spring, are also visible in the distributions. The decline in CCl4 abundance during the MIPAS Envisat measurement period (July 2002 to April 2012 is clearly reflected in the altitude–latitude cross section of trends estimated from the entire retrieved data set.

Profiling the SO2 Plume from Volcan Turrialba: Ticosonde Balloon Measurements Compared with OMI and OMPS Retrievals

Science.gov (United States)

Selkirk, H. B.; Krotkov, N. A.; Li, C.; Morris, G.; Diaz, J. A.; Carn, S. A.; Voemel, H.; Nord, P. M.; Larson, K.

2014-12-01

The summit of Volcan Turrialba (elev. 3340 m) lies less than 50 km upstream in the prevailing easterlies from the Ticosonde balloon launch site at San Jose, Costa Rica, where ECC ozone sondes have been launched regularly since 2005. In 2006 we began to see telltale notches in the ozone profiles in the altitude range between 2 and 6 km. Given the proximity of Turrialba, it seemed likely that SO2 in the volcano's plume was interfering in the chemical reaction in the ECC ozone sonde used to detect ozone. In early 2010, fumarolic activity in the Turrialba crater increased strongly, and the profile notches in our soundings increased in frequency as well, consistent with this hypothesis. In February 2012 we tested a dual ECC sonde system, where an additional sonde is flown on the same payload using a selective SO2 filter. The difference of the measurements in the dual sonde is a direct measure of the amount of SO2 encountered. This first dual sonde passed through the plume, and the data indicated a tropospheric SO2 column of 1.4 DU, comparing favorably with a total column of 1.7 DU in the OMI 3-km linear fit (LF) product at the sonde profile location and at nearly the same time. We are now launching dual sondes on a regular basis with 18 launches in the first 12 months through July 2014; 11 of these have detectable SO2 signals. These soundings have great potential for validation of the Aura OMI and the Suomi-NPP OMPS retrievals of SO2. Here we present the sonde measurements and compare them with two satellite datasets: the Aura OMI Linear Fit (LF) product and the Suomi-NPP OMPS Principal Components Analysis (PCA) boundary layer product. The PCA algorithm reduces retrieval noise and artifacts by more accurately accounting for various interferences in SO2 retrievals such as O3 absorption and rotational Raman scattering. The comparisons with the in situ observations indicate a significant improvement of the PCA algorithm in capturing relatively weak volcanic SO2 signals.

Profiling the SO2 Plume from Volcan Turrialba: Ticosonde Balloon Measurements Compared with OMI and OMPS Retrievals

Science.gov (United States)

Selkirk, Henry; Krotkov, Nickolay; Li, Can; Morris, Gary (Inventor); Diaz, Jorge Andres; Carn, Simon; Vomel, Holger; Corrales, Ernesto; Nord, Paul; Larson, Kelsey

2014-01-01

The summit of Volcan Turrialba (elev. 3340 m) lies less than 50 km upstream in the prevailing easterlies from the Ticosonde balloon launch site at San Jose, Costa Rica, where ECC ozone sondes have been launched regularly since 2005. In 2006 we began to see telltale notches in the ozone profiles in the altitude range between 2 and 6 km. Given the proximity of Turrialba, it seemed likely that SO2 in the volcano's plume was interfering in the chemical reaction in the ECC ozone sonde used to detect ozone. In early 2010, fumarolic activity in the Turrialba crater increased strongly, and the profile notches in our soundings increased in frequency as well, consistent with this hypothesis. In February 2012 we tested a dual ECC sonde system, where an additional sonde is flown on the same payload using a selective SO2 filter. The difference of the measurements in the dual sonde is a direct measure of the amount of SO2 encountered. This first dual sonde passed through the plume, and the data indicated a tropospheric SO2 column of 1.4 DU, comparing favorably with a total column of 1.7 DU in the OMI 3-km linear fit (LF) product at the sonde profile location and at nearly the same time. We are now launching dual sondes on a regular basis with 18 launches in the first 12 months through July 2014; 11 of these have detectable SO2 signals. These soundings have great potential for validation of the Aura OMI and the Suomi-NPP OMPS retrievals of SO2. Here we present the sonde measurements and compare them with two satellite datasets: the Aura OMI Linear Fit (LF) product and the Suomi-NPP OMPS Principal Components Analysis (PCA) boundary layer product. The PCA algorithm reduces retrieval noise and artifacts by more accurately accounting for various interferences in SO2 retrievals such as O3 absorption and rotational Raman scattering. The comparisons with the in situ observations indicate a significant improvement of the PCA algorithm in capturing relatively weak volcanic SO2 signals.

Latent Heating Profiles Derived from ARM Radar Observations in MC3E and GoAmazon Field Campaigns

Science.gov (United States)

Min, Q.; Li, R.; Mu, Z.; Giangrande, S. E.; Wang, Y.

2016-12-01

Atmosphere latent heating (LH) is released through water phase change processes in the atmosphere. There is a physical connection between LH rate and updraft velocity (ω) inside clouds. In this study, we develop a new LH algorithm based on a quantified LH-ω relationship found in cloud resolving model (CRM) simulations. The self-consistency check with CRM simulations shows that the retrievals correctly replicate the main features of LH profiles, including their total and individual components (i.e. condensation-evaporation heating rate, deposition-sublimation heating rate, and freezing-melting heating rate). Further, the algorithm is applied to real cases from the DOE-ARM MC3E and GoAmazon2014/6 Field Campaigns using available UHF (915 and 1290 MHz) zenith radar retrievals of vertical velocity and rain rate as input. The retrieved LH profiles in the deep convective rains show positive heating throughout the column, the LH profiles in the stratiform rains with well-defined bright-band showing clear dipole patterns with positive heating above and negative cooling below the freezing level. The altitudes of maximum heating in the widespread stratiform regimes are clearly higher than those found within deep convective regions. Overall, these Latent heating rate profiles, as an important geophysical quantity of interest, can provide useful climate diagnostic data, and ultimately, constraints for model-based analyses of large-scale heating distributions.

Retrievals of formaldehyde from ground-based FTIR and MAX-DOAS observations at the Jungfraujoch station and comparisons with GEOS-Chem and IMAGES model simulations

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

B. Franco

2015-04-01

Full Text Available As an ubiquitous product of the oxidation of many volatile organic compounds (VOCs, formaldehyde (HCHO plays a key role as a short-lived and reactive intermediate in the atmospheric photo-oxidation pathways leading to the formation of tropospheric ozone and secondary organic aerosols. In this study, HCHO profiles have been successfully retrieved from ground-based Fourier transform infrared (FTIR solar spectra and UV-visible Multi-AXis Differential Optical Absorption Spectroscopy (MAX-DOAS scans recorded during the July 2010–December 2012 time period at the Jungfraujoch station (Swiss Alps, 46.5° N, 8.0° E, 3580 m a.s.l.. Analysis of the retrieved products has revealed different vertical sensitivity between both remote sensing techniques. Furthermore, HCHO amounts simulated by two state-of-the-art chemical transport models (CTMs, GEOS-Chem and IMAGES v2, have been compared to FTIR total columns and MAX-DOAS 3.6–8 km partial columns, accounting for the respective vertical resolution of each ground-based instrument. Using the CTM outputs as the intermediate, FTIR and MAX-DOAS retrievals have shown consistent seasonal modulations of HCHO throughout the investigated period, characterized by summertime maximum and wintertime minimum. Such comparisons have also highlighted that FTIR and MAX-DOAS provide complementary products for the HCHO retrieval above the Jungfraujoch station. Finally, tests have revealed that the updated IR parameters from the HITRAN 2012 database have a cumulative effect and significantly decrease the retrieved HCHO columns with respect to the use of the HITRAN 2008 compilation.

Inversely estimating the vertical profile of the soil CO2 production rate in a deciduous broadleaf forest using a particle filtering method.

Science.gov (United States)

Sakurai, Gen; Yonemura, Seiichiro; Kishimoto-Mo, Ayaka W; Murayama, Shohei; Ohtsuka, Toshiyuki; Yokozawa, Masayuki

2015-01-01

Carbon dioxide (CO2) efflux from the soil surface, which is a major source of CO2 from terrestrial ecosystems, represents the total CO2 production at all soil depths. Although many studies have estimated the vertical profile of the CO2 production rate, one of the difficulties in estimating the vertical profile is measuring diffusion coefficients of CO2 at all soil depths in a nondestructive manner. In this study, we estimated the temporal variation in the vertical profile of the CO2 production rate using a data assimilation method, the particle filtering method, in which the diffusion coefficients of CO2 were simultaneously estimated. The CO2 concentrations at several soil depths and CO2 efflux from the soil surface (only during the snow-free period) were measured at two points in a broadleaf forest in Japan, and the data were assimilated into a simple model including a diffusion equation. We found that there were large variations in the pattern of the vertical profile of the CO2 production rate between experiment sites: the peak CO2 production rate was at soil depths around 10 cm during the snow-free period at one site, but the peak was at the soil surface at the other site. Using this method to estimate the CO2 production rate during snow-cover periods allowed us to estimate CO2 efflux during that period as well. We estimated that the CO2 efflux during the snow-cover period (about half the year) accounted for around 13% of the annual CO2 efflux at this site. Although the method proposed in this study does not ensure the validity of the estimated diffusion coefficients and CO2 production rates, the method enables us to more closely approach the "actual" values by decreasing the variance of the posterior distribution of the values.

Programs to obtain vertical heights from mean sea level and for computing volume of sand/mineral along beaches:A case study with Kalbadevi beach profiling data and results.

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Ganesan, P.

vertical heights along profiles from M.S.L.? is given below: The reduced level over the bench mark pillar (BP:1 in this case, from where the profile starts) should be added with the first staff reading taken over it, which forms the height... of collimation (H.C.) of the instrument. From this H.C., all the successive staff readings (taken at regular distance interval, along the profile) should be deducted to get the vertical heights (called reduced level (R.L.) in survey terms). i) R...

Retrieval method of aerosol extinction coefficient profile based on backscattering, side-scattering and Raman-scattering lidar

Science.gov (United States)

Shan, Huihui; Zhang, Hui; Liu, Junjian; Tao, Zongming; Wang, Shenhao; Ma, Xiaomin; Zhou, Pucheng; Yao, Ling; Liu, Dong; Xie, Chenbo; Wang, Yingjian

2018-03-01

Aerosol extinction coefficient profile is an essential parameter for atmospheric radiation model. It is difficult to get higher signal to noise ratio (SNR) of backscattering lidar from the ground to the tropopause especially in near range. Higher SNR problem can be solved by combining side-scattering and backscattering lidar. Using Raman-scattering lidar, aerosol extinction to backscatter ratio (lidar ratio) can be got. Based on side-scattering, backscattering and Raman-scattering lidar system, aerosol extinction coefficient is retrieved precisely from the earth's surface to the tropopause. Case studies show this method is reasonable and feasible.

Ground-Based Remote or In Situ Measurement of Vertical Profiles of Wind in the Lower Troposphere

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Clifton, Andrew; Newman, Jennifer

2017-02-24

Knowledge of winds in the lower troposphere is essential for a range of applications, including weather forecasting, transportation, natural hazards, and wind energy. This presentation focuses on the measurement of vertical profiles of wind in the lower troposphere for wind energy applications. This presentation introduces the information that wind energy site development and operations require, how it used, and the benefits and problems of current measurements from in-situ measurements and remote sensing. The development of commercial Doppler wind lidar systems over the last 10 years are shown, along with the lessons learned from this experience. Finally, potential developments in wind profiling aimed at reducing uncertainty and increasing data availability are introduced.

A New Retrieval Algorithm for OMI NO2: Tropospheric Results and Comparisons with Measurements and Models

Science.gov (United States)

Swartz, W. H.; Bucesla, E. J.; Lamsal, L. N.; Celarier, E. A.; Krotkov, N. A.; Bhartia, P, K,; Strahan, S. E.; Gleason, J. F.; Herman, J.; Pickering, K.

2012-01-01

Nitrogen oxides (NOx =NO+NO2) are important atmospheric trace constituents that impact tropospheric air pollution chemistry and air quality. We have developed a new NASA algorithm for the retrieval of stratospheric and tropospheric NO2 vertical column densities using measurements from the nadir-viewing Ozone Monitoring Instrument (OMI) on NASA's Aura satellite. The new products rely on an improved approach to stratospheric NO2 column estimation and stratosphere-troposphere separation and a new monthly NO2 climatology based on the NASA Global Modeling Initiative chemistry-transport model. The retrieval does not rely on daily model profiles, minimizing the influence of a priori information. We evaluate the retrieved tropospheric NO2 columns using surface in situ (e.g., AQS/EPA), ground-based (e.g., DOAS), and airborne measurements (e.g., DISCOVER-AQ). The new, improved OMI tropospheric NO2 product is available at high spatial resolution for the years 200S-present. We believe that this product is valuable for the evaluation of chemistry-transport models, examining the spatial and temporal patterns of NOx emissions, constraining top-down NOx inventories, and for the estimation of NOx lifetimes.

SOMPROF: A vertically explicit soil organic matter model

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Braakhekke, M.C.; Beer, M.; Hoosbeek, M.R.; Kruijt, B.; Kabat, P.

2011-01-01

Most current soil organic matter (SOM) models represent the soil as a bulk without specification of the vertical distribution of SOM in the soil profile. However, the vertical SOM profile may be of great importance for soil carbon cycling, both on short (hours to years) time scale, due to

Vertically-resolved particle size distribution within and above the mixing layer over the Milan metropolitan area

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

L. Ferrero

2010-04-01

Full Text Available Vertical aerosol profiles were directly measured over the city of Milan during three years (2005–2008 of field campaigns. An optical particle counter, a portable meteorological station and a miniaturized cascade impactor were deployed on a tethered balloon. More than 300 vertical profiles were measured, both in winter and summer, mainly in conditions of clear, dry skies.

The mixing height was determined from the observed vertical aerosol concentration gradient, and from potential temperature and relative humidity profiles. Results show that inter-consistent mixing heights can be retrieved highlighting good correlations between particle dispersion in the atmosphere and meteorological parameters. Mixing height growth speed was calculated for both winter and summer showing the low potential atmospheric dispersion in winter.

Aerosol number size distribution and chemical composition profiles allowed us to investigate particle behaviour along height. Aerosol measurements showed changes in size distribution according to mixing height. Coarse particle profiles (d_p>1.6 μm were distributed differently than the fine ones (d_p<1.6 μm were, at different heights of the mixing layer. The sedimentation process influenced the coarse particle profiles, and led to a reduction in mean particle diameter for those particles observed by comparing data above the mixing height with ground data (−14.9±0.6% in winter and −10.7±1.0% in summer. Conversely, the mean particle diameter of fine particles increased above the mixing height under stable atmospheric conditions; the average increase, observed by comparing data above the mixing height with ground data, was +2.1±0.1% in winter and +3.9±0.3% in summer. A hierarchical statistical model was created to describe the changes in the size distribution of fine particles along height. The proposed model can be used to estimate the typical vertical

Simultaneous and synergistic profiling of cloud and drizzle properties using ground-based observations

Science.gov (United States)

Rusli, Stephanie P.; Donovan, David P.; Russchenberg, Herman W. J.

2017-12-01

Despite the importance of radar reflectivity (Z) measurements in the retrieval of liquid water cloud properties, it remains nontrivial to interpret Z due to the possible presence of drizzle droplets within the clouds. So far, there has been no published work that utilizes Z to identify the presence of drizzle above the cloud base in an optimized and a physically consistent manner. In this work, we develop a retrieval technique that exploits the synergy of different remote sensing systems to carry out this task and to subsequently profile the microphysical properties of the cloud and drizzle in a unified framework. This is accomplished by using ground-based measurements of Z, lidar attenuated backscatter below as well as above the cloud base, and microwave brightness temperatures. Fast physical forward models coupled to cloud and drizzle structure parameterization are used in an optimal-estimation-type framework in order to retrieve the best estimate for the cloud and drizzle property profiles. The cloud retrieval is first evaluated using synthetic signals generated from large-eddy simulation (LES) output to verify the forward models used in the retrieval procedure and the vertical parameterization of the liquid water content (LWC). From this exercise it is found that, on average, the cloud properties can be retrieved within 5 % of the mean truth. The full cloud-drizzle retrieval method is then applied to a selected ACCEPT (Analysis of the Composition of Clouds with Extended Polarization Techniques) campaign dataset collected in Cabauw, the Netherlands. An assessment of the retrieval products is performed using three independent methods from the literature; each was specifically developed to retrieve only the cloud properties, the drizzle properties below the cloud base, or the drizzle fraction within the cloud. One-to-one comparisons, taking into account the uncertainties or limitations of each retrieval, show that our results are consistent with what is derived

Total solar eclipse of 16 February 1980 and the vertical profiles of atmospheric parameters in the lowest 200M

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

RameshBabu, V.; Sastry, J.S.

Vertical profiles of air temperature, wind and humidity at Raichur (16 degrees 12'N and 77 degrees 21'E) in the lowest 200m of the atmosphere are presented for the period 15-18 February 1980. The effect of the total solar eclipse, on 16 February...

A look inside the San Andreas Fault at Parkfield through vertical seismic profiling.

Science.gov (United States)

Chavarria, J Andres; Malin, Peter; Catchings, Rufus D; Shalev, Eylon

2003-12-05

The San Andreas Fault Observatory at Depth pilot hole is located on the southwestern side of the Parkfield San Andreas fault. This observatory includes a vertical seismic profiling (VSP) array. VSP seismograms from nearby microearthquakes contain signals between the P and S waves. These signals may be P and S waves scattered by the local geologic structure. The collected scattering points form planar surfaces that we interpret as the San Andreas fault and four other secondary faults. The scattering process includes conversions between P and S waves, the strengths of which suggest large contrasts in material properties, possibly indicating the presence of cracks or fluids.

Towards the retrieval of tropospheric ozone with the ozone monitoring instrument (OMI)

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Mielonen, T.; De Haan, J.F.; Van Peet, J.C.A.; Eremenko, M.; Veefkind, J.P.

