Spatiotemporal characteristics of TOMS-based dust aerosol optical depth in northern China during 1978–2005

Using the Total Ozone Mapping Spectrometer (TOMS) data from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) earth satellites, the Aerosol Optical Depth (AOD) as indicated by AOD Index (AI) for the period 1978–2005 is analyzed for northern China. The spatial distribution of annual mean AI has the largest values in the desert regions of northwestern China, such as southern Xinjiang Taklimakan Basin, western Gansu and Qinghai’s Qaidam Basin. Large values are found in western Inner Mongolia, the Jogger Basin, and north of the Loess Plateau, as well as in the North China and Northeast China Plains. In Northern China, the AI of spring and summer is larger than in other seasons. The large AI values in spring register the most extensive coverage, but the AI values in regions affected by the Asian monsoon experience a significant decrease during the summer season. The lowest AI values generally occur in autumn in North and Northeast China, but they appear in winter in the northwestern arid region. Overall, the analysis results using TOMS AI data well reflect the spatiotemporal characteristics of dust aerosol as reported previously based on the dust weather observation data, with greater consistency seen in northwestern arid and semi-arid regions. It is also realized that the TOMS AI data are potentially useful for estimating atmospheric mineral aerosol deposition flux in northern China in order to better understand the formation and evolution of China loess in the Quaternary.     

Evaluation and comparison of CMIP6 models and MERRA-2 reanalysis AOD against Satellite observations from 2000 to 2014 over China

Rapid industrialization and urbanization along with a growing population are contributing significantly to air pollution in China. Evaluation of long-term aerosol optical depth (AOD) data from models and reanalysis, can greatly promote understanding of spatiotemporal variations in air pollution in China. To do this, AOD (550 nm) values from 2000 to 2014 were obtained from the Coupled Model Inter-comparison Project (CIMP6), the second version of Modern-Era Retrospective analysis for Research, and Applications (MERRA-2), and the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS; flying on the Terra satellite) combined Dark Target and Deep Blue (DTB) aerosol product. We used the Terra-MODIS DTB AOD (hereafter MODIS DTB AOD) as a standard to evaluate CMIP6 Ensemble AOD (hereafter CMIP6 AOD) and MERRA-2 reanalysis AOD (hereafter MERRA-2 AOD). Results show better correlations and smaller errors between MERRA-2 and MODIS DTB AOD, than between CMIP6 and MODIS DTB AOD, in most regions of China, at both annual and seasonal scales. However, significant under- and over-estimations in the MERRA-2 and CMIP6 AOD were also observed relative to MODIS DTB AOD. The long-term (2000–2014) MODIS DTB AOD distributions show the highest AOD over the North China Plain (0.71) followed by Central China (0.69), Yangtse River Delta (0.67), Sichuan Basin (0.64), and Pearl River Delta (0.54) regions. The lowest AOD values were recorded over the Tibetan Plateau (0.13 ± 0.01) followed by Qinghai (0.19 ± 0.03) and the Gobi Desert (0.21 ± 0.03). Large amounts of sand and dust particles emitted from natural sources (the Taklamakan and Gobi Deserts) may result in higher AOD in spring compared to summer, autumn, and winter. Trends were also calculated for 2000–2005, for 2006–2010 (when China introduced strict air pollution control policies during the 11th Five Year Plan or FYP), and for 2011–2014 (during the 12th FYP). An increasing trend in MODIS DTB AOD was observed throughout the country during 2000–2014. The uncontrolled industrialization, urbanization, and rapid economic development that mostly occurred from 2000 to 2005 probably contributed to the overall increase in AOD. Finally, China's air pollution control policies helped to reduce AOD in most regions of the country; this was more evident during the 12th FYP period (2011–2014) than during the 11th FYP period (2006–2010). Therefore this study strongly advises the authority to retain or extend these policies in the future for improving air quality.     

