Effect of particle shape on dust shortwave direct radiative forcing calculations based on MODIS observations for a case study

Assuming spheroidal and spherical particle shapes for mineral dust aerosols, the effect of particle shape on dust aerosol optical depth retrievals, and subsequently on instantaneous shortwave direct radiative forcing (SWDRF) at the top of the atmosphere (TOA), is assessed based on Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) data for a case study. Specifically, a simplified aerosol retrieval algorithm based on the principle of the Deep Blue aerosol retrieval method is employed to retrieve dust aerosol optical depths, and the Fu-Liou radiative transfer model is used to derive the instantaneous SWDRF of dust at the TOA for cloud-free conditions. Without considering the effect of particle shape on dust aerosol optical depth retrievals, the effect of particle shape on the scattering properties of dust aerosols (e.g., extinction efficiency, single scattering albedo and asymmetry factor) is negligible, which can lead to a relative difference of at most 5% for the SWDRF at the TOA. However, the effect of particle shape on the SWDRF cannot be neglected provided that the effect of particle shape on dust aerosol optical depth retrievals is also taken into account for SWDRF calculations. The corresponding results in an instantaneous case study show that the relative differences of the SWDRF at the TOA between spheroids and spheres depend critically on the scattering angles at which dust aerosol optical depths are retrieved, and can be up to 40% for low dust-loading conditions.