2015-01-01

We have assessed the sensitivity of the operational Ozone Monitoring Instrument (OMI) ozone profile retrieval algorithm to a number of a priori and radiative transfer assumptions. We studied the effect of stray light correction, surface albedo assumptions and a priori ozone profiles on the retrieved

Mediterranean intense desert dust outbreaks and their vertical structure based on remote sensing data

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

A. Gkikas

2016-07-01

frequencies and lower intensities. The performance of the satellite algorithm is assessed against surface-based daily data from 109 sun-photometric (AERONET and 22 PM10 stations. The agreement between AERONET and MODIS AOD is satisfactory (R = 0.505 − 0.750 and improves considerably when MODIS level 3 retrievals with higher sub-grid spatial representativeness and homogeneity are considered. Through the comparison against PM10 concentrations, it is found that the presence of dust is justified in all ground stations with success scores ranging from 68 to 97 %. However, poor agreement is evident between satellite and ground PM10 observations in the western parts of the Mediterranean, which is attributed to the desert dust outbreaks' vertical extension and the high altitude of dust presence. The CALIOP vertical profiles of pure and polluted dust observations and the associated total backscatter coefficient at 532 nm (β532 nm, indicate that dust particles are mainly detected between 0.5 and 6 km, though they can reach 8 km between the parallels 32 and 38° N in warm seasons. An increased number of CALIOP dust records at higher altitudes is observed with increased latitude, northwards to 40° N, revealing an ascending mode of the dust transport. However, the overall intensity of DD episodes is maximum (up to 0.006 km−1 sr−1 below 2 km and at the southern parts of the study region (30–34° N. Additionally, the average thickness of dust layers gradually decreases from 4 to 2 km, moving from south to north. In spring, dust layers of moderate-to-high β532 nm values ( ∼  0.004 km−1 sr−1 are detected over the Mediterranean (35–42° N, extending from 2 to 4 km. Over the western Mediterranean, dust layers are observed between 2 and 6 km, while their base height is decreased down to 0.5 km for increasing longitudes underlying the role of topography and thermal convection. The vertical profiles of CALIOP β532 nm confirm

Mitigating the negative impacts of tall wind turbines on bats: Vertical activity profiles and relationships to wind speed.

Science.gov (United States)

Wellig, Sascha D; Nusslé, Sébastien; Miltner, Daniela; Kohle, Oliver; Glaizot, Olivier; Braunisch, Veronika; Obrist, Martin K; Arlettaz, Raphaël

2018-01-01

Wind turbines represent a source of hazard for bats, especially through collision with rotor blades. With increasing technical development, tall turbines (rotor-swept zone 50-150 m above ground level) are becoming widespread, yet we lack quantitative information about species active at these heights, which impedes proposing targeted mitigation recommendations for bat-friendly turbine operation. We investigated vertical activity profiles of a bat assemblage, and their relationships to wind speed, within a major valley of the European Alps where tall wind turbines are being deployed. To monitor bat activity we installed automatic recorders at sequentially increasing heights from ground level up to 65 m, with the goal to determine species-specific vertical activity profiles and to link them to wind speed. Bat call sequences were analysed with an automatic algorithm, paying particular attention to mouse-eared bats (Myotis myotis and Myotis blythii) and the European free-tailed bat (Tadarida teniotis), three locally rare species. The most often recorded bats were the Common pipistrelle (Pipistrellus pipistrellus) and Savi's pipistrelle (Hypsugo savii). Mouse-eared bats were rarely recorded, and mostly just above ground, appearing out of risk of collision. T. teniotis had a more evenly distributed vertical activity profile, often being active at rotor level, but its activity at that height ceased above 5 ms-1 wind speed. Overall bat activity in the rotor-swept zone declined with increasing wind speed, dropping below 5% above 5.4 ms-1. Collision risk could be drastically reduced if nocturnal operation of tall wind turbines would be restricted to wind speeds above 5 ms-1. Such measure should be implemented year-round because T. teniotis remains active in winter. This operational restriction is likely to cause only small energy production losses at these tall wind turbines, although further analyses are needed to assess these losses precisely.

Vertical seismic profile data from well Mallik 2L-38 for gas hydrate studies

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Mi, Y [Calgary Univ., AB (Canada). Dept. of Geology and Geophysics; Walia, R [Victoria Univ., BC (Canada) School of Earth and Ocean Sciences; Hyndman, R [Geological Survey of Canada, Sidney, BC (Canada) Pacific Geoscience Centre

1999-07-01

A gas hydrate research well was drilled in the Canadian Arctic to study gas hydrates in a permafrost setting in a collaborative research project between the Japan National Oil Corp., the Geological Survey of Canada and other agencies. The multidisciplinary study included an electromagnetic survey, permafrost and gas hydrate coring, comprehensive downhole geophysical logging and measurement. Laboratory studies concerned studies on recovered cuttings and core including sedimentology, physical properties, geochemistry, and reservoir characteristics of the Mallik gas accumulation. As part of the Mallik 2L-38 field program, a vertical seismic profiling survey was conducted at zero and other offset source positions with three component receiver tools and horizontal and vertical vibration sources. A special effort was made to record shear wave data, which will be used to estimate the effect of gas hydrate on formation velocities and to determine gas hydrate concentration as a function of the Mallik gas accumulation. From the initial VSP analysis, certain conclusions follow: 1) zero offset vertical vibration component Z and horizontal X component data give reliable velocity determination within the gas hydrate formation zone. P wave velocities from offset VSP data show an excellent consistency with that from offset data and with the sonic log. And 2) the VSP data permit reliable identification of gas hydrate bearing zones. Abstract only included.

The Design of Ocean Turbulence Measurement with a Free Fall Vertical Profiler

Science.gov (United States)

Luan, Xin; Xin, Jia; Zhu, Tieyi; Yang, Hua; Teng, Yuru; Song, Dalei

2018-03-01

The newly designed instrument Free Fall Vertical Profiler (FFVP) developed by Ocean University of China (OUC) had been deployed in the Western Pacific in March 08, 2017 and succeed to collect turbulence signals about 350-m-deep water. According to the requirements of turbulence measurement, the mechanical design was developed for turbulence platform to achieve stability and good flow tracking. By analysing the Heading, Pitch and Roll, the results suggested that the platform satisfies the requirements of stability. The power spectrum of the cleaned shear signals using the noise correction algorithm match well with the theoretical Nasmyth spectrum and the rate of turbulence dissipation are approximately 10-8 W/kg. In general, the FFVP was rationally designed and provided a good measurement platform for turbulence observation.

Evaluation of Current Planetary Boundary Layer Retrieval Capabilities from Space

Science.gov (United States)

Santanello, Joseph A., Jr.; Schaefer, Alexander J.; Blaisdell, John; Yorks, John

2016-01-01

The PBL over land remains a significant gap in our water and energy cycle understanding from space. This work combines unique NASA satellite and model products to demonstrate the ability of current sensors (advanced IR sounding and lidar) to retrieve PBL properties and in turn their potential to be used globally to evaluate and improve weather and climate prediction models. While incremental progress has been made in recent AIRS retrieval versions, insufficient vertical resolution remains in terms of detecting PBL properties. Lidar shows promise in terms of detecting vertical gradients (and PBLh) in the lower troposphere, but daytime conditions over land remain a challenge due to noise, and their coverage is limited to approximately 2 weeks or longer return times.

FULL-PHYSICS INVERSE LEARNING MACHINE FOR SATELLITE REMOTE SENSING OF OZONE PROFILE SHAPES AND TROPOSPHERIC COLUMNS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

J. Xu

2018-04-01

Full Text Available Characterizing vertical distributions of ozone from nadir-viewing satellite measurements is known to be challenging, particularly the ozone information in the troposphere. A novel retrieval algorithm called Full-Physics Inverse Learning Machine (FP-ILM, has been developed at DLR in order to estimate ozone profile shapes based on machine learning techniques. In contrast to traditional inversion methods, the FP-ILM algorithm formulates the profile shape retrieval as a classification problem. Its implementation comprises a training phase to derive an inverse function from synthetic measurements, and an operational phase in which the inverse function is applied to real measurements. This paper extends the ability of the FP-ILM retrieval to derive tropospheric ozone columns from GOME- 2 measurements. Results of total and tropical tropospheric ozone columns are compared with the ones using the official GOME Data Processing (GDP product and the convective-cloud-differential (CCD method, respectively. Furthermore, the FP-ILM framework will be used for the near-real-time processing of the new European Sentinel sensors with their unprecedented spectral and spatial resolution and corresponding large increases in the amount of data.

Measured and modelled concentrations and vertical profiles of airborne particulate matter within the boundary layer of a street canyon

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Colls, J.J.; Micallef, A.

1999-01-01

Concentrations and vertical profiles of various fractions of airborne particulate matter (suspended particulate matter (SPM), PM 10 and PM 2.5 ) have been measured over the first three metres from ground in a street canyon. Measurements were carried out using automated near real-time apparatus called the Kinetic Sequential Sampling (KSS) system. KSS system is essentially an electronically-controlled lift carrying a real-time particle monitor for sampling air sequentially, at different heights within the breathing zone, which includes all heights within the surface layer of a street canyon at which people may breathe. Data is automatically logged at the different receptor levels, for the determination of the average vertical concentration profile of airborne particulate matter. For measuring the airborne particle concentration, a Grimm Dust Monitor 1.104/5 was used. The recorded data also allows for time series analysis of airborne particulate matter concentration at different heights. Time series data and hourly-average vertical concentration profiles in the boundary layer of the confines of a street are thought to be mainly determined by traffic emissions and traffic associated processes. Hence the measured data were compared with results of a street canyon emission-dispersion model in time and space. This Street Level Air Quality (SLAQ) model employs the plume-box technique and includes modules for simulating vehicle-generated effects such as thermally- and mechanically-generated turbulence and resuspension of road dust. Environmental processes, such as turbulence resulting from surface sensible heat and the formation of sulphate aerosol from sulphur dioxide exhaust emissions, are taken into account. The paper presents an outline description of the measuring technique and model used, and a comparison of the measured and modelled data

Forest Canopy LAI and Vertical FAVD Profile Inversion from Airborne Full-Waveform LiDAR Data Based on a Radiative Transfer Model

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Han Ma

2015-02-01

Full Text Available Forest canopy leaf area index (LAI is a critical variable for the modeling of climates and ecosystems over both regional and global scales. This paper proposes a physically based method to retrieve LAI and foliage area volume density (FAVD profile directly from full-waveform Light Detection And Ranging (LiDAR data using a radiative transfer (RT model. First, a physical interaction model between LiDAR and a forest scene was built on the basis of radiative transfer theories. Next, FAVD profile of each laser shot of full-waveform LiDAR was inverted using the physical model. In addition, the missing LiDAR data, caused by high-density forest and LiDAR system limitations, were filled in based on the inverted FAVD and the ancillary CHM data. Finally, LAI of the study area was retrieved from the inverted FAVD at a 10-m resolution. CHM derived LAI based on the Beer-Lambert law was compared with the LAI derived from full-waveform data. Also, we compared the results with the field measured LAI. The values of correlation coefficient r and RMSE of the estimated LAI were 0.73 and 0.67, respectively. The results indicate that full-waveform LiDAR data is a reliable data source and represent a useful tool for retrieving forest LAI.

HIRS-AMTS satellite sounding system test - Theoretical and empirical vertical resolving power. [High resolution Infrared Radiation Sounder - Advanced Moisture and Temperature Sounder

Science.gov (United States)

Thompson, O. E.

1982-01-01

The present investigation is concerned with the vertical resolving power of satellite-borne temperature sounding instruments. Information is presented on the capabilities of the High Resolution Infrared Radiation Sounder (HIRS) and a proposed sounding instrument called the Advanced Moisture and Temperature Sounder (AMTS). Two quite different methods for assessing the vertical resolving power of satellite sounders are discussed. The first is the theoretical method of Conrath (1972) which was patterned after the work of Backus and Gilbert (1968) The Backus-Gilbert-Conrath (BGC) approach includes a formalism for deriving a retrieval algorithm for optimizing the vertical resolving power. However, a retrieval algorithm constructed in the BGC optimal fashion is not necessarily optimal as far as actual temperature retrievals are concerned. Thus, an independent criterion for vertical resolving power is discussed. The criterion is based on actual retrievals of signal structure in the temperature field.

FRESCO+: an improved O2 A-band cloud retrieval algorithm for tropospheric trace gas retrievals

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

M. van Roozendael

2008-11-01

Full Text Available The FRESCO (Fast Retrieval Scheme for Clouds from the Oxygen A-band algorithm has been used to retrieve cloud information from measurements of the O2 A-band around 760 nm by GOME, SCIAMACHY and GOME-2. The cloud parameters retrieved by FRESCO are the effective cloud fraction and cloud pressure, which are used for cloud correction in the retrieval of trace gases like O3 and NO2. To improve the cloud pressure retrieval for partly cloudy scenes, single Rayleigh scattering has been included in an improved version of the algorithm, called FRESCO+. We compared FRESCO+ and FRESCO effective cloud fractions and cloud pressures using simulated spectra and one month of GOME measured spectra. As expected, FRESCO+ gives more reliable cloud pressures over partly cloudy pixels. Simulations and comparisons with ground-based radar/lidar measurements of clouds show that the FRESCO+ cloud pressure is about the optical midlevel of the cloud. Globally averaged, the FRESCO+ cloud pressure is about 50 hPa higher than the FRESCO cloud pressure, while the FRESCO+ effective cloud fraction is about 0.01 larger. The effect of FRESCO+ cloud parameters on O3 and NO2 vertical column density (VCD retrievals is studied using SCIAMACHY data and ground-based DOAS measurements. We find that the FRESCO+ algorithm has a significant effect on tropospheric NO2 retrievals but a minor effect on total O3 retrievals. The retrieved SCIAMACHY tropospheric NO2 VCDs using FRESCO+ cloud parameters (v1.1 are lower than the tropospheric NO2VCDs which used FRESCO cloud parameters (v1.04, in particular over heavily polluted areas with low clouds. The difference between SCIAMACHY tropospheric NO2 VCDs v1.1 and ground-based MAXDOAS measurements performed in Cabauw, The Netherlands, during the DANDELIONS campaign is about −2.12×1014molec cm−2.

High-Latitude Topside Ionospheric Vertical Electron-Density-Profile Changes in Response to Large Magnetic Storms

Science.gov (United States)

Benson, Robert F.; Fainberg, Joseph; Osherovich, Vladimir A.; Truhlik, Vladimir; Wang, Yongli; Bilitza, Dieter; Fung, Shing F.

2015-01-01

Large magnetic-storm induced changes have been detected in high-latitude topside vertical electron-density profiles Ne(h). The investigation was based on the large database of topside Ne(h) profiles and digital topside ionograms from the International Satellites for Ionospheric Studies (ISIS) program available from the NASA Space Physics Data Facility (SPDF) at http://spdf.gsfc.nasa.gov/isis/isis-status.html. This large database enabled Ne(h) profiles to be obtained when an ISIS satellite passed through nearly the same region of space before, during, and after a major magnetic storm. A major goal was to relate the magnetic-storm induced high-latitude Ne(h) profile changes to solar-wind parameters. Thus an additional data constraint was to consider only storms where solar-wind data were available from the NASA/SPDF OMNIWeb database. Ten large magnetic storms (with Dst less than -100 nT) were identified that satisfied both the Ne(h) profile and the solar-wind data constraints. During five of these storms topside ionospheric Ne(h) profiles were available in the high-latitude northern hemisphere and during the other five storms similar ionospheric data were available in the southern hemisphere. Large Ne(h) changes were observed during each one of these storms. Our concentration in this paper is on the northern hemisphere. The data coverage was best for the northern-hemisphere winter. Here Ne(h) profile enhancements were always observed when the magnetic local time (MLT) was between 00 and 03 and Ne(h) profile depletions were always observed between 08 and 10 MLT. The observed Ne(h) deviations were compared with solar-wind parameters, with appropriate time shifts, for four storms.

Vertical variability of aerosol single-scattering albedo and equivalent black carbon concentration based on in-situ and remote sensing techniques during the iAREA campaigns in Ny-Ålesund

Science.gov (United States)

Markowicz, K. M.; Ritter, C.; Lisok, J.; Makuch, P.; Stachlewska, I. S.; Cappelletti, D.; Mazzola, M.; Chilinski, M. T.

2017-09-01

This work presents a methodology for obtaining vertical profiles of aerosol single scattering properties based on a combination of different measurement techniques. The presented data were obtained under the iAREA (Impact of absorbing aerosols on radiative forcing in the European Arctic) campaigns conducted in Ny-Ålesund (Spitsbergen) during the spring seasons of 2015-2017. The retrieval uses in-situ observations of black carbon concentration and absorption coefficient measured by a micro-aethalometer AE-51 mounted onboard a tethered balloon, as well as remote sensing data obtained from sun photometer and lidar measurements. From a combination of the balloon-borne in-situ and the lidar data, we derived profiles of single scattering albedo (SSA) as well as absorption, extinction, and aerosol number concentration. Results have been obtained in an altitude range from about 400 m up to 1600 m a.s.l. and for cases with increased aerosol load during the Arctic haze seasons of 2015 and 2016. The main results consist of the observation of increasing values of equivalent black carbon (EBC) and absorption coefficient with altitude, and the opposite trend for aerosol concentration for particles larger than 0.3 μm. SSA was retrieved with the use of lidar Raman and Klett algorithms for both 532 and 880 nm wavelengths. In most profiles, SSA shows relatively high temporal and altitude variability. Vertical variability of SSA computed from both methods is consistent; however, some discrepancy is related to Raman retrieval uncertainty and absorption coefficient estimation from AE-51. Typically, very low EBC concentration in Ny-Ålesund leads to large error in the absorbing coefficient. However, SSA uncertainty for both Raman and Klett algorithms seems to be reasonable, e.g. SSA of 0.98 and 0.95 relate to an error of ±0.01 and ± 0.025, respectively.

Mini MAX-DOAS Measurements of Air Pollutants over China

Science.gov (United States)

Staadt, Steffen; Hao, Nan; Trautmann, Thomas

2016-08-01

This study continues the work of Clémer et al., (2010) and is aimed to improve trace gas retrievals with mini MAX-DOAS measurements in Nanjing. Based on that work, aerosol extinction vertical profiles are retrieved using the bePRO inversion algorithm developed by the Royal Belgian Institute for Space Aeronomy (BIRA- IASB). Afterwards, the tropospheric trace gas vertical profiles and vertical column densities (VCDs) are retrieved by applying the optimal estimation method to the O4 MAX-DOAS measurements. The Profiles for N O2 , S O2 , glyoxal, formaldehyde and nitrous acid are obtained with different results and different settings for the DOAS measurement. The AODs show small positive correlation against the AERONET values. For NO2, the retrieval shows reasonable concentrations in winter as opposed to summer and has small positive correlations with GOME-2 data. The SO2 VCDs are not correlated with the GOME-2 data, due to high uncertainties from MAX-DOAS and satellite retrievals, while the vertical mixing ratios (VMR) show good agreement with in-situ data (SORPES) at Nanjing. Nitrous acid shows a maximum in winter and a minimum in summer, while glyoxal has its maximum in August and September.

Airborne in situ vertical profiling of HDO / H216O in the subtropical troposphere during the MUSICA remote sensing validation campaign

Science.gov (United States)

Dyroff, C.; Sanati, S.; Christner, E.; Zahn, A.; Balzer, M.; Bouquet, H.; McManus, J. B.; Gonzalez-Ramos, Y.; Schneider, M.

2015-05-01

Vertical profiles of water vapor (H2O) and its isotope ratio D / H expressed as δD(H2O) were measured in situ by the ISOWAT II diode-laser spectrometer during the MUlti-platform remote Sensing of Isotopologues for investigating the Cycle of Atmospheric water (MUSICA) airborne campaign. We present recent modifications of the instrument design. The instrument calibration on the ground as well as in flight is described. Based on the calibration measurements, the humidity-dependent uncertainty of our airborne data is determined. For the majority of the airborne data we achieved an accuracy (uncertainty of the mean) of Δ(δD) ≈10‰. Vertical profiles between 150 and ~7000 m were obtained during 7 days in July and August 2013 over the subtropical North Atlantic Ocean near Tenerife. The flights were coordinated with ground-based (Network for the Detection of Atmospheric Composition Change, NDACC) and space-based (Infrared Atmospheric Sounding Interferometer, IASI) FTIR remote sensing measurements of δD(H2O) as a means to validate the remote sensing humidity and δD(H2O) data products. The results of the validation are presented in detail in a separate paper (Schneider et al., 2014). The profiles were obtained with a high vertical resolution of around 3 m. By analyzing humidity and δD(H2O) correlations we were able to identify different layers of air masses with specific isotopic signatures. The results are discussed.

EXPLORING BIASES OF ATMOSPHERIC RETRIEVALS IN SIMULATED JWST TRANSMISSION SPECTRA OF HOT JUPITERS

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rocchetto, M.; Waldmann, I. P.; Tinetti, G.; Venot, O.; Lagage, P.-O.

2016-01-01

With a scheduled launch in 2018 October, the James Webb Space Telescope ( JWST ) is expected to revolutionize the field of atmospheric characterization of exoplanets. The broad wavelength coverage and high sensitivity of its instruments will allow us to extract far more information from exoplanet spectra than what has been possible with current observations. In this paper, we investigate whether current retrieval methods will still be valid in the era of JWST , exploring common approximations used when retrieving transmission spectra of hot Jupiters. To assess biases, we use 1D photochemical models to simulate typical hot Jupiter cloud-free atmospheres and generate synthetic observations for a range of carbon-to-oxygen ratios. Then, we retrieve these spectra using TauREx, a Bayesian retrieval tool, using two methodologies: one assuming an isothermal atmosphere, and one assuming a parameterized temperature profile. Both methods assume constant-with-altitude abundances. We found that the isothermal approximation biases the retrieved parameters considerably, overestimating the abundances by about one order of magnitude. The retrieved abundances using the parameterized profile are usually within 1 σ of the true state, and we found the retrieved uncertainties to be generally larger compared to the isothermal approximation. Interestingly, we found that by using the parameterized temperature profile we could place tight constraints on the temperature structure. This opens the possibility of characterizing the temperature profile of the terminator region of hot Jupiters. Lastly, we found that assuming a constant-with-altitude mixing ratio profile is a good approximation for most of the atmospheres under study.

EXPLORING BIASES OF ATMOSPHERIC RETRIEVALS IN SIMULATED JWST TRANSMISSION SPECTRA OF HOT JUPITERS

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Rocchetto, M.; Waldmann, I. P.; Tinetti, G. [Department of Physics and Astronomy, University College London, Gower Street, WC1E6BT London (United Kingdom); Venot, O. [Instituut voor Sterrenkunde, Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, Celestijnenlaan 200D, B-3001 Leuven (Belgium); Lagage, P.-O., E-mail: m.rocchetto@ucl.ac.uk [Irfu, CEA, Université Paris-Saclay, F-9119 Gif-sur Yvette (France)

2016-12-10

With a scheduled launch in 2018 October, the James Webb Space Telescope ( JWST ) is expected to revolutionize the field of atmospheric characterization of exoplanets. The broad wavelength coverage and high sensitivity of its instruments will allow us to extract far more information from exoplanet spectra than what has been possible with current observations. In this paper, we investigate whether current retrieval methods will still be valid in the era of JWST , exploring common approximations used when retrieving transmission spectra of hot Jupiters. To assess biases, we use 1D photochemical models to simulate typical hot Jupiter cloud-free atmospheres and generate synthetic observations for a range of carbon-to-oxygen ratios. Then, we retrieve these spectra using TauREx, a Bayesian retrieval tool, using two methodologies: one assuming an isothermal atmosphere, and one assuming a parameterized temperature profile. Both methods assume constant-with-altitude abundances. We found that the isothermal approximation biases the retrieved parameters considerably, overestimating the abundances by about one order of magnitude. The retrieved abundances using the parameterized profile are usually within 1 σ of the true state, and we found the retrieved uncertainties to be generally larger compared to the isothermal approximation. Interestingly, we found that by using the parameterized temperature profile we could place tight constraints on the temperature structure. This opens the possibility of characterizing the temperature profile of the terminator region of hot Jupiters. Lastly, we found that assuming a constant-with-altitude mixing ratio profile is a good approximation for most of the atmospheres under study.

Developing an A Priori Database for Passive Microwave Snow Water Retrievals Over Ocean

Science.gov (United States)

Yin, Mengtao; Liu, Guosheng

2017-12-01

A physically optimized a priori database is developed for Global Precipitation Measurement Microwave Imager (GMI) snow water retrievals over ocean. The initial snow water content profiles are derived from CloudSat Cloud Profiling Radar (CPR) measurements. A radiative transfer model in which the single-scattering properties of nonspherical snowflakes are based on the discrete dipole approximate results is employed to simulate brightness temperatures and their gradients. Snow water content profiles are then optimized through a one-dimensional variational (1D-Var) method. The standard deviations of the difference between observed and simulated brightness temperatures are in a similar magnitude to the observation errors defined for observation error covariance matrix after the 1D-Var optimization, indicating that this variational method is successful. This optimized database is applied in a Bayesian retrieval snow water algorithm. The retrieval results indicated that the 1D-Var approach has a positive impact on the GMI retrieved snow water content profiles by improving the physical consistency between snow water content profiles and observed brightness temperatures. Global distribution of snow water contents retrieved from the a priori database is compared with CloudSat CPR estimates. Results showed that the two estimates have a similar pattern of global distribution, and the difference of their global means is small. In addition, we investigate the impact of using physical parameters to subset the database on snow water retrievals. It is shown that using total precipitable water to subset the database with 1D-Var optimization is beneficial for snow water retrievals.

Geological affinity of reflecting boundaries in the intermediate structural stage of the Chu Sarysuyskiy depression based on results of vertical seismic profilling

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Davydov, N.G.; Kiselevskiy, Yu.N.

1983-01-01

A computer (EVM) and an ASOI-VSP-SK program complex are used to analyze data from seismic exploration and acoustical logging with interval by interval calculation of the velocity every four meters. Vertical seismic profilling (VSP) results are used to identify all the upper layers as reference layers. The basic reference level, the third, which corresponds to the floor of the carbonate middle to upper Visean series, is not sustained due to the thin layered state of the terrigeneous section. Based on data from vertical seismic profilling, the reflected wave method (MOV) and the common depth point method (MOGT), the reference 3-a and 6-a levels are identified. Deep reflections of the seventh, 7-a and Rf, approximately confined to the roof and floor of the lower Paleozoic deposits and the upper part of the upper reef series, are noted in the series of the Caledonian cap of the Prebaykal massifs based on vertical seismic profilling. Collector levels are noted on the basis of the frequency of the wave spectra and from the absorption coefficient in the Testas structure and in other low amplitude structures. The insufficiency of the depth capability of the common depth point method and the poor knowledge level of seismic exploration of the section of the lower Paleozoa and the upper Proterozoa of the Chu Sarysuyskiy depresion are noted.

Bilateral saccadic eye movements and tactile stimulation, but not auditory stimulation, enhance memory retrieval

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Nieuwenhuis, S.; Elzinga, B.M.; Ras, P.H.; Berends, F.; Duijs, P.; Samara, Z.; Slagter, H.A.

2013-01-01

Recent research has shown superior memory retrieval when participants make a series of horizontal saccadic eye movements between the memory encoding phase and the retrieval phase compared to participants who do not move their eyes or move their eyes vertically. It has been hypothesized that the

Light hydrocarbons vertical profiles and fluxes in a french rural area

Science.gov (United States)

Kanakidou, M.; Bonsang, B.; Lambert, G.

By means of manned hot air balloon flights, in July 1986, an experiment was conducted in a rural area of southwest France in order to determine the production at ground level of non-methane hydrocarbons in the C 2-C 6 range. Flux determinations were based on vertical profiles before and after the development of a temperature inversion layer which allowed the measurement of the NMHC accumulation close to ground level. The main species produced in the late afternoon were acetylene, propane, ethene, propene and ethane with production rates of the order of 0.5 to 2 × 10 -4g of C m -2 h -1. Isoprene was found to be the main other unsaturated species also produced. The fluxes and the atmospheric content of the air column before the inversion are consistent with an average OH radical concentration of 2 × 10 6 cm -3.

Rain cell-based identification of the vertical profile of reflectivity as observed by weather radar and its use for precipitation uncertainty estimation

Science.gov (United States)

Hazenberg, P.; Torfs, P. J. J. F.; Leijnse, H.; Uijlenhoet, R.

2012-04-01

The wide scale implementation of weather radar systems over the last couple of decades has increased our understanding concerning spatio-temporal precipitation dynamics. However, the quantitative estimation of precipitation by these devices is affected by many sources of error. A very dominant source of error results from vertical variations in the hydrometeor size distribution known as the vertical profile of reflectivity (VPR). Since the height of the measurement as well as the beam volume increases with distance from the radar, for stratiform precipitation this results in a serious underestimation (overestimation) of the surface reflectivity while sampling within the snow (bright band) region. This research presents a precipitation cell-based implementation to correct volumetric weather radar measurements for VPR effects. Using the properties of a flipping carpenter square, a contour-based identification technique was developed, which is able to identify and track precipitation cells in real time, distinguishing between convective, stratiform and undefined precipitation. For the latter two types of systems, for each individual cell, a physically plausible vertical profile of reflectivity is estimated using a Monte Carlo optimization method. Since it can be expected that the VPR will vary within a given precipitation cell, a method was developed to take the uncertainty of the VPR estimate into account. As a result, we are able to estimate the amount of precipitation uncertainty as observed by weather radar due to VPR for a given precipitation type and storm cell. We demonstrate the possibilities of this technique for a number of winter precipitation systems observed within the Belgian Ardennes. For these systems, in general, the precipitation uncertainty estimate due to vertical reflectivity profile variations varies between 10-40%.

Journal of Earth System Science | Indian Academy of Sciences

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

Complex EOF analysis; cloud motion vector winds; wind profiles; retrieval; monsoon. ... study the feasibility of deriving vertical wind profiles from current satellite observations. ... of vertical profiles of winds using satellite tracked cloud motion vector winds. ... Meteorology and Oceanography Group, Space Applications Centre, ...

Major Upgrades to the AIRS Version-6 Ozone Profile Methodology

Science.gov (United States)

Susskind, Joel; Blaisdell, John; Iredell, Lena

2015-01-01

This research is a continuation of part of what was shown at the last AIRS Science Team Meeting in the talk Improved Water Vapor and Ozone Profiles in SRT AIRS Version-6.X and the AIRS February 11, 2015 NetMeeting Further improvements in water vapor and ozone profiles compared to Version-6.AIRS Version-6 was finalized in late 2012 and is now operational. Version-6 contained many significant improvements in retrieval methodology compared to Version-5. However, Version-6 retrieval methodology used for the water vapor profile q(p) and ozone profile O3(p) retrievals is basically unchanged from Version-5, or even from Version-4. Subsequent research has made significant improvements in both water vapor and O3 profiles compared to Version-6. This talk will concentrate on O3 profile retrievals. Improvements in water vapor profile retrievals are given in a separate presentation.

A multi-model analysis of vertical ozone profiles

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

J. E. Jonson

2010-06-01

Full Text Available A multi-model study of the long-range transport of ozone and its precursors from major anthropogenic source regions was coordinated by the Task Force on Hemispheric Transport of Air Pollution (TF HTAP under the Convention on Long-range Transboundary Air Pollution (LRTAP. Vertical profiles of ozone at 12-h intervals from 2001 are available from twelve of the models contributing to this study and are compared here with observed profiles from ozonesondes. The contributions from each major source region are analysed for selected sondes, and this analysis is supplemented by retroplume calculations using the FLEXPART Lagrangian particle dispersion model to provide insight into the origin of ozone transport events and the cause of differences between the models and observations.

In the boundary layer ozone levels are in general strongly affected by regional sources and sinks. With a considerably longer lifetime in the free troposphere, ozone here is to a much larger extent affected by processes on a larger scale such as intercontinental transport and exchange with the stratosphere. Such individual events are difficult to trace over several days or weeks of transport. This may explain why statistical relationships between models and ozonesonde measurements are far less satisfactory than shown in previous studies for surface measurements at all seasons. The lowest bias between model-calculated ozone profiles and the ozonesonde measurements is seen in the winter and autumn months. Following the increase in photochemical activity in the spring and summer months, the spread in model results increases, and the agreement between ozonesonde measurements and the individual models deteriorates further.

At selected sites calculated contributions to ozone levels in the free troposphere from intercontinental transport are shown. Intercontinental transport is identified based on differences in model calculations with unperturbed emissions and

Vertical seismic profile data from well Mallik 2L-38 for gas hydrate studies

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Mi, Y [Calgary Univ., AB (Canada); Walia, R [Victoria Univ., BC (Canada); Hyndman, R D; Sakai, A

1999-01-01

A gas hydrate research well was drilled in the Canadian Arctic to determine gas hydrates in a permafrost setting in a collaborative research project between the Japan National Oil Corp., and the Geological Survey of Canada with the participation of other agencies. The multidisciplinary study included an electromagnetic survey, permafrost and gas hydrate coring, and comprehensive downhole geophysical logging and measurement. Laboratory studies on recovered cores and cuttings included sedimentology, physical properties, geochemistry, and reservoir characteristics of the Mallik gas accumulation. As part of the field program, a vertical seismic profiling survey was conducted at zero and offset source positions with 3 component receiver tools and horizontal and vertical vibration sources. A special effort was made to record shear wave data, and results from this work were combined with down hole logs and regional surface seismic data. The data will be used also to determine the effect of gas hydrates on formation velocities and to measure gas hydrate concentrations as a function of depth in the formation penetrated by the well. Certain conclusions followed from the initial VSP analysis. 1) Zero offset vertical vibration Z component and horizontal X component data give reliable velocity estimation within the gas hydrate formation zone, and P wave velocities from offset data indicate excellent consistency with that from zero offset data and with the sonic log. 2) The VSP data permitted reliable identification of gas hydrate bearing zones. 4 refs.

LIMS/Nimbus-7 Level 2 Vertical Profiles of O3, NO2, H2O, HNO3, Geopotential Height, and Temperature V006

Data.gov (United States)

National Aeronautics and Space Administration — The Limb Infrared Monitor of the Stratosphere (LIMS) version 6 Level-2 data product consists of daily, geolocated, vertical profiles of temperature, geopotential...

An Intercomparison of GPS RO Retrievals with Colocated Analysis and In Situ Observations within Tropical Cyclones

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Henry R. Winterbottom

2010-01-01

Full Text Available Observations from four Global Position System (GPS Radio Occultation (RO missions: Global Positioning System/Meteorology, CHAallenging Minisatellite Payload, Satellite de Aplicaciones Cientificas-C, and Constellation Observing System for Meteorology, Ionosphere and Climate and Taiwan's FORMOsa SATellite Mission #3 (COSMIC/FORMOSAT-3 are collected within a 600 km radius and ±180 minute temporal window of all observed tropical cyclones (TCs from 1995 to 2006 that were recorded in the global hurricane best-track reanalysis data set (Jarvinen et al. (1984; Davis et al. (1984. A composite analysis of tropical cyclone radial mean temperature and water vapor profiles is carried out using the GPS RO retrievals which are colocated with global analysis profiles and available in situ radiosonde observations. The differences between the respective observations and analysis profiles are quantified and the preliminary results show that the observations collected within TCs correspond favorably with both the analysis and radiosonde profiles which are colocated. It is concluded that GPS RO observations will contribute significantly to the understanding and modeling of TC structures, especially those related to vertical variability of the atmospheric state within TCs.

A passive air sampler for characterizing the vertical concentration profile of gaseous phase polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in near soil surface air

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhang Yuzhong; Deng Shuxing; Liu Yanan; Shen Guofeng; Li Xiqing; Cao Jun; Wang Xilong; Reid, Brian; Tao Shu

2011-01-01

Air-soil exchange is an important process governing the fate of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). A novel passive air sampler was designed and tested for measuring the vertical concentration profile of 4 low molecular weight PAHs in gaseous phase (PAH LMW4 ) in near soil surface air. Air at various heights from 5 to 520 mm above the ground was sampled by polyurethane foam disks held in down-faced cartridges. The samplers were tested at three sites: A: an extremely contaminated site, B: a site near A, and C: a background site on a university campus. Vertical concentration gradients were revealed for PAH LMW4 within a thin layer close to soil surface at the three sites. PAH concentrations either decreased (Site A) or increased (Sites B and C) with height, suggesting either deposition to or evaporation from soils. The sampler is a useful tool for investigating air-soil exchange of gaseous phase semi-volatile organic chemicals. - Research highlights: → Design, field test and calibration of the novel passive air sampler, PAS-V-I. → Vertical concentration gradients of PAH LMW4 within a thin layer close to soil. → Comparison of results between PAS-V-I measurement and fugacity approach. → Potential application of PAS-V-I and further modifications. - A novel passive sampling device was developed and tested for measuring vertical concentration profile of gaseous phase polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in near soil surface air.

Evaluating vertical concentration profile of carbon source released from slow-releasing carbon source tablets and in situ biological nitrate denitrification activity

Science.gov (United States)

Yeum, Y.; HAN, K.; Yoon, J.; Lee, J. H.; Song, K.; Kang, J. H.; Park, C. W.; Kwon, S.; Kim, Y.

2017-12-01

Slow-releasing carbon source tablets were manufactured during the design of a small-scale in situ biological denitrification system to reduce high-strength nitrate (> 30 mg N/L) from a point source such as livestock complexes. Two types of slow-releasing tablets, precipitating tablet (PT, apparent density of 2.0 g/mL) and floating tablet (FT), were prepared to achieve a vertically even distribution of carbon source (CS) in a well and an aquifer. Hydroxypropyl methylcellulose (HPMC) was used to control the release rate, and microcrystalline cellulose pH 101 (MCC 101) was added as a binder. The #8 sand was used as a precipitation agent for the PTs, and the floating agents for the FTs were calcium carbonate and citric acid. FTs floated within 30 min. and remained in water because of the buoyance from carbon dioxide, which formed during the acid-base reaction between citric acid and calcium carbonate. The longevities of PTs with 300 mg of HPMC and FTs with 400 mg of HPMC were 25.4 days and 37.3 days, respectively. We assessed vertical CS profile in a continuous flowing physical aquifer model (release test, RT) and its efficiency on biological nitrate denitrification (denitrification test, DT). During the RT, PTs, FTs and a tracer (as 1 mg rhodamine B/L) were initially injected into a well of physical aquifer model (PAM). Concentrations of CS and the tracer were monitored along the streamline in the PAM to evaluate vertical profile of CS. During the DT, the same experiment was performed as RT, except continuous injection of solution containing 30 mg N/L into the PAM to evaluate biological denitrification activity. As a result of RT, temporal profiles of CS were similar at 3 different depths of monitoring wells. These results suggest that simultaneous addition of PT and FT be suitable for achieving a vertically even distribution of the CS in the injection well and an aquifer. In DT, similar profile of CS was detected in the injection well, and nitrate was biologically

AirCore-HR: a high-resolution column sampling to enhance the vertical description of CH4 and CO2

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

O. Membrive

2017-06-01

Full Text Available An original and innovative sampling system called AirCore was presented by NOAA in 2010 (Karion et al., 2010. It consists of a long (>  100 m and narrow (<  1 cm stainless steel tube that can retain a profile of atmospheric air. The captured air sample has then to be analyzed with a gas analyzer for trace mole fraction. In this study, we introduce a new AirCore aiming to improve resolution along the vertical with the objectives to (i better capture the vertical distribution of CO2 and CH4, (ii provide a tool to compare AirCores and validate the estimated vertical resolution achieved by AirCores. This (high-resolution AirCore-HR consists of a 300 m tube, combining 200 m of 0.125 in. (3.175 mm tube and a 100 m of 0.25 in. (6.35 mm tube. This new configuration allows us to achieve a vertical resolution of 300 m up to 15 km and better than 500 m up to 22 km (if analysis of the retained sample is performed within 3 h. The AirCore-HR was flown for the first time during the annual StratoScience campaign from CNES in August 2014 from Timmins (Ontario, Canada. High-resolution vertical profiles of CO2 and CH4 up to 25 km were successfully retrieved. These profiles revealed well-defined transport structures in the troposphere (also seen in CAMS-ECMWF high-resolution forecasts of CO2 and CH4 profiles and captured the decrease of CO2 and CH4 in the stratosphere. The multi-instrument gondola also carried two other low-resolution AirCore-GUF that allowed us to perform direct comparisons and study the underlying processing method used to convert the sample of air to greenhouse gases vertical profiles. In particular, degrading the AirCore-HR derived profiles to the low resolution of AirCore-GUF yields an excellent match between both sets of CH4 profiles and shows a good consistency in terms of vertical structures. This fully validates the theoretical vertical resolution achievable by AirCores. Concerning CO2 although a

Deriving the slit functions from OMI solar observations and its implications for ozone-profile retrieval

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

K. Sun

2017-10-01

Full Text Available The Ozone Monitoring Instrument (OMI has been successfully measuring the Earth's atmospheric composition since 2004, but the on-orbit behavior of its slit functions has not been thoroughly characterized. Preflight measurements of slit functions have been used as a static input in many OMI retrieval algorithms. This study derives on-orbit slit functions from the OMI irradiance spectra assuming various function forms, including standard and super-Gaussian functions and a stretch to the preflight slit functions. The on-orbit slit functions in the UV bands show U-shaped cross-track dependences that cannot be fully represented by the preflight ones. The full widths at half maximum (FWHM of the stretched preflight slit functions for detector pixels at large viewing angles are up to 30 % larger than the nadir pixels for the UV1 band, 5 % larger for the UV2 band, and practically flat in the VIS band. Nonetheless, the on-orbit changes of OMI slit functions are found to be insignificant over time after accounting for the solar activity, despite of the decaying of detectors and the occurrence of OMI row anomaly. Applying the derived on-orbit slit functions to ozone-profile retrieval shows substantial improvements over the preflight slit functions based on comparisons with ozonesonde validations.

The effect of sediment thermal conductivity on vertical groundwater flux estimates

Science.gov (United States)

Sebok, Eva; Müller, Sascha; Engesgaard, Peter; Duque, Carlos

2015-04-01

The interaction between groundwater and surface water is of great importance both from ecological and water management perspective. The exchange fluxes are often estimated based on vertical temperature profiles taken from shallow sediments assuming a homogeneous standard value of sediment thermal conductivity. Here we report on a field investigation in a stream and in a fjord, where vertical profiles of sediment thermal conductivity and temperatures were measured in order to, (i) define the vertical variability in sediment thermal conductivity, (ii) quantify the effect of heterogeneity in sediment thermal conductivity on the estimated vertical groundwater fluxes. The study was carried out at field sites located in Ringkøbing fjord and Holtum stream in Western Denmark. Both locations have soft, sandy sediments with an upper organic layer at the fjord site. First 9 and 12 vertical sediment temperature profiles up to 0.5 m depth below the sediment bed were collected in the fjord and in the stream, respectively. Later sediment cores of 0.05 m diameter were removed at the location of the temperature profiles. Sediment thermal conductivity was measured in the sediment cores at 0.1 m intervals with a Decagon KD2 Pro device. A 1D flow and heat transport model (HydroGeoSphere) was set up and vertical groundwater fluxes were estimated based on the measured vertical sediment temperature profiles by coupling the model with PEST. To determine the effect of heterogeneity in sediment thermal conductivity on estimated vertical groundwater fluxes, the model was run by assigning (i) a homogeneous thermal conductivity for all sediment layers, calculated as the average sediment thermal conductivity of the profile, (ii) measured sediment thermal conductivities to the different model layers. The field survey showed that sediment thermal conductivity over a 0.5 m profile below the sediment bed is not uniform, having the largest variability in the fjord where organic sediments were also

Regional Precipitation Forecast with Atmospheric InfraRed Sounder (AIRS) Profile Assimilation

Science.gov (United States)

Chou, S.-H.; Zavodsky, B. T.; Jedloved, G. J.

2010-01-01

Advanced technology in hyperspectral sensors such as the Atmospheric InfraRed Sounder (AIRS; Aumann et al. 2003) on NASA's polar orbiting Aqua satellite retrieve higher vertical resolution thermodynamic profiles than their predecessors due to increased spectral resolution. Although these capabilities do not replace the robust vertical resolution provided by radiosondes, they can serve as a complement to radiosondes in both space and time. These retrieved soundings can have a significant impact on weather forecasts if properly assimilated into prediction models. Several recent studies have evaluated the performance of specific operational weather forecast models when AIRS data are included in the assimilation process. LeMarshall et al. (2006) concluded that AIRS radiances significantly improved 500 hPa anomaly correlations in medium-range forecasts of the Global Forecast System (GFS) model. McCarty et al. (2009) demonstrated similar forecast improvement in 0-48 hour forecasts in an offline version of the operational North American Mesoscale (NAM) model when AIRS radiances were assimilated at the regional scale. Reale et al. (2008) showed improvements to Northern Hemisphere 500 hPa height anomaly correlations in NASA's Goddard Earth Observing System Model, Version 5 (GEOS-5) global system with the inclusion of partly cloudy AIRS temperature profiles. Singh et al. (2008) assimilated AIRS temperature and moisture profiles into a regional modeling system for a study of a heavy rainfall event during the summer monsoon season in Mumbai, India. This paper describes an approach to assimilate AIRS temperature and moisture profiles into a regional configuration of the Advanced Research Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF-ARW) model using its three-dimensional variational (3DVAR) assimilation system (WRF-Var; Barker et al. 2004). Section 2 describes the AIRS instrument and how the quality indicators are used to intelligently select the highest-quality data for assimilation

Bilateral Saccadic Eye Movements and Tactile Stimulation, but Not Auditory Stimulation, Enhance Memory Retrieval

Science.gov (United States)

Nieuwenhuis, Sander; Elzinga, Bernet M.; Ras, Priscilla H.; Berends, Floris; Duijs, Peter; Samara, Zoe; Slagter, Heleen A.

2013-01-01

Recent research has shown superior memory retrieval when participants make a series of horizontal saccadic eye movements between the memory encoding phase and the retrieval phase compared to participants who do not move their eyes or move their eyes vertically. It has been hypothesized that the rapidly alternating activation of the two hemispheres…

Profile of capillary bridges between two vertically stacked cylindrical fibers under gravitational effect

Science.gov (United States)

Sun, Xiaohang; Lee, Hoon Joo; Michielsen, Stephen; Wilusz, Eugene

2018-05-01

Although profiles of axisymmetric capillary bridges between two cylindrical fibers have been extensively studied, little research has been reported on capillary bridges under external forces such as the gravitational force. This is because external forces add significant complications to the Laplace-Young equation, making it difficult to predict drop profiles based on analytical approaches. In this paper, simulations of capillary bridges between two vertically stacked cylindrical fibers with gravitational effect taken into consideration are studied. The asymmetrical structure of capillary bridges that are hard to predict based on analytical approaches was studied via a numerical approach based on Surface Evolver (SE). The axial and the circumferential spreading of liquids on two identical fibers in the presence of gravitational effects are predicted to determine when the gravitational effects are significant or can be neglected. The effect of liquid volume, equilibrium contact angle, the distance between two fibers and fiber radii. The simulation results were verified by comparing them with experimental measurements. Based on SE simulations, curves representing the spreading of capillary bridges along the two cylindrical fibers were obtained. The gravitational effect was scaled based on the difference of the spreading on upper and lower fibers.

Fernald Silo Remote Retrieval Tool Development

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Varma, V.K.

2004-01-01

A long-reach tool was developed to remove discrete objects from the silos at the Fernald Environmental Management Project in Ohio. If they are not removed, these objects can potentially cause problems during the retrieval and transfer of waste from the silos. Most of the objects are on top of the Bentogrout cap inside the silos at or near the primary opening into the tank and will therefore require only vertical lifting. The objects are located about 20 ft from the top of the silo. Although most of the objects can be retrieved from 20 ft, the long-reach tool was designed to for a reach up to 40 ft in case objects roll towards the walls of the tank or need to be removed during heel retrieval operations. This report provides a detailed description of the tool that was developed, tested, and demonstrated at the Tanks Technology Cold Test Facility at Oak Ridge National Laboratory. Scaffolding was erected over two experimental cells to simulate the 40-ft maximum working depth anticipated in the silos at Fernald. Plastic bottles and plastic sheeting simulated the debris that could be encountered during waste retrieval operations

Vertical distribution of organochlorine pesticides in humus along Alpine altitudinal profiles in relation to ambiental parameters

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kirchner, M., E-mail: kirchner@helmholtz-muenchen.d [Helmholtz Zentrum Muenchen, GmbH, Institutes of Ecological Chemistry, Developmental Genetics and Soil Ecology, Ingolstaedter Landstrasse 1, D-85764 Neuherberg (Germany); Faus-Kessler, T.; Jakobi, G.; Levy, W.; Henkelmann, B.; Bernhoeft, S.; Kotalik, J.; Zsolnay, A. [Helmholtz Zentrum Muenchen, GmbH, Institutes of Ecological Chemistry, Developmental Genetics and Soil Ecology, Ingolstaedter Landstrasse 1, D-85764 Neuherberg (Germany); Bassan, R. [Regional Agency for Environmental Prevention and Protection of Veneto (Italy); Belis, C. [Regional Agency for Environmental Protection of Lombardy (Italy); Kraeuchi, N. [Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research (Switzerland); Moche, W. [Federal Environment Agency Ltd. (Austria); Simoncic, P. [Slovenian Forestry Institute (Slovenia); Uhl, M.; Weiss, P. [Federal Environment Agency Ltd. (Austria); Schramm, K.-W. [Helmholtz Zentrum Muenchen, GmbH, Institutes of Ecological Chemistry, Developmental Genetics and Soil Ecology, Ingolstaedter Landstrasse 1, D-85764 Neuherberg (Germany)

2009-12-15

In forest soils along vertical profiles located in different parts of the Alps, concentrations of persistent organic pollutants (POPs), namely organochlorine pesticides (OCPs) like dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethanes (DDTs), hexachlorobenzene (HCB), hexachlorocyclohexanes (HCH), heptachlor, aldrin, dieldrin and mirex, were measured. Though local characteristics of the sites are influenced by numerous factors like orographic and meteorological parameters, forest stand characteristics and humus parameters, we ascertained a marked vertical increase of concentrations of some organochlorine compounds in the soil. On the basis of climatological values of each site, we found that the contamination increase with altitude can be ascribed to a certain 'cold condensation effect'. In addition, the perennial atmospheric deposition of POPs is controlled by precipitation. Other key parameters explaining the accumulation of POPs are the soil organic carbon stocks, the turnover times, the re-volatilisation and degradation processes, which vary with altitude. - Caused by temperature-dependent processes regarding deposition, re-volatilization and decomposition of POPs, the concentration of organochlorine pesticides varies in the Alpine region with altitude.

High-Latitude Topside Ionospheric Vertical Electron Density Profile Changes in Response to Large Magnetic Storms

Science.gov (United States)

Benson, Robert F.; Fainberg, Joseph; Osherovich, Vladimir A.; Truhlik, Vladimir; Wang, Yongli; Bilitza, Dieter; Fung, Shing F.

2016-01-01

Large magnetic-storm-induced changes were detected in high-latitude topside vertical electron density profiles Ne(h) in a database of profiles and digital topside ionograms, from the International Satellites for Ionospheric Studies (ISIS) program, that enabled Ne(h) profiles to be obtained in nearly the same region of space before, during, and after a major magnetic storm (Dst -100nT). Storms where Ne(h) profiles were available in the high-latitude Northern Hemisphere had better coverage of solar wind parameters than storms with available Ne(h) profiles in the high-latitude Southern Hemisphere. Large Ne(h) changes were observed during all storms, with enhancements and depletions sometimes near a factor of 10 and 0.1, respectively, but with substantial differences in the responses in the two hemispheres. Large spatial andor temporal Ne(h) changes were often observed during Dst minimum and during the storm recovery phase. The storm-induced Ne(h) changes were the most pronounced and consistent in the Northern Hemisphere in that large enhancements were observed during winter nighttime and large depletions during winter and spring daytime. The limited available cases suggested that these Northern Hemisphere enhancements increased with increases of the time-shifted solar wind velocity v, magnetic field B, and with more negative values of the B components except for the highest common altitude (1100km) of the profiles. There was also some evidence suggesting that the Northern Hemisphere depletions were related to changes in the solar wind parameters. Southern Hemisphere storm-induced enhancements and depletions were typically considerably less with depletions observed during summer nighttime conditions and enhancements during summer daytime and fall nighttime conditions.

A study of the horizontal and vertical profile of submicrometer particles in relation to a busy road

Science.gov (United States)

Morawska, Lidia; Thomas, Stephen; Gilbert, Dale; Greenaway, Chris; Rijnders, Esther

Epidemiological studies are consistently reporting an association between fine particulate pollution and ill-health. Motor vehicle emissions are considered to be the main source of fine particles in ambient urban air of cities which are not directly influenced by industrial emissions. The aim of this work was to assess the influence of a major arterial road on concentration levels of airborne fine particles in its vicinity. Measurements of over 500 particle size distributions in the particle size range 16-626 nm, were made using two scanning mobility particle sizers (SMPS). A subsequent comparison of the recorded values from differing locations is discussed, with reference made to topographic and climatic influences. Both horizontal and vertical profile measurements of fine particle number size distributions are described; the combination of the two yielding information as to the relative exposures of occupants of buildings in the vicinity of a major arterial route. With the exception of measurements in close proximity to the freeway (about 15 m), the horizontal profile measurements did not provide any evidence of a statistically significant difference in fine particle number concentration with respect to distance at ground level up to a distance of 200 m within the study area. The vertical profile measurements also revealed no significant correlation between particle concentration and height. However, for buildings in the immediate proximity to the arterial road (about 15 m) concentrations around the building envelope are very high, comparable to those in the immediate vicinity of the road, indicating undiluted concentrations drawn directly from the freeway. This finding has a significant implication for management of indoor air quality in the buildings located in the immediate vicinity of major roads.

Cloud vertical profiles derived from CALIPSO and CloudSat and a comparison with MODIS derived clouds

Science.gov (United States)

Kato, S.; Sun-Mack, S.; Miller, W. F.; Rose, F. G.; Minnis, P.; Wielicki, B. A.; Winker, D. M.; Stephens, G. L.; Charlock, T. P.; Collins, W. D.; Loeb, N. G.; Stackhouse, P. W.; Xu, K.

2008-05-01

CALIPSO and CloudSat from the a-train provide detailed information of vertical distribution of clouds and aerosols. The vertical distribution of cloud occurrence is derived from one month of CALIPSO and CloudSat data as a part of the effort of merging CALIPSO, CloudSat and MODIS with CERES data. This newly derived cloud profile is compared with the distribution of cloud top height derived from MODIS on Aqua from cloud algorithms used in the CERES project. The cloud base from MODIS is also estimated using an empirical formula based on the cloud top height and optical thickness, which is used in CERES processes. While MODIS detects mid and low level clouds over the Arctic in April fairly well when they are the topmost cloud layer, it underestimates high- level clouds. In addition, because the CERES-MODIS cloud algorithm is not able to detect multi-layer clouds and the empirical formula significantly underestimates the depth of high clouds, the occurrence of mid and low-level clouds is underestimated. This comparison does not consider sensitivity difference to thin clouds but we will impose an optical thickness threshold to CALIPSO derived clouds for a further comparison. The effect of such differences in the cloud profile to flux computations will also be discussed. In addition, the effect of cloud cover to the top-of-atmosphere flux over the Arctic using CERES SSF and FLASHFLUX products will be discussed.

Evaluation of a regional chemistry transport model using a newly developed regional OMI NO2 retrieval

Science.gov (United States)

Kuhlmann, G.; Lam, Y. F.; Cheung, H. M.; Hartl, A.; Fung, J. C. H.; Chan, P. W.; Wenig, M. O.

2014-12-01

In this paper, we evaluate a high-resolution chemistry transport model (CTM) (3 km x 3 km spatial resolution) with the new Hong Kong (HK) NO2 retrieval developed for the Ozone Monitoring Instrument (OMI) on-board the Aura satellite. The three-dimensional atmospheric chemistry was modelled in the Pearl River Delta (PRD) region in southern China by the Models-3 Community Multiscale Air Quality (CMAQ) modelling system from October 2006 to January 2007. In the HK NO2 retrieval, tropospheric air mass factors (AMF) were recalculated using high-resolution ancillary parameters of surface reflectance, NO2 profile shapes and aerosol profiles of which the latter two were taken from the CMAQ simulation. We also tested four different aerosol parametrizations. Ground level measurements by the PRD Regional Air Quality Monitoring (RAQM) network were used as additional independent measurements. The HK NO2 retrieval increases the NO2 vertical column densities (VCD) by (+31 ± 38) %, when compared to NASA's standard product (SP2), and reduces the mean bias (MB) between satellite and ground measurements by 26 percentage points from -41 to -15 %. The correlation coefficient r is low for both satellite datasets (r = 0.35) due to the high spatial variability of NO2 concentrations. The correlation between CMAQ and the RAQM network is low (r ≈ 0.3) and the model underestimates the NO2 concentrations in the north-western model domain (Foshan and Guangzhou). We compared the CMAQ NO2 time series of the two main plumes with our regional OMI NO2 product. The model overestimates the NO2 VCDs by about 15 % in Hong Kong and Shenzhen, while the correlation coefficient is satisfactory (r = 0.56). In Foshan and Guangzhou, the correlation is low (r = 0.37) and the model underestimates the VCDs strongly (MB = -40 %). In addition, we estimated that the OMI VCDs are also underestimated by about 10 to 20 % in Foshan and Guangzhou because of the influence of the model parameters on the AMF. In this study

Uniform Atmospheric Retrievals of Ultracool Late-T and Early-Y dwarfs

Science.gov (United States)

Garland, Ryan; Irwin, Patrick

2018-01-01

A significant number of ultracool (types of objects with a uniform retrieval method, we hope to elucidate any trends and (dis)similarities found in atmospheric parameters, such as chemical abundances, temperature-pressure profile, and cloud structure, for a sample of 7 ultracool brown dwarfs as we transition from hotter (~700K) to colder objects (~450K).We perform atmospheric retrievals on two late-T and five early-Y dwarfs. We use the NEMESIS atmospheric retrieval code coupled to a Nested Sampling algorithm, along with a standard uniform model for all of our retrievals. The uniform model assumes the atmosphere is described by a gray radiative-convective temperature profile, (optionally) a self-consistent Mie scattering cloud, and a number of relevant gases. We first verify our methods by comparing it to a benchmark retrieval for Gliese 570D, which is found to be consistent. Furthermore, we present the retrieved gaseous composition, temperature structure, spectroscopic mass and radius, cloud structure and the trends associated with decreasing temperature found in this small sample of objects.

How to average logarithmic retrievals?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

B. Funke

2012-04-01

Full Text Available Calculation of mean trace gas contributions from profiles obtained by retrievals of the logarithm of the abundance rather than retrievals of the abundance itself are prone to biases. By means of a system simulator, biases of linear versus logarithmic averaging were evaluated for both maximum likelihood and maximum a priori retrievals, for various signal to noise ratios and atmospheric variabilities. These biases can easily reach ten percent or more. As a rule of thumb we found for maximum likelihood retrievals that linear averaging better represents the true mean value in cases of large local natural variability and high signal to noise ratios, while for small local natural variability logarithmic averaging often is superior. In the case of maximum a posteriori retrievals, the mean is dominated by the a priori information used in the retrievals and the method of averaging is of minor concern. For larger natural variabilities, the appropriateness of the one or the other method of averaging depends on the particular case because the various biasing mechanisms partly compensate in an unpredictable manner. This complication arises mainly because of the fact that in logarithmic retrievals the weight of the prior information depends on abundance of the gas itself. No simple rule was found on which kind of averaging is superior, and instead of suggesting simple recipes we cannot do much more than to create awareness of the traps related with averaging of mixing ratios obtained from logarithmic retrievals.

Vertical profile of peroxyacetyl nitrate (PAN from MIPAS-STR measurements over Brazil in February 2005 and its contribution to tropical UT NOy partitioning

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

A. Roiger

2008-08-01

Full Text Available We report on the retrieval of PAN (CH3C(OOONO2 in the upper tropical troposphere from limb measurements by the remote-sensor MIPAS-STR on board the Russian high altitude research aircraft M55-Geophysica. The measurements were performed close to Araçatuba, Brazil, on 17 February 2005. The retrieval was made in the spectral range 775–820 cm−1 where PAN exhibits its strongest feature but also more than 10 species interfere. Especially trace gases such as CH3CCl3, CFC-113, CFC-11, and CFC-22, emitting also in spectrally broad not-resolved branches, make the processing of PAN prone to errors. Therefore, the selection of appropriate spectral windows, the separate retrieval of several interfering species and the careful handling of the water vapour profile are part of the study presented. The retrieved profile of PAN has a maximum of about 0.14 ppbv at 10 km altitude, slightly larger than the lowest reported values (<0.1 ppbv and much lower than the highest reported in the literature (0.65 ppbv. Besides the NOy constituents measured by MIPAS-STR (HNO3, ClONO2, HO2NO2, PAN, the in situ instruments aboard the Geophysica provide simultaneous measurements of NO, NO2, and the sum NOy. Comparing the sum of in-situ and remotely derived NO+NO2+HNO3+ClONO2+HO2NO2+PAN with total NOy a deficit of 30–40% (0.2–0.3 ppbv in the troposphere remains unexplained whereas the values fit well in the stratosphere.

Assessment of vertically-resolved PM10 from mobile lidar observations

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

J.-C. Raut

2009-11-01

Full Text Available We investigate in this study the vertical PM10 distributions from mobile measurements carried out from locations along the Paris Peripherique (highly trafficked beltway around Paris, examine distinctions in terms of aerosol concentrations between the outlying regions of Paris and the inner city and eventually discuss the influence of aerosol sources, meteorology, and dynamics on the retrieved PM10 distributions. To achieve these purposes, we combine in situ surface measurements with active remote sensing observations obtained from a great number of research programs in Paris area since 1999. Two approaches, devoted to the conversion of vertical profiles of lidar-derived extinction coefficients into PM10, have been set up. A very good agreement is found between the theoretical and empirical methods with a discrepancy of 3%. Hence, specific extinction cross-sections at 355 nm are provided with a reasonable relative uncertainty lower than 12% for urban (4.5 m2 g−1 and periurban (5.9 m2 g−1 aersols, lower than 26% for rural (7.1 m2 g−1 aerosols, biomass burning (2.6 m2 g−1 and dust (1.1 m2 g−1 aerosols The high spatial and temporal resolutions of the mobile lidar (respectively 1.5 m and 1 min enable to follow the spatiotemporal variability of various layers trapping aerosols in the troposphere. Appropriate specific extinction cross-sections are applied in each layer detected in the vertical heterogeneities from the lidar profiles. The standard deviation (rms between lidar-derived PM10 at 200 m above ground and surface network stations measurements was ~14μg m−3. This difference is particularly ascribed to a decorrelation of mass concentrations in the first meters of the boundary layer, as highlighted through multiangular lidar observations. Lidar signals can be used to follow mass concentrations with an uncertainty lower than 25% above urban areas and provide useful information on PM10 peak forecasting that affect air quality.

Comparison of GOME tropospheric NO2 columns with NO2 profiles deduced from ground-based in situ measurements

Science.gov (United States)

Schaub, D.; Boersma, K. F.; Kaiser, J. W.; Weiss, A. K.; Folini, D.; Eskes, H. J.; Buchmann, B.

2006-08-01

Nitrogen dioxide (NO2) vertical tropospheric column densities (VTCs) retrieved from the Global Ozone Monitoring Experiment (GOME) are compared to coincident ground-based tropospheric NO2 columns. The ground-based columns are deduced from in situ measurements at different altitudes in the Alps for 1997 to June 2003, yielding a unique long-term comparison of GOME NO2 VTC data retrieved by a collaboration of KNMI (Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute) and BIRA/IASB (Belgian Institute for Space Aeronomy) with independently derived tropospheric NO2 profiles. A first comparison relates the GOME retrieved tropospheric columns to the tropospheric columns obtained by integrating the ground-based NO2 measurements. For a second comparison, the tropospheric profiles constructed from the ground-based measurements are first multiplied with the averaging kernel (AK) of the GOME retrieval. The second approach makes the comparison independent from the a priori NO2 profile used in the GOME retrieval. This allows splitting the total difference between the column data sets into two contributions: one that is due to differences between the a priori and the ground-based NO2 profile shapes, and another that can be attributed to uncertainties in both the remaining retrieval parameters (such as, e.g., surface albedo or aerosol concentration) and the ground-based in situ NO2 profiles. For anticyclonic clear sky conditions the comparison indicates a good agreement between the columns (n=157, R=0.70/0.74 for the first/second comparison approach, respectively). The mean relative difference (with respect to the ground-based columns) is -7% with a standard deviation of 40% and GOME on average slightly underestimating the ground-based columns. Both data sets show a similar seasonal behaviour with a distinct maximum of spring NO2 VTCs. Further analysis indicates small GOME columns being systematically smaller than the ground-based ones. The influence of different shapes in the a priori and

Vertical Cloud Climatology During TC4 Derived from High-Altitude Aircraft Merged Lidar and Radar Profiles

Science.gov (United States)

Hlavka, Dennis; Tian, Lin; Hart, William; Li, Lihua; McGill, Matthew; Heymsfield, Gerald

2009-01-01

Aircraft lidar works by shooting laser pulses toward the earth and recording the return time and intensity of any of the light returning to the aircraft after scattering off atmospheric particles and/or the Earth s surface. The scattered light signatures can be analyzed to tell the exact location of cloud and aerosol layers and, with the aid of a few optical assumptions, can be analyzed to retrieve estimates of optical properties such as atmospheric transparency. Radar works in a similar fashion except it sends pulses toward earth at a much larger wavelength than lidar. Radar records the return time and intensity of cloud or rain reflection returning to the aircraft. Lidar can measure scatter from optically thin cirrus and aerosol layers whose particles are too small for the radar to detect. Radar can provide reflection profiles through thick cloud layers of larger particles that lidar cannot penetrate. Only after merging the two instrument products can accurate measurements of the locations of all layers in the full atmospheric column be achieved. Accurate knowledge of the vertical distribution of clouds is important information for understanding the Earth/atmosphere radiative balance and for improving weather/climate forecast models. This paper describes one such merged data set developed from the Tropical Composition, Cloud and Climate Coupling (TC4) experiment based in Costa Rica in July-August 2007 using the nadir viewing Cloud Physics Lidar (CPL) and the Cloud Radar System (CRS) on board the NASA ER-2 aircraft. Statistics were developed concerning cloud probability through the atmospheric column and frequency of the number of cloud layers. These statistics were calculated for the full study area, four sub-regions, and over land compared to over ocean across all available flights. The results are valid for the TC4 experiment only, as preferred cloud patterns took priority during mission planning. The TC4 Study Area was a very cloudy region, with cloudy

Extraction of Vertical Profiles of Atmospheric Variables from Gridded Binary, Edition 2 (GRIB2) Model Output Files

Science.gov (United States)

2018-01-18

new_grid will generate a smaller grid interpolated from the fields of the parent grid (http://www.cpc.ncep.noaa.gov/ products/wesley/wgrib2/new_grid.html...the grid or undefined. “latlon” for –new_grid results in a new grid interpolated from the parent (old) grid, where the listed latitude and longitude...by-2 horizontal grid 0.0001° apart, which translates to about a 10-m separation . 2.2 Extract the Vertical Profile Data The second step is to

Comparison of Gaussian and non-Gaussian Atmospheric Profile Retrievals from Satellite Microwave Data

Science.gov (United States)

Kliewer, A.; Forsythe, J. M.; Fletcher, S. J.; Jones, A. S.

2017-12-01

The Cooperative Institute for Research in the Atmosphere at Colorado State University has recently developed two different versions of a mixed-distribution (lognormal combined with a Gaussian) based microwave temperature and mixing ratio retrieval system as well as the original Gaussian-based approach. These retrieval systems are based upon 1DVAR theory but have been adapted to use different descriptive statistics of the lognormal distribution to minimize the background errors. The input radiance data is from the AMSU-A and MHS instruments on the NOAA series of spacecraft. To help illustrate how the three retrievals are affected by the change in the distribution we are in the process of creating a new website to show the output from the different retrievals. Here we present initial results from different dynamical situations to show how the tool could be used by forecasters as well as for educators. However, as the new retrieved values are from a non-Gaussian based 1DVAR then they will display non-Gaussian behaviors that need to pass a quality control measure that is consistent with this distribution, and these new measures are presented here along with initial results for checking the retrievals.

The Implications of 3D Thermal Structure on 1D Atmospheric Retrieval

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Blecic, Jasmina; Dobbs-Dixon, Ian [NYU Abu Dhabi, Abu Dhabi (United Arab Emirates); Greene, Thomas, E-mail: jasmina@nyu.edu [NASA Ames Research Center, Space Sciece and Astrobiology Division, M.S. 245-6, Moffett Field, CA 94035 (United States)

2017-10-20

Using the atmospheric structure from a 3D global radiation-hydrodynamic simulation of HD 189733b and the open-source Bayesian Atmospheric Radiative Transfer (BART) code, we investigate the difference between the secondary-eclipse temperature structure produced with a 3D simulation and the best-fit 1D retrieved model. Synthetic data are generated by integrating the 3D models over the Spitzer , the Hubble Space Telescope ( HST ), and the James Web Space Telescope ( JWST ) bandpasses, covering the wavelength range between 1 and 11 μ m where most spectroscopically active species have pronounced features. Using the data from different observing instruments, we present detailed comparisons between the temperature–pressure profiles recovered by BART and those from the 3D simulations. We calculate several averages of the 3D thermal structure and explore which particular thermal profile matches the retrieved temperature structure. We implement two temperature parameterizations that are commonly used in retrieval to investigate different thermal profile shapes. To assess which part of the thermal structure is best constrained by the data, we generate contribution functions for our theoretical model and each of our retrieved models. Our conclusions are strongly affected by the spectral resolution of the instruments included, their wavelength coverage, and the number of data points combined. We also see some limitations in each of the temperature parametrizations, as they are not able to fully match the complex curvatures that are usually produced in hydrodynamic simulations. The results show that our 1D retrieval is recovering a temperature and pressure profile that most closely matches the arithmetic average of the 3D thermal structure. When we use a higher resolution, more data points, and a parametrized temperature profile that allows more flexibility in the middle part of the atmosphere, we find a better match between the retrieved temperature and pressure profile and

The Implications of 3D Thermal Structure on 1D Atmospheric Retrieval

Science.gov (United States)

Blecic, Jasmina; Dobbs-Dixon, Ian; Greene, Thomas

2017-10-01

Using the atmospheric structure from a 3D global radiation-hydrodynamic simulation of HD 189733b and the open-source Bayesian Atmospheric Radiative Transfer (BART) code, we investigate the difference between the secondary-eclipse temperature structure produced with a 3D simulation and the best-fit 1D retrieved model. Synthetic data are generated by integrating the 3D models over the Spitzer, the Hubble Space Telescope (HST), and the James Web Space Telescope (JWST) bandpasses, covering the wavelength range between 1 and 11 μm where most spectroscopically active species have pronounced features. Using the data from different observing instruments, we present detailed comparisons between the temperature-pressure profiles recovered by BART and those from the 3D simulations. We calculate several averages of the 3D thermal structure and explore which particular thermal profile matches the retrieved temperature structure. We implement two temperature parameterizations that are commonly used in retrieval to investigate different thermal profile shapes. To assess which part of the thermal structure is best constrained by the data, we generate contribution functions for our theoretical model and each of our retrieved models. Our conclusions are strongly affected by the spectral resolution of the instruments included, their wavelength coverage, and the number of data points combined. We also see some limitations in each of the temperature parametrizations, as they are not able to fully match the complex curvatures that are usually produced in hydrodynamic simulations. The results show that our 1D retrieval is recovering a temperature and pressure profile that most closely matches the arithmetic average of the 3D thermal structure. When we use a higher resolution, more data points, and a parametrized temperature profile that allows more flexibility in the middle part of the atmosphere, we find a better match between the retrieved temperature and pressure profile and the

Low profile, high load vertical rolling positioning stage

Science.gov (United States)

Shu, Deming; Barraza, Juan

1996-01-01

A stage or support platform assembly for use in a synchrotron accurately positions equipment to be used in the beam line of the synchrotron. The support platform assembly includes an outer housing in which is disposed a lifting mechanism having a lifting platform or stage at its upper extremity on which the equipment is mounted. A worm gear assembly is located in the housing and is adapted to raise and lower a lifting shaft that is fixed to the lifting platform by an anti-binding connection. The lifting platform is moved vertically as the lifting shaft is moved vertically. The anti-binding connection prevents the shaft from rotating with respect to the platform, but does permit slight canting of the shaft with respect to the lifting platform so as to eliminate binding and wear due to possible tolerance mismatches. In order to ensure that the lifting mechanism does not move in a horizontal direction as it is moved vertically, at least three linear roller bearing assemblies are arranged around the outer-periphery of the lifting mechanism. One of the linear roller bearing assemblies can be adjusted so that the roller bearings apply a loading force against the lifting mechanism. Alternatively, a cam mechanism can be used to provide such a loading force.

Application of Electromagnetic Induction to Monitor Changes in Soil Electrical Conductivity Profiles in Arid Agriculture

KAUST Repository

Jadoon, K.Z.

2015-09-06

In this research, multi-configuration electromagnetic induction (EMI) measurements were conducted in a corn field to estimate variation in soil electrical conductivity profiles in the roots zone. Electromagnetic forward model based on the full solution of Maxwell\\'s equation was used to simulate the apparent electrical conductivity measured with EMI system (the CMD mini-Explorer). Joint inversion of multi-configuration EMI measurements were performed to estimate the vertical soil electrical conductivity profiles. The inversion minimizes the misfit between the measured and modeled soil apparent electrical conductivity by DiffeRential Evolution Adaptive Metropolis (DREAM) algorithm, which is based on Bayesain approach. Results indicate that soil electrical conductivity profiles have low values close to the corn plants, which indicates loss of soil moisture due to the root water uptake. These results offer valuable insights into future potential and emerging challenges in the development of joint analysis of multi-configuration EMI measurements to retrieve effective soil electrical conductivity profiles.

Autonomous vertical profiler data management

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Afzulpurkar, S.; Navelkar, G.S.; Desa, E.S.; Madhan, R.; Dabholkar, N.; Prabhudesai, S.P.; Mascarenhas, A.A.M.Q.

the data management. It is expected that there would be multiple profilers operating at various locations, such as coastal seas, dams and other water bodies. Data would be relayed for archival, processing and be made available to the communities who...

The operational methane retrieval algorithm for TROPOMI

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

H. Hu

2016-11-01

Full Text Available This work presents the operational methane retrieval algorithm for the Sentinel 5 Precursor (S5P satellite and its performance tested on realistic ensembles of simulated measurements. The target product is the column-averaged dry air volume mixing ratio of methane (XCH4, which will be retrieved simultaneously with scattering properties of the atmosphere. The algorithm attempts to fit spectra observed by the shortwave and near-infrared channels of the TROPOspheric Monitoring Instrument (TROPOMI spectrometer aboard S5P.The sensitivity of the retrieval performance to atmospheric scattering properties, atmospheric input data and instrument calibration errors is evaluated. In addition, we investigate the effect of inhomogeneous slit illumination on the instrument spectral response function. Finally, we discuss the cloud filters to be used operationally and as backup.We show that the required accuracy and precision of  < 1 % for the XCH4 product are met for clear-sky measurements over land surfaces and after appropriate filtering of difficult scenes. The algorithm is very stable, having a convergence rate of 99 %. The forward model error is less than 1 % for about 95 % of the valid retrievals. Model errors in the input profile of water do not influence the retrieval outcome noticeably. The methane product is expected to meet the requirements if errors in input profiles of pressure and temperature remain below 0.3 % and 2 K, respectively. We further find that, of all instrument calibration errors investigated here, our retrievals are the most sensitive to an error in the instrument spectral response function of the shortwave infrared channel.

Diurnal and vertical variability of the sensible heat and carbon dioxide budgets in the atmospheric surface layer

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Casso-Torralba, P.; Rosa Soler, M.; Vila-Guerau de Arellano, J.; Bosveld, F.; Vermeulen, A.; Werner, C.; Moors, E.

2008-08-01

The diurnal and vertical variability of heat and carbon dioxide (CO2) in the atmospheric surface layer are studied by analyzing measurements from a 213 m tower in Cabauw (Netherlands). Observations of thermodynamic variables and CO2 mixing ratio as well as vertical profiles of the turbulent fluxes are used to retrieve the contribution of the budget terms in the scalar conservation equation. On the basis of the daytime evolution of turbulent fluxes, we calculate the budget terms by assuming that turbulent fluxes follow a linear profile with height. This assumption is carefully tested and the deviation from linearity is quantified. The budget calculation allows us to assess the importance of advection of heat and CO2 during day hours for three selected days. It is found that, under nonadvective conditions, the diurnal variability of temperature and CO2 is well reproduced from the flux divergence measurements. Consequently, the vertical transport due to the turbulent flux plays a major role in the daytime evolution of both scalars and the advection is a relatively small contribution. During the analyzed days with a strong contribution of advection of either heat or carbon dioxide, the flux divergence is still an important contribution to the budget. For heat, the quantification of the advection contribution is in close agreement with results from a numerical model. For carbon dioxide, we qualitatively corroborate the results with a Lagrangian transport model. Our estimation of advection is compared with traditional estimations based on the Net Ecosystem-atmosphere Exchange (NEE)

Improving retrieval of volcanic sulphur dioxide from backscattered UV satellite observations

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Yang, Kai; Krotkov, N.A.; Krueger, A.J.; Carn, S.A.; Bhartia, P.K.; Levelt, P.F.

2009-01-01

Existing algorithms that use satellite measurements of solar backscattered ultraviolet (BUV) radiances to retrieve sulfur dioxide (SO2) vertical columns underestimate the large SO2 amounts encountered in fresh volcanic eruption clouds. To eliminate this underestimation we have developed a new

Stability of disposal rooms during waste retrieval

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Brandshaug, T.

1989-03-01

This report presents the results of a numerical analysis to determine the stability of waste disposal rooms for vertical and horizontal emplacement during the period of waste retrieval. It is assumed that waste retrieval starts 50 years after the initial emplacement of the waste, and that access to and retrieval of the waste containers take place through the disposal rooms. It is further assumed that the disposal rooms are not back-filled. Convective cooling of the disposal rooms in preparation for waste retrieval is included in the analysis. Conditions and parameters used were taken from the Nevada Nuclear Waste Storage Investigation (NNWSI) Project Site Characterization Plan Conceptual Design Report (MacDougall et al., 1987). Thermal results are presented which illustrate the heat transfer response of the rock adjacent to the disposal rooms. Mechanical results are presented which illustrate the predicted distribution of stress, joint slip, and room deformations for the period of time investigated. Under the assumption that the host rock can be classified as ''fair to good'' using the Geomechanics Classification System (Bieniawski, 1974), only light ground support would appear to be necessary for the disposal rooms to remain stable. 23 refs., 28 figs., 2 tabs

A multi-offset vertical profiling (VSP) experiment for anisotropy analysis and imaging

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Grech, G. K.; Lawton, D. [Calgary Univ., AB (Canada)

2000-09-01

Vertical seismic profiling (VSP) and surface seismic data are used to image and locate hydrocarbon targets in the subsurface, hence the importance of assessing which formations exhibit seismic velocity anisotropy and quantify their parameters for use during seismic imaging. The purpose of the experiments described in this paper was to determine whether the multiple dipping thin shale beds overlying the target area in the Rocky Mountain Foothills in southern Alberta exhibit seismic velocity anisotropy and if so, how this phenomenon affects the image of the underlying target. Traveltime inversion of the first arrival data from the multi-offset VSP in the study area has revealed that the Cretaceous shales exhibit velocity anisotropy of about 10 degrees. For a target depth of 3000 m and moderate dips of 30 to 50 degrees in the anisotropic overburden, it would be reasonable to expect a lateral shift in the imaged location of the target of up to 300 m in the up-direction of overlying bedding. 8 refs., 9 figs.

Raman lidar water vapor profiling over Warsaw, Poland

Science.gov (United States)

Stachlewska, Iwona S.; Costa-Surós, Montserrat; Althausen, Dietrich

2017-09-01

Water vapor mixing ratio and relative humidity profiles were derived from the multi-wavelength Raman PollyXT lidar at the EARLINET site in Warsaw, using the Rayleigh molecular extinction calculation based on atmospheric temperature and pressure from three different sources: i) the standard atmosphere US 62, ii) the Global Data Assimilation System (GDAS) model output, and iii) the WMO 12374 radiosoundings launched at Legionowo. With each method, 136 midnight relative humidity profiles were obtained for lidar observations from July 2013 to August 2015. Comparisons of these profiles showed in favor of the latter method (iii), but it also indicated that the other two data sources could replace it, if necessary. Such use was demonstrated for an automated retrieval of water vapor mixing ratio from dusk until dawn on 19/20 March 2015; a case study related to an advection of biomass burning aerosol from forest fires over Ukraine. Additionally, an algorithm that applies thresholds to the radiosounding relative humidity profiles to estimate macro-physical cloud vertical structure was used for the first time on the Raman lidar relative humidity profiles. The results, based on a subset of 66 profiles, indicate that below 6 km cloud bases/tops can be successfully obtained in 53% and 76% cases from lidar and radiosounding profiles, respectively. Finally, a contribution of the lidar derived mean relative humidity to cloudy conditions within the range of 0.8 to 6.2 km, in comparison to clear-sky conditions, was estimated.

Vertical and horizontal differences of soil parameters and radiocaesium contents in soil profiles (dystric cambisol) under spruce

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Strebl, F.; Gerzabek, M.

1997-05-01

In a spruce forest stand 9 pooled soil profiles (ten auger cores each, 4 layers) were collected within a homogeneous area of 200 ha. This sampling technique provides sufficient accuracy for the determination of most physico-chemical soil characteristics as well as for the assessment of vertical gradients and horizontal variability within the investigation area. The results reveal the soils' tendency for podsolization and acidification processes. In spite of the small sample sizes cation wash-out (Ca, Mg) due to differences in the orographic situation was determined with high significance. 86 % of 137 Cs-contamination derived from the Chernobyl-fallout in 1986 are still found in the top-soil (10 cm). Nutrient-cycling and the high binding capacity of soil organic matter retard vertical migration of 137 Cs in forest soils effectively. From the present data sets for different soil parameters the minimum number of soil samples ensuring maximum admissible errors of 10 and 20 % were calculated. (author)

A stochastic cloud model for cloud and ozone retrievals from UV measurements

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Efremenko, Dmitry S.; Schüssler, Olena; Doicu, Adrian; Loyola, Diego

2016-01-01

The new generation of satellite instruments provides measurements in and around the Oxygen A-band on a global basis and with a relatively high spatial resolution. These data are commonly used for the determination of cloud properties. A stochastic model and radiative transfer model, previously developed by the authors, is used as the forward model component in retrievals of cloud parameters and ozone total and partial columns. The cloud retrieval algorithm combines local and global optimization routines, and yields a retrieval accuracy of about 1% and a fast computational time. Retrieved parameters are the cloud optical thickness and the cloud-top height. It was found that the use of the independent pixel approximation instead of the stochastic cloud model leads to large errors in the retrieved cloud parameters, as well as, in the retrieved ozone height resolved partial columns. The latter can be reduced by using the stochastic cloud model to compute the optimal value of the regularization parameter in the framework of Tikhonov regularization. - Highlights: • A stochastic radiative transfer model for retrieving clouds/ozone is designed. • Errors of independent pixel approximation (IPA) for O3 total column are small. • The error of IPA for ozone profile retrieval may become large. • The use of stochastic model reduces the error of ozone profile retrieval.

Vertically resolved characteristics of air pollution during two severe winter haze episodes in urban Beijing, China

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Qingqing; Sun, Yele; Xu, Weiqi; Du, Wei; Zhou, Libo; Tang, Guiqian; Chen, Chen; Cheng, Xueling; Zhao, Xiujuan; Ji, Dongsheng; Han, Tingting; Wang, Zhe; Li, Jie; Wang, Zifa

2018-02-01

We conducted the first real-time continuous vertical measurements of particle extinction (bext), gaseous NO2, and black carbon (BC) from ground level to 260 m during two severe winter haze episodes at an urban site in Beijing, China. Our results illustrated four distinct types of vertical profiles: (1) uniform vertical distributions (37 % of the time) with vertical differences less than 5 %, (2) higher values at lower altitudes (29 %), (3) higher values at higher altitudes (16 %), and (4) significant decreases at the heights of ˜ 100-150 m (14 %). Further analysis demonstrated that vertical convection as indicated by mixing layer height, temperature inversion, and local emissions are three major factors affecting the changes in vertical profiles. Particularly, the formation of type 4 was strongly associated with the stratified layer that was formed due to the interactions of different air masses and temperature inversions. Aerosol composition was substantially different below and above the transition heights with ˜ 20-30 % higher contributions of local sources (e.g., biomass burning and cooking) at lower altitudes. A more detailed evolution of vertical profiles and their relationship with the changes in source emissions, mixing layer height, and aerosol chemistry was illustrated by a case study. BC showed overall similar vertical profiles as those of bext (R2 = 0.92 and 0.69 in November and January, respectively). While NO2 was correlated with bext for most of the time, the vertical profiles of bext / NO2 varied differently for different profiles, indicating the impact of chemical transformation on vertical profiles. Our results also showed that more comprehensive vertical measurements (e.g., more aerosol and gaseous species) at higher altitudes in the megacities are needed for a better understanding of the formation mechanisms and evolution of severe haze episodes in China.

Multi-layer Retrievals of Greenhouse Gases from a Combined Use of GOSAT TANSO-FTS SWIR and TIR

Science.gov (United States)

Kikuchi, N.; Kuze, A.; Kataoka, F.; Shiomi, K.; Hashimoto, M.; Suto, H.; Knuteson, R. O.; Iraci, L. T.; Yates, E. L.; Gore, W.; Tanaka, T.; Yokota, T.

2016-12-01

The TANSO-FTS sensor onboard GOSAT has three frequency bands in the shortwave infrared (SWIR) and the fourth band in the thermal infrared (TIR). Observations of high-resolution spectra of reflected sunlight in the SWIR are extensively utilized to retrieve column-averaged concentrations of the major greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide (XCO2) and methane (XCH4). Although global XCO2 and XCH4 distribution retrieved from SWIR data can reduce the uncertainty in the current knowledge about sources and sinks of these gases, information on the vertical profiles would be more useful to constrain the surface flux and also to identify the local emission sources. Based on the degrees of freedom for signal, Kulawik et al. (2016, IWGGMS-12 presentation) shows that 2-layer information on the concentration of CO2 can be extracted from TANSO-FTS SWIR measurements, and the retrieval error is predicted to be about 5 ppm in the lower troposphere. In this study, we present multi-layer retrievals of CO2 and CH4 from a combined use of measurements of TANSO-FTS SWIR and TIR. We selected GOSAT observations at Railroad Valley Playa in Nevada, USA, which is a vicarious calibration site for TANSO-FTS, as we have various ancillary data including atmospheric temperature and humidity taken by a radiosonde, surface temperature, and surface emissivity with a ground based FTS. All of these data are useful especially for retrievals using TIR spectra. Currently, we use the 700-800 cm-1 and 1200-1300 cm-1 TIR windows for CO2 and CH4 retrievals, respectively, in addition to the SWIR bands. We found that by adding TIR windows, 3-layer information can be extracted, and the predicted retrieval error in the CO2 concentration was reduced about 1 ppm in the lower troposphere. We expect that the retrieval error could be further reduced by optimizing TIR windows and by reducing systematic forward model errors.

Near Real Time Vertical Profiles of Clouds and Aerosols from the Cloud-Aerosol Transport System (CATS) on the International Space Station

Science.gov (United States)

Yorks, J. E.; McGill, M. J.; Nowottnick, E. P.

2015-12-01

Plumes from hazardous events, such as ash from volcanic eruptions and smoke from wildfires, can have a profound impact on the climate system, human health and the economy. Global aerosol transport models are very useful for tracking hazardous plumes and predicting the transport of these plumes. However aerosol vertical distributions and optical properties are a major weakness of global aerosol transport models, yet a key component of tracking and forecasting smoke and ash. The Cloud-Aerosol Transport System (CATS) is an elastic backscatter lidar designed to provide vertical profiles of clouds and aerosols while also demonstrating new in-space technologies for future Earth Science missions. CATS has been operating on the Japanese Experiment Module - Exposed Facility (JEM-EF) of the International Space Station (ISS) since early February 2015. The ISS orbit provides more comprehensive coverage of the tropics and mid-latitudes than sun-synchronous orbiting sensors, with nearly a three-day repeat cycle. The ISS orbit also provides CATS with excellent coverage over the primary aerosol transport tracks, mid-latitude storm tracks, and tropical convection. Data from CATS is used to derive properties of clouds and aerosols including: layer height, layer thickness, backscatter, optical depth, extinction, and depolarization-based discrimination of particle type. The measurements of atmospheric clouds and aerosols provided by the CATS payload have demonstrated several science benefits. CATS provides near-real-time observations of cloud and aerosol vertical distributions that can be used as inputs to global models. The infrastructure of the ISS allows CATS data to be captured, transmitted, and received at the CATS ground station within several minutes of data collection. The CATS backscatter and vertical feature mask are part of a customized near real time (NRT) product that the CATS processing team produces within 6 hours of collection. The continuous near real time CATS data

Multi-target retrieval (MTR): the simultaneous retrieval of pressure, temperature and volume mixing ratio profiles from limb-scanning atmospheric measurements

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dinelli, B.M.; Alpaslan, D.; Carlotti, M.; Magnani, L.; Ridolfi, M.

2004-01-01

In this paper we describe a retrieval approach for the simultaneous determination of the altitude distributions of p, T and VMR of atmospheric constituents from limb-scanning measurements of the atmosphere. This analysis method, named multi-target retrieval (MTR), has been designed and implemented in a computer code aimed at the analysis of MIPAS-ENVISAT observations; however, the concepts implemented in MTR have a general validity and can be extended to the analysis of all type of limb-scanning observations. In order to assess performance and advantages of the proposed approach, MTR has been compared with the sequential analysis system implemented by ESA as the level-2 processor for MIPAS measurements. The comparison has been performed on a common set of target species and spectral intervals. The performed tests have shown that MTR produces results of better quality than a sequential retrieval. However, the simultaneous retrieval of p, T and water VMR has not lead to satisfactory results below the tropopause, because of the high correlation occurring between p and water VMR in the troposphere. We have shown that this problem can be fixed extending the MTR analysis to at least one further target whose spectral features decouple the retrieval of pressure and water VMR. Ozone was found to be a suitable target for this purpose. The advantages of the MTR analysis system in terms of systematic errors have also been discussed

Retrieval of hydrometeors from microwave radiances with a ...

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

typically represents the vertical structure of rain, ice and clouds and may ... the quality of the retrieval algorithm is directly connected to: ... forward model is available in an earlier article by the first three ... The angular variation of radia- ... (6) where σx is the one sigma error bar in x and xret is the mean x of the posterior PDF.

Building CX peanut-shaped disk galaxy profiles. The relative importance of the 3D families of periodic orbits bifurcating at the vertical 2:1 resonance

Science.gov (United States)

Patsis, P. A.; Harsoula, M.

2018-05-01

Context. We present and discuss the orbital content of a rather unusual rotating barred galaxy model, in which the three-dimensional (3D) family, bifurcating from x1 at the 2:1 vertical resonance with the known "frown-smile" side-on morphology, is unstable. Aims: Our goal is to study the differences that occur in the phase space structure at the vertical 2:1 resonance region in this case, with respect to the known, well studied, standard case, in which the families with the frown-smile profiles are stable and support an X-shaped morphology. Methods: The potential used in the study originates in a frozen snapshot of an N-body simulation in which a fast bar has evolved. We follow the evolution of the vertical stability of the central family of periodic orbits as a function of the energy (Jacobi constant) and we investigate the phase space content by means of spaces of section. Results: The two bifurcating families at the vertical 2:1 resonance region of the new model change their stability with respect to that of most studied analytic potentials. The structure in the side-on view that is directly supported by the trapping of quasi-periodic orbits around 3D stable periodic orbits has now an infinity symbol (i.e. ∞-type) profile. However, the available sticky orbits can reinforce other types of side-on morphologies as well. Conclusions: In the new model, the dynamical mechanism of trapping quasi-periodic orbits around the 3D stable periodic orbits that build the peanut, supports the ∞-type profile. The same mechanism in the standard case supports the X shape with the frown-smile orbits. Nevertheless, in both cases (i.e. in the new and in the standard model) a combination of 3D quasi-periodic orbits around the stable x1 family with sticky orbits can support a profile reminiscent of the shape of the orbits of the 3D unstable family existing in each model.

Simulation-Based Optimization of a Vector Showerhead System for the Control of Flow Field Profile in a Vertical Reactor Chamber

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Huanxiong Xia

2014-03-01

Full Text Available Optimization of a vector showerhead in a vertical reactor involves thousands of holes on the showerhead face plate and the spatial distribution of physical fields, so parameterizing the geometry configuration of the holes in high resolution is very difficult, which makes the conventional optimization methods hard to deal with. To solve this problem, a profile error feedback (PEF optimization solution was proposed to optimize a vector showerhead gas delivery system for the control of mass transport. The gas velocity profile in the reactor and the continuous-feature impedance distribution profile on the showerhead face plate are defined as design objective and variables, respectively. A cyclic iterative approximation idea was implemented in this solution. The algorithm was started from a guessed initial design model and then cyclically adjusted the design variables by the constructed PEF iterative formula to generate a better model and to make the gas velocity profile in the critical domain of the new model continually approximate to the expected profile, until it could be accepted. Finally, the optimized impedance profile was mapped to the holes geometry configuration through the established equivalent impedance model for the showerhead face plate.

Profiling of aerosol microphysical properties at several EARLINET/AERONET sites during the July 2012 ChArMEx/EMEP campaign

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

M. J. Granados-Muñoz

2016-06-01

Full Text Available The simultaneous analysis of aerosol microphysical properties profiles at different European stations is made in the framework of the ChArMEx/EMEP 2012 field campaign (9–11 July 2012. During and in support of this campaign, five lidar ground-based stations (Athens, Barcelona, Bucharest, Évora, and Granada performed 72 h of continuous lidar measurements and collocated and coincident sun-photometer measurements. Therefore it was possible to retrieve volume concentration profiles with the Lidar Radiometer Inversion Code (LIRIC. Results indicated the presence of a mineral dust plume affecting the western Mediterranean region (mainly the Granada station, whereas a different aerosol plume was observed over the Balkans area. LIRIC profiles showed a predominance of coarse spheroid particles above Granada, as expected for mineral dust, and an aerosol plume composed mainly of fine and coarse spherical particles above Athens and Bucharest. Due to the exceptional characteristics of the ChArMEx database, the analysis of the microphysical properties profiles' temporal evolution was also possible. An in-depth analysis was performed mainly at the Granada station because of the availability of continuous lidar measurements and frequent AERONET inversion retrievals. The analysis at Granada was of special interest since the station was affected by mineral dust during the complete analyzed period. LIRIC was found to be a very useful tool for performing continuous monitoring of mineral dust, allowing for the analysis of the dynamics of the dust event in the vertical and temporal coordinates. Results obtained here illustrate the importance of having collocated and simultaneous advanced lidar and sun-photometer measurements in order to characterize the aerosol microphysical properties in both the vertical and temporal coordinates at a regional scale. In addition, this study revealed that the use of the depolarization information as input in LIRIC in the

Improvement and validation of trace gas retrieval from ACAM aircraft observation

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, C.; Liu, X.; Kowalewski, M. G.; Janz, S. J.; Gonzalez Abad, G.; Pickering, K. E.; Chance, K.; Lamsal, L. N.

2014-12-01

The ACAM (Airborne Compact Atmospheric Mapper) instrument, flown on board the NASA UC-12 aircraft during the DISCOVER-AQ (Deriving Information on Surface Conditions from Column and Vertically Resolved Observations Relevant to Air Quality) campaigns, was designed to provide remote sensing observations of tropospheric and boundary layer pollutants and help understand some of the most important pollutants that directly affect the health of the population. In this study, slant column densities (SCD) of trace gases (O3, NO2, HCHO) are retrieved from ACAM measurements during the Baltimore-Washington D.C. 2011 campaign by the Basic Optical Absorption Spectroscopy (BOAS) trace gas fitting algorithm using a nonlinear least-squares (NLLS) inversion technique, and then are converted to vertical column densities (VCDs) using the Air Mass Factors (AMF) calculated with the VLIDORT (Vector Linearized Discrete Ordinate Radiative Transfer) model and CMAQ (Community Multi-scale Air Quality) model simulations of trace gas profiles. For surface treatment in the AMF, we use high-resolution MODIS climatological BRDF product (Bidirectional Reflectance Distribution Function) at 470 nm for NO2, and use high-resolution surface albedo derived by combining MODIS and OMI albedo databases for HCHO and O3. We validate ACAM results with coincident ground-based PANDORA, aircraft (P3B) spiral and satellite (OMI) measurements and find out generally good agreement especially for NO2 and O3

Elastic kirchhoff migration for vertical seismic profiles

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Keho, T.H.; Wu, R.S.

1987-01-01

Elastic Kirchhoff migration is implemented for the VSP recording geometry. The resulting migration formula requires measurement of the stress as well as the displacement. Since stress is not measured in a VSP, and in many cases the horizontal component of displacement is not measured, approximate migration formulas are given for these cases. The elastic migration formula for the case where only the vertical components are available, is the same as the acoustic migration formula, where the pressure data are replaced by the magnitudes of the elastic data as reconstructed from the vertical components, and the acoustic Green's functions are replaced with either the P or S wave elastic Green's functions. Two expressions for migration of two component displacement data are presented. In the first, the terms involving traction data are simply ignored. In the second, an improved backpropagation operator for the displacement field is obtained by replacing the traction data in the Kirchhoff integral by displacement data using Hooke's law. The migration expressions for the cases where two component data are available produce images which are less contaminated by artifacts than the migration images of one component data

Mesospheric H2O Concentrations Retrieved from SABER/TIMED Measurements

Science.gov (United States)

Feofilov, A. G.; Marshall, B. T.; Garcia-Comas, M.; Kutepov, A. A.; Lopez-Puertas, M.; Manuilova, R. O.; Yankovsky, V.A.; Goldberg, R. A.; Gordley, L. L.; Petelin, S.;

The Naval Ocean Vertical Aerosol Model : Progress Report

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Leeuw, G. de; Gathman, S.G.; Davidson, K.L.; Jensen, D.R.

1990-01-01

The Naval Oceanic Vertical Aerosol Model (NOVAM) has been formulated to estimate the vertical structure of the optical and infrared extinction coefficients in the marine atmospheric boundary layer (MABL). NOVAM was designed to predict the non-uniform and non-logarithmic extinction profiles which are

An Algorithm For Climate-Quality Atmospheric Profiling Continuity From EOS Aqua To Suomi-NPP

Science.gov (United States)

Moncet, J. L.

2015-12-01

We will present results from an algorithm that is being developed to produce climate-quality atmospheric profiling earth system data records (ESDRs) for application to hyperspectral sounding instrument data from Suomi-NPP, EOS Aqua, and other spacecraft. The current focus is on data from the S-NPP Cross-track Infrared Sounder (CrIS) and Advanced Technology Microwave Sounder (ATMS) instruments as well as the Atmospheric InfraRed Sounder (AIRS) on EOS Aqua. The algorithm development at Atmospheric and Environmental Research (AER) has common heritage with the optimal estimation (OE) algorithm operationally processing S-NPP data in the Interface Data Processing Segment (IDPS), but the ESDR algorithm has a flexible, modular software structure to support experimentation and collaboration and has several features adapted to the climate orientation of ESDRs. Data record continuity benefits from the fact that the same algorithm can be applied to different sensors, simply by providing suitable configuration and data files. The radiative transfer component uses an enhanced version of optimal spectral sampling (OSS) with updated spectroscopy, treatment of emission that is not in local thermodynamic equilibrium (non-LTE), efficiency gains with "global" optimal sampling over all channels, and support for channel selection. The algorithm is designed for adaptive treatment of clouds, with capability to apply "cloud clearing" or simultaneous cloud parameter retrieval, depending on conditions. We will present retrieval results demonstrating the impact of a new capability to perform the retrievals on sigma or hybrid vertical grid (as opposed to a fixed pressure grid), which particularly affects profile accuracy over land with variable terrain height and with sharp vertical structure near the surface. In addition, we will show impacts of alternative treatments of regularization of the inversion. While OE algorithms typically implement regularization by using background estimates from

Merged ozone profiles from four MIPAS processors

Science.gov (United States)

Laeng, Alexandra; von Clarmann, Thomas; Stiller, Gabriele; Dinelli, Bianca Maria; Dudhia, Anu; Raspollini, Piera; Glatthor, Norbert; Grabowski, Udo; Sofieva, Viktoria; Froidevaux, Lucien; Walker, Kaley A.; Zehner, Claus

2017-04-01

The Michelson Interferometer for Passive Atmospheric Sounding (MIPAS) was an infrared (IR) limb emission spectrometer on the Envisat platform. Currently, there are four MIPAS ozone data products, including the operational Level-2 ozone product processed at ESA, with the scientific prototype processor being operated at IFAC Florence, and three independent research products developed by the Istituto di Fisica Applicata Nello Carrara (ISAC-CNR)/University of Bologna, Oxford University, and the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology-Institute of Meteorology and Climate Research/Instituto de Astrofísica de Andalucía (KIT-IMK/IAA). Here we present a dataset of ozone vertical profiles obtained by merging ozone retrievals from four independent Level-2 MIPAS processors. We also discuss the advantages and the shortcomings of this merged product. As the four processors retrieve ozone in different parts of the spectra (microwindows), the source measurements can be considered as nearly independent with respect to measurement noise. Hence, the information content of the merged product is greater and the precision is better than those of any parent (source) dataset. The merging is performed on a profile per profile basis. Parent ozone profiles are weighted based on the corresponding error covariance matrices; the error correlations between different profile levels are taken into account. The intercorrelations between the processors' errors are evaluated statistically and are used in the merging. The height range of the merged product is 20-55 km, and error covariance matrices are provided as diagnostics. Validation of the merged dataset is performed by comparison with ozone profiles from ACE-FTS (Atmospheric Chemistry Experiment-Fourier Transform Spectrometer) and MLS (Microwave Limb Sounder). Even though the merging is not supposed to remove the biases of the parent datasets, around the ozone volume mixing ratio peak the merged product is found to have a smaller (up to 0.1 ppmv

The influence of aerosols and land-use type on NO2 satellite retrieval over China

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Mengyao; Lin, Jintai; Boersma, Folkert; Eskes, Henk; Chimot, Julien

2017-04-01

Both aerosols and surface reflectance have a strong influence on the retrieval of NO2 tropospheric vertical column densities (VCDs), especially over China with its heavy aerosol loading and rapid changes in land-use type. However, satellite retrievals of NO2 VCDs usually do not explicitly account for aerosol optical effects and surface reflectance anisotropy (BRDF) that varies in space and time. We develop an improved algorithm to derive tropospheric AMFs and VCDs over China from the OMI instrument - POMINO and DOMINO. This method can also be applied to TropOMI NO2 retrievals in the future. With small pixels of TropOMI and higher probability of encountering clear-sky scenes, the influence of BRDF and aerosol interference becomes more important than for OMI. Daily aerosol information is taken from the GEOS-Chem chemistry transport model and the aerosol optical depth (AOD) is adjusted via MODIS AOD climatology. We take the MODIS MCD43C2 C5 product to account for BRDF effects. The relative altitude of NO2 and aerosols is critical factor influencing the NO2 retrieval. In order to evaluate the aerosol extinction profiles (AEP) of GEOS-Chem improve our algorithm, we compare the GEOS-Chem simulation with CALIOP and develop a CALIOP AEP climatology to regulate the model's AEP. This provides a new way to include aerosol information into the tracer gas retrieval for OMI and TropOMI. Preliminary results indicate that the model performs reasonably well in reproducing the AEP shape. However, it seems to overestimate aerosols under 2km and underestimate above. We find that relative humidity (RH) is an important factor influencing the AEP shape when comparing the model with observations. If we adjust the GEOS-Chem RH to CALIOP's RH, the correlations of their AEPs also improve. Besides, take advantage of our retrieval method, we executed sensitivity tests to analyze their influences on NO2 trend and spatiotemporal variations in retrieval. It' the first time to investigate

Comparison of GOME tropospheric NO2 columns with NO2 profiles deduced from ground-based in situ measurements

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

D. Schaub

2006-01-01

Full Text Available Nitrogen dioxide (NO2 vertical tropospheric column densities (VTCs retrieved from the Global Ozone Monitoring Experiment (GOME are compared to coincident ground-based tropospheric NO2 columns. The ground-based columns are deduced from in situ measurements at different altitudes in the Alps for 1997 to June 2003, yielding a unique long-term comparison of GOME NO2 VTC data retrieved by a collaboration of KNMI (Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute and BIRA/IASB (Belgian Institute for Space Aeronomy with independently derived tropospheric NO2 profiles. A first comparison relates the GOME retrieved tropospheric columns to the tropospheric columns obtained by integrating the ground-based NO2 measurements. For a second comparison, the tropospheric profiles constructed from the ground-based measurements are first multiplied with the averaging kernel (AK of the GOME retrieval. The second approach makes the comparison independent from the a priori NO2 profile used in the GOME retrieval. This allows splitting the total difference between the column data sets into two contributions: one that is due to differences between the a priori and the ground-based NO2 profile shapes, and another that can be attributed to uncertainties in both the remaining retrieval parameters (such as, e.g., surface albedo or aerosol concentration and the ground-based in situ NO2 profiles. For anticyclonic clear sky conditions the comparison indicates a good agreement between the columns (n=157, R=0.70/0.74 for the first/second comparison approach, respectively. The mean relative difference (with respect to the ground-based columns is −7% with a standard deviation of 40% and GOME on average slightly underestimating the ground-based columns. Both data sets show a similar seasonal behaviour with a distinct maximum of spring NO2 VTCs. Further analysis indicates small GOME columns being systematically smaller than the ground-based ones. The influence of different shapes in the a

Trajectory optimization for lunar rover performing vertical takeoff vertical landing maneuvers in the presence of terrain

Science.gov (United States)

Ma, Lin; Wang, Kexin; Xu, Zuhua; Shao, Zhijiang; Song, Zhengyu; Biegler, Lorenz T.

2018-05-01

This study presents a trajectory optimization framework for lunar rover performing vertical takeoff vertical landing (VTVL) maneuvers in the presence of terrain using variable-thrust propulsion. First, a VTVL trajectory optimization problem with three-dimensional kinematics and dynamics model, boundary conditions, and path constraints is formulated. Then, a finite-element approach transcribes the formulated trajectory optimization problem into a nonlinear programming (NLP) problem solved by a highly efficient NLP solver. A homotopy-based backtracking strategy is applied to enhance the convergence in solving the formulated VTVL trajectory optimization problem. The optimal thrust solution typically has a "bang-bang" profile considering that bounds are imposed on the magnitude of engine thrust. An adaptive mesh refinement strategy based on a constant Hamiltonian profile is designed to address the difficulty in locating the breakpoints in the thrust profile. Four scenarios are simulated. Simulation results indicate that the proposed trajectory optimization framework has sufficient adaptability to handle VTVL missions efficiently.

Wind Retrieval Algorithms for the IWRAP and HIWRAP Airborne Doppler Radars with Applications to Hurricanes

Science.gov (United States)

Guimond, Stephen Richard; Tian, Lin; Heymsfield, Gerald M.; Frasier, Stephen J.

2013-01-01

Algorithms for the retrieval of atmospheric winds in precipitating systems from downward-pointing, conically-scanning airborne Doppler radars are presented. The focus in the paper is on two radars: the Imaging Wind and Rain Airborne Profiler(IWRAP) and the High-altitude IWRAP (HIWRAP). The IWRAP is a dual-frequency (Cand Ku band), multi-beam (incidence angles of 30 50) system that flies on the NOAAWP-3D aircraft at altitudes of 2-4 km. The HIWRAP is a dual-frequency (Ku and Kaband), dual-beam (incidence angles of 30 and 40) system that flies on the NASA Global Hawk aircraft at altitudes of 18-20 km. Retrievals of the three Cartesian wind components over the entire radar sampling volume are described, which can be determined using either a traditional least squares or variational solution procedure. The random errors in the retrievals are evaluated using both an error propagation analysis and a numerical simulation of a hurricane. These analyses show that the vertical and along-track wind errors have strong across-track dependence with values of 0.25 m s-1 at nadir to 2.0 m s-1 and 1.0 m s-1 at the swath edges, respectively. The across-track wind errors also have across-track structure and are on average, 3.0 3.5 m s-1 or 10 of the hurricane wind speed. For typical rotated figure four flight patterns through hurricanes, the zonal and meridional wind speed errors are 2 3 m s-1.Examples of measured data retrievals from IWRAP during an eyewall replacement cycle in Hurricane Isabel (2003) and from HIWRAP during the development of Tropical Storm Matthew (2010) are shown.

Software Helps Retrieve Information Relevant to the User

Science.gov (United States)

Mathe, Natalie; Chen, James

2003-01-01

The Adaptive Indexing and Retrieval Agent (ARNIE) is a code library, designed to be used by an application program, that assists human users in retrieving desired information in a hypertext setting. Using ARNIE, the program implements a computational model for interactively learning what information each human user considers relevant in context. The model, called a "relevance network," incrementally adapts retrieved information to users individual profiles on the basis of feedback from the users regarding specific queries. The model also generalizes such knowledge for subsequent derivation of relevant references for similar queries and profiles, thereby, assisting users in filtering information by relevance. ARNIE thus enables users to categorize and share information of interest in various contexts. ARNIE encodes the relevance and structure of information in a neural network dynamically configured with a genetic algorithm. ARNIE maintains an internal database, wherein it saves associations, and from which it returns associated items in response to a query. A C++ compiler for a platform on which ARNIE will be utilized is necessary for creating the ARNIE library but is not necessary for the execution of the software.

Long-term post-Chernobyl 90Sr and 137Cs profiles as the indicators of the large scale vertical water mixing in the Black Sea

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Egorov, V.N.; Stokozov, N.A.; Mirzoyeva, N.Y.

2002-01-01

The radioactive and chemical pollutions, eutrophic elements come to the surface water layer of the Black Sea from the territory of 22 countries. The self-purification of the surface water layer essentially depends from the vertical water mixing. The atmospheric fallout in the May 1986 after Chernobyl NPP accident were main source of the 137 Cs input in the Black Sea. The 90 Sr input to the Black Sea was caused by atmospheric fallout as well as the Dnieper River and Danube River runoff during of consequent years. 90 Sr and 137 Cs are conservative elements in a marine environment and could be used as tracers of the hydrological processes, including vertical water mixing. The aim of our investigations was an assessment of the large-scale vertical water exchange in the Black Sea on base of analysis time-series 90 Sr and 137 Cs vertical profiles

How Informative are the Vertical Buoyancy and the Prone Gliding Tests to Assess Young Swimmers’ Hydrostatic and Hydrodynamic Profiles?

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Barbosa, Tiago M.; Costa, Mário J.; Morais, Jorge E; Moreira, Marc; Silva, António J.; Marinho, Daniel A.

2012-01-01

The aim of this research was to develop a path-flow analysis model to highlight the relationships between buoyancy and prone gliding tests and some selected anthropometrical and biomechanical variables. Thirty-eight young male swimmers (12.97 ± 1.05 years old) with several competitive levels were evaluated. It were assessed the body mass, height, fat mass, body surface area, vertical buoyancy, prone gliding after wall push-off, stroke length, stroke frequency and velocity after a maximal 25 [m] swim. The confirmatory model included the body mass, height, fat mass, prone gliding test, stroke length, stroke frequency and velocity. All theoretical paths were verified except for the vertical buoyancy test that did not present any relationship with anthropometrical and biomechanical variables nor with the prone gliding test. The good-of-fit from the confirmatory path-flow model, assessed with the standardized root mean square residuals (SRMR), is considered as being close to the cut-off value, but even so not suitable of the theory (SRMR = 0.11). As a conclusion, vertical buoyancy and prone gliding tests are not the best techniques to assess the swimmer’s hydrostatic and hydrodynamic profile, respectively. PMID:23486528

The Next-generation Berkeley High Resolution NO2 (BEHR NO2) Retrieval: Design and Preliminary Emissions Constraints

Science.gov (United States)

Laughner, J.; Cohen, R. C.

2017-12-01

Recent work has identified a number of assumptions made in NO2 retrievals that lead to biases in the retrieved NO2 column density. These include the treatment of the surface as an isotropic reflector, the absence of lightning NO2 in high resolution a priori profiles, and the use of monthly averaged a priori profiles. We present a new release of the Berkeley High Resolution (BEHR) OMI NO2 retrieval based on the new NASA Standard Product (version 3) that addresses these assumptions by: accounting for surface anisotropy by using a BRDF albedo product, using an updated method of regridding NO2 data, and revised NO2 a priori profiles that better account for lightning NO2 and daily variation in the profile shape. We quantify the effect these changes have on the retrieved NO2 column densities and the resultant impact these updates have on constraints of urban NOx emissions for select cities throughout the United States.

Vertically resolved characteristics of air pollution during two severe winter haze episodes in urban Beijing, China

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Q. Wang

2018-02-01

Full Text Available We conducted the first real-time continuous vertical measurements of particle extinction (bext, gaseous NO2, and black carbon (BC from ground level to 260 m during two severe winter haze episodes at an urban site in Beijing, China. Our results illustrated four distinct types of vertical profiles: (1 uniform vertical distributions (37 % of the time with vertical differences less than 5 %, (2 higher values at lower altitudes (29 %, (3 higher values at higher altitudes (16 %, and (4 significant decreases at the heights of ∼ 100–150 m (14 %. Further analysis demonstrated that vertical convection as indicated by mixing layer height, temperature inversion, and local emissions are three major factors affecting the changes in vertical profiles. Particularly, the formation of type 4 was strongly associated with the stratified layer that was formed due to the interactions of different air masses and temperature inversions. Aerosol composition was substantially different below and above the transition heights with ∼ 20–30 % higher contributions of local sources (e.g., biomass burning and cooking at lower altitudes. A more detailed evolution of vertical profiles and their relationship with the changes in source emissions, mixing layer height, and aerosol chemistry was illustrated by a case study. BC showed overall similar vertical profiles as those of bext (R2 = 0.92 and 0.69 in November and January, respectively. While NO2 was correlated with bext for most of the time, the vertical profiles of bext ∕ NO2 varied differently for different profiles, indicating the impact of chemical transformation on vertical profiles. Our results also showed that more comprehensive vertical measurements (e.g., more aerosol and gaseous species at higher altitudes in the megacities are needed for a better understanding of the formation mechanisms and evolution of severe haze episodes in China.

Revisiting the radiative vertical velocity paradigm in the TTL

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Bolot, Maximilien; Moyer, Elisabeth

2015-04-01

We demonstrate that uplift rates in the TTL (tropical tropopause layer) may be commonly overestimated. The mass balance of any tracer in the TTL depends on the vertical speed of large-scale uplift and the rate of convective detrainment from overshoots. Generally, uplift velocity is retrieved from the conservation of energy, assuming that the only significant factor is radiative heating.1,2 The detrainment rate is then computed from the convergence of the uplift flux, with the assumption that detrainment dominates over entrainment in the TTL. We show that this commonly calculated 'radiative vertical velocity' and the associated rate of detrainment are necessarily flawed for either of two mutually exclusive reasons. If radiative heating is the sole diabatic term in the energy budget, then significant convective entrainment must occur at TTL levels. If detrainment dominates over entrainment, then the heat budget must include the cooling rate from the export of sensible heat deficit in overshooting convection. We illustrate the calculations using tropical values of radiative heating rates and large-scale divergence fluxes from ERA-Interim reanalysis. For undilute convection, the export of heat deficit in detrained overshoots would substantially offset radiative heating, lowering the resulting assumed vertical velocity at 16 km by a factor of three. The computed detrainment rate at this altitude also increases significantly, by a factor of five. Because these changes would alter interpretation of tracer profiles, it is important to include all terms in the heat budget in tracer studies. Conversely, tracer transport properties can be used to help constrain the impact of convection on the TTL heat budget.3 [1] Folkins, I. et al., J. Geophys. Res., 111, D23304, (2006). [2] Read, W. G. et al., Atmos. Chem. Phys., 8, 6051-6067, (2008). [3] Kuang, Z. and Bretherton, C. S., J. Atmos. Sci., 61, 2919-2927, (2004)

A demonstration of adjoint methods for multi-dimensional remote sensing of the atmosphere and surface

Science.gov (United States)

Martin, William G. K.; Hasekamp, Otto P.

2018-01-01

In previous work, we derived the adjoint method as a computationally efficient path to three-dimensional (3D) retrievals of clouds and aerosols. In this paper we will demonstrate the use of adjoint methods for retrieving two-dimensional (2D) fields of cloud extinction. The demonstration uses a new 2D radiative transfer solver (FSDOM). This radiation code was augmented with adjoint methods to allow efficient derivative calculations needed to retrieve cloud and surface properties from multi-angle reflectance measurements. The code was then used in three synthetic retrieval studies. Our retrieval algorithm adjusts the cloud extinction field and surface albedo to minimize the measurement misfit function with a gradient-based, quasi-Newton approach. At each step we compute the value of the misfit function and its gradient with two calls to the solver FSDOM. First we solve the forward radiative transfer equation to compute the residual misfit with measurements, and second we solve the adjoint radiative transfer equation to compute the gradient of the misfit function with respect to all unknowns. The synthetic retrieval studies verify that adjoint methods are scalable to retrieval problems with many measurements and unknowns. We can retrieve the vertically-integrated optical depth of moderately thick clouds as a function of the horizontal coordinate. It is also possible to retrieve the vertical profile of clouds that are separated by clear regions. The vertical profile retrievals improve for smaller cloud fractions. This leads to the conclusion that cloud edges actually increase the amount of information that is available for retrieving the vertical profile of clouds. However, to exploit this information one must retrieve the horizontally heterogeneous cloud properties with a 2D (or 3D) model. This prototype shows that adjoint methods can efficiently compute the gradient of the misfit function. This work paves the way for the application of similar methods to 3D remote

Retrieval of aerosol complex refractive index from a synergy between lidar, sun photometer and in situ measurements during LISAIR experiment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Raut, J.C.; Chazette, P.

2007-01-01

Particulate pollutant exchanges between the streets and the Planetary Boundary Layer (PBL), and their daily evolution linked to human activity were studied in the framework of the Lidar pour la Surveillance de l'AIR (LISAIR) experiment. This program lasted from 10 to 30 May 2005. A synergetic approach combining dedicated active (lidar) and passive (sun photometer) remote sensors as well as ground based in situ instrumentation (nephelometer, aethalometer and particle sizers) was used to investigate urban aerosol optical properties within Paris. Aerosol complex refractive indices were assessed to be 1.56-0.034 i at 355 nm and 1.59-0.040 i at 532 nm, thus leading to single-scattering albedo values between 0.80 and 0.88. These retrievals are consistent with soot components in the aerosol arising from traffic exhausts indicating that these pollutants have a radiative impact on climate. We also discussed the influence of relative humidity on aerosol properties. A good agreement was found between vertical extinction profile derived from lidar backscattering signal and retrieved from the coupling between radio sounding and ground in situ measurements. (authors)

Estimating Oceanic Primary Production Using Vertical Irradiance and Chlorophyll Profiles from Ocean Gliders in the North Atlantic.

Science.gov (United States)

Hemsley, Victoria S; Smyth, Timothy J; Martin, Adrian P; Frajka-Williams, Eleanor; Thompson, Andrew F; Damerell, Gillian; Painter, Stuart C

2015-10-06

An autonomous underwater vehicle (Seaglider) has been used to estimate marine primary production (PP) using a combination of irradiance and fluorescence vertical profiles. This method provides estimates for depth-resolved and temporally evolving PP on fine spatial scales in the absence of ship-based calibrations. We describe techniques to correct for known issues associated with long autonomous deployments such as sensor calibration drift and fluorescence quenching. Comparisons were made between the Seaglider, stable isotope ((13)C), and satellite estimates of PP. The Seaglider-based PP estimates were comparable to both satellite estimates and stable isotope measurements.

Progress in Understanding the Impacts of 3-D Cloud Structure on MODIS Cloud Property Retrievals for Marine Boundary Layer Clouds

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Zhibo; Werner, Frank; Miller, Daniel; Platnick, Steven; Ackerman, Andrew; DiGirolamo, Larry; Meyer, Kerry; Marshak, Alexander; Wind, Galina; Zhao, Guangyu

2016-01-01

Theory: A novel framework based on 2-D Tayler expansion for quantifying the uncertainty in MODIS retrievals caused by sub-pixel reflectance inhomogeneity. (Zhang et al. 2016). How cloud vertical structure influences MODIS LWP retrievals. (Miller et al. 2016). Observation: Analysis of failed MODIS cloud property retrievals. (Cho et al. 2015). Cloud property retrievals from 15m resolution ASTER observations. (Werner et al. 2016). Modeling: LES-Satellite observation simulator (Zhang et al. 2012, Miller et al. 2016).

A New Inversion Routine to Produce Vertical Electron-Density Profiles from Ionospheric Topside-Sounder Data

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Yongli; Benson, Robert F.

2011-01-01

Two software applications have been produced specifically for the analysis of some million digital topside ionograms produced by a recent analog-to-digital conversion effort of selected analog telemetry tapes from the Alouette-2, ISIS-1 and ISIS-2 satellites. One, TOPIST (TOPside Ionogram Scalar with True-height algorithm) from the University of Massachusetts Lowell, is designed for the automatic identification of the topside-ionogram ionospheric-reflection traces and their inversion into vertical electron-density profiles Ne(h). TOPIST also has the capability of manual intervention. The other application, from the Goddard Space Flight Center based on the FORTRAN code of John E. Jackson from the 1960s, is designed as an IDL-based interactive program for the scaling of selected digital topside-sounder ionograms. The Jackson code has also been modified, with some effort, so as to run on modern computers. This modification was motivated by the need to scale selected ionograms from the millions of Alouette/ISIS topside-sounder ionograms that only exist on 35-mm film. During this modification, it became evident that it would be more efficient to design a new code, based on the capabilities of present-day computers, than to continue to modify the old code. Such a new code has been produced and here we will describe its capabilities and compare Ne(h) profiles produced from it with those produced by the Jackson code. The concept of the new code is to assume an initial Ne(h) and derive a final Ne(h) through an iteration process that makes the resulting apparent-height profile fir the scaled values within a certain error range. The new code can be used on the X-, O-, and Z-mode traces. It does not assume any predefined profile shape between two contiguous points, like the exponential rule used in Jackson s program. Instead, Monotone Piecewise Cubic Interpolation is applied in the global profile to keep the monotone nature of the profile, which also ensures better smoothness

Regional N2O fluxes in Amazonia derived from aircraft vertical profiles

Science.gov (United States)

D'Amelio, M. T. S.; Gatti, L. V.; Miller, J. B.; Tans, P.

2009-11-01

Nitrous oxide (N2O) is the third most important anthropogenic greenhouse gas. Globally, the main sources of N2O are nitrification and denitrification in soils. About two thirds of the soil emissions occur in the tropics and approximately 20% originate in wet rainforest ecosystems, like the Amazon forest. The work presented here involves aircraft vertical profiles of N2O from the surface to 4 km over two sites in the Eastern and Central Amazon: Tapajós National Forest (SAN) and Cuieiras Biologic Reserve (MAN), and the estimation of N2O fluxes for regions upwind of these sites. To our knowledge, these regional scale N2O measurements in Amazonia are unique and represent a new approach to looking regional scale emissions. The fluxes upwind of MAN exhibited little seasonality, and the annual mean was 2.1±1.0 mg N2O m-2 day-1, higher than that for fluxes upwind of SAN, which averaged 1.5±1.6 mg N2O m-2 day-1. The higher rainfall around the MAN site could explain the higher N2O emissions, as a result of increased soil moisture accelerating microbial nitrification and denitrification processes. For fluxes from the coast to SAN seasonality is present for all years, with high fluxes in the months of March through May, and in November through December. The first peak of N2O flux is strongly associated with the wet season. The second peak of high N2O flux recorded at SAN occurs during the dry season and can not be easily explained. However, about half of the dry season profiles exhibit significant correlations with CO, indicating a larger than expected source of N2O from biomass burning. The average CO:N2O ratio for all profiles sampled during the dry season is 94±77 mol CO:mol N2O and suggests a larger biomass burning contribution to the global N2O budget than previously reported.

Inlet effects on vertical-downward air–water two-phase flow

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Qiao, Shouxu; Mena, Daniel; Kim, Seungjin, E-mail: skim@psu.edu

2017-02-15

Highlights: • Inlet effects on two-phase flow parameters in vertical-downward flow are studied. • Flow regimes in the vertical-downward two-phase flow are defined. • Vertical-downward flow regime maps for three inlet configurations are developed. • Frictional pressure loss analysis for three different inlets is performed. • Database of local two-phase flow parameters for each inlet configuration. - Abstract: This paper focuses on investigating the geometric effects of inlets on global and local two-phase flow parameters in vertical-downward air–water two-phase flow. Flow visualization, frictional pressure loss analysis, and local experiments are performed in a test facility constructed from 50.8 mm inner diameter acrylic pipes. Three types of inlets of interest are studied: (1) two-phase flow injector without a flow straightener (Type A), (2) two-phase flow injector with a flow straightener (Type B), and (3) injection through a horizontal-to-vertical-downward 90° vertical elbow (Type C). A detailed flow visualization study is performed to characterize flow regimes including bubbly, slug, churn-turbulent, and annular flow. Flow regime maps for each inlet are developed and compared to identify the effects of each inlet. Frictional pressure loss analysis shows that the Lockhart–Martinelli method is capable of correlating the frictional loss data acquired for Type B and Type C inlets with a coefficient value of C = 25, but additional data may be needed to model the Type A inlet. Local two-phase flow parameters measured by a four-sensor conductivity probe in four bubbly and near bubbly flow conditions are analyzed. It is observed that vertical-downward two-phase flow has a characteristic center-peaked void profile as opposed to a wall-peaked profile as seen in vertical-upward flow. Furthermore, it is shown that the Type A inlet results in the most pronounced center-peaked void fraction profile, due to the coring phenomenon. Type B and Type C inlets

HSRL-2 aerosol optical measurements and microphysical retrievals vs. airborne in situ measurements during DISCOVER-AQ 2013: an intercomparison study

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

P. Sawamura

2017-06-01

Full Text Available We present a detailed evaluation of remotely sensed aerosol microphysical properties obtained from an advanced, multi-wavelength high-spectral-resolution lidar (HSRL-2 during the 2013 NASA DISCOVER-AQ field campaign. Vertically resolved retrievals of fine-mode aerosol number, surface-area, and volume concentration as well as aerosol effective radius are compared to 108 collocated, airborne in situ measurement profiles in the wintertime San Joaquin Valley, California, and in summertime Houston, Texas. An algorithm for relating the dry in situ aerosol properties to those obtained by the HSRL at ambient relative humidity is discussed. We show that the HSRL-2 retrievals of ambient fine-mode aerosol surface-area and volume concentrations agree with the in situ measurements to within 25 and 10 %, respectively, once hygroscopic growth adjustments have been applied to the dry in situ data. Despite this excellent agreement for the microphysical properties, extinction and backscatter coefficients at ambient relative humidity derived from the in situ aerosol measurements using Mie theory are consistently smaller than those measured by the HSRL, with average differences of 31 ± 5 % and 53 ± 11 % for California and Texas, respectively. This low bias in the in situ estimates is attributed to the presence of coarse-mode aerosol that are detected by HSRL-2 but that are too large to be well sampled by the in situ instrumentation. Since the retrieval of aerosol volume is most relevant to current regulatory efforts targeting fine particle mass (PM2. 5, these findings highlight the advantages of an advanced 3β + 2α HSRL for constraining the vertical distribution of the aerosol volume or mass loading relevant for air quality.

Can the physical properties associated with uncertainties in the NASA MODIS AOD retrievals in the western U.S. be determined?

Science.gov (United States)

Loria Salazar, S. M.; Holmes, H.; Panorska, A. K.; Arnott, W. P.; Barnard, J.

2016-12-01

Previous investigations have used satellite remote sensing to estimate surface air pollution concentrations. While most of these studies rely on models developed for the dark-vegetated eastern U.S., they are being used in the semi-arid western U.S without modifications. These models are not robust in the western U.S. due to: 1. Irregular topography that leads to complicated boundary layer physics, 2. Pollutant mixtures, 3. Heterogeneous vertical profile of aerosol concentrations, and 4. High surface reflectance. Here, results from Nevada and California demonstrate poor AOD correlation between AERONET MODIS retrievals. Smoke from wildfires strengthened the aerosol signal, but the MODIS versus AERONET AOD correlation did not improve significantly during fire events [r2 0.17 (non-fire), r2 0.2 (fire)]. Furthermore, aerosol from fires increased the normalized mean bias (NMB) of MODIS retrievals of AOD[NMB 82% (non-fire), NMB 146% (fire)]. Additional results of this investigation found that aerosol plumes confined with the boundary layer improves MODIS AOD retrievals. However, when this condition is not met (i.e., 70% of the time downwind of mountains regions) MODIS AOD has a poor correlation and high bias with respect to AERONET AOD. Fire injection height, complicated boundary layer mixing, and entrainment disperse smoke plumes into the free atmosphere. Therefore, smoke plumes exacerbate the complex aerosol transport typical in the western U.S. and the non-linear relationship between surface pollutant concentrations and conditions aloft. This work uses stochastic methods, including regression to investigate the influence of each of these physical behaviors on the MODIS, AERONET AOD discrepancy using surrogates for each physical phenomenon, e.g., surface albedo for surface reflectance, boundary layer height and elevation for complex mixing, aerosol optical height for vertical aerosol concentrations, and fire radiative power for smoke plume injection height.

Nitrous oxide emission estimates using atmospheric observations of vertical profiles in a polluted agricultural region

Science.gov (United States)

Herrera, S.; Diskin, G. S.; Pusede, S.

2016-12-01

Nitrous oxide (N2O) is a long-lived and highly potent greenhouse gas that also destroys stratospheric ozone. Largely attributed to changes in agricultural sources, N2O concentrations are increasing at a steady rate of 0.8 ppb y-1 globally. Emission rates of N2O remain poorly constrained, with N2O sources arguably among the most uncertain of the long-lived greenhouse gases. This study quantifies N2O emissions at the kilometer-spatial scale in the wintertime in a region with both agricultural and urban sources, the San Joaquin Valley of California. To do this, we use the large number vertical profiles of N2O and other relevant trace gases measured by the P3 aircraft during the NASA DISCOVER-AQ campaign that took place throughout the San Joaquin Valley in January-February 2013. We exploit the observed variability in profile shape by time of day, day to day, and location (over urban versus agricultural sources), along with chemical and physical constraints on mixing and the timing of decoupling between the surface boundary layer and residual layers aloft.

Observations of the vertical structure of turbulent oscillatory boundary layers above fixed roughness beds using a prototype wideband coherent Doppler profiler: 1. The oscillatory component of the flow