Impact of dust events on aerosol optical properties over Iraq

The spatial and temporal characteristics of aerosol optical properties (AOP) were analyzed in order to find out the hotspot aerosol sources over Iraq and surrounding regions. The correlation of AOP with the frequency of dust events (dust storm (DS), rising dust (RD), suspended dust (SD)) over 12 Iraqi stations is evaluated during the study period (January 2005–December 2014). The AOP: aerosol absorption optical depth (AAOD), aerosol extinction optical depth (AOD), and aerosol single scattering albedo (SSA) at 388 and 500 nm and aerosol index (AI), are derived from the Ozone Monitoring Instrument (OMI) on board the Aura satellite. Three well-known spatial interpolation techniques: inverse distance weighting, radial basis function with three sub-types, and kriging with three sub-types, are examined in ArcGIS software. Statistical analysis is applied to compute the station probability of dust events and its correlation with AOP. Results showed that the spline with the lowest RMSE and MPE near zero is the optimum method for estimating AOP. The spatial mean of AAOD, AOD, and AI (SSA) have the same pattern with high (low) mean values over the south and northwest of Iraq, Kuwait, and the northeast of Saudi Arabia. The seasonal variability of AAOD and AOD over the Iraqi stations showed that high (low) values occurred during spring and summer (winter) and concluded that AAOD is a responsible component for variation in AOD. DS and RD probability is higher over stations in the middle and south of Iraq than the stations in the north. High SD probability is over Mosul, Baghdad, and Nasiriya stations. The correlation of AOP with dust events suggests that the AAOD component is more important in the study of DS than SSA and AI while AI is a good index for the study of RD and SD in the study region.     

Characterization of aerosol type based on aerosol optical properties over Baghdad,Iraq

Aerosol optical depth (AOD), Angstrom exponent (AE), and ozone monitoring instrument aerosols index (OMI-AI) data, derived from MODerate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) and OMI sensor on board NASA’s Aqua satellite and NASA-Aura satellite platforms, have been analyzed and classified over Baghdad, Iraq, for an 8-year period (2008–2015). In order to give an obvious understanding of temporal inconsistency in the characteristics and classification of aerosols during each season separately, PREDE POM-02 sky radiometer measurements of AOD, carried out during a 2-year period (2014–2015), were compared with MODIS–Aqua AODs. On seasonal bases, MODIS–Aqua AODs corroborate well with ground-based measurements, with correlation coefficients ranging between 0.74 and 0.8 and RMSE ranging from 0.097 to 0.062 during spring and autumn seasons respectively. The overall satellite- and ground-based measurement comparisons showed a good agreement with correlation coefficients of 0.78 and RMSE of 0.066. These results suggest that MODIS–Aqua gives a good estimate of AOD. Analysis of MODIS–Aqua data for the 8-year period showed that the overall mean AOD, AE, and OMI-AI over Baghdad were 0.44?±?0.16, 0.77?±?0.29, and 1.34?±?0.33 respectively. AOD records presented a unique peak which was extended from mid-spring (April) to mid-summer (July) while the AE annual variability indicated a more complicated behavior with minimum values during the period from late spring (May) to early autumn (September). The maximum AOD and OMI-AI values occurred during summer while their minimum values occurred during winter. The AE showed an opposite behavior to that of AOD such that the highest AE values occurred during autumn and winter and the lowest values happened during spring and summer. This behavior may be attributed to the domination of coarse aerosol particles during autumn and winter seasons and fine aerosol particles during spring and summer seasons. A Hybrid Single-Particle Lagrangian Integrated Trajectory model was utilized to determine the source of air mass transport and to recognize the variability of aerosol origin regions. Finally, AOD, AE, and OMI-AI values have been employed to identify several aerosol types and to present seasonal heterogeneity in their contribution based on their origins.     

Precipitation rate climatology related to different cloud types using satellite imagery over Iran

Cloud types have a substantial influence on precipitation. This paper presents a study of the monthly variations of daytime different cloud types over Iran using data collected from Moderate-resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) aboard Terra during 2001–2015, MODIS aboard Aqua during 2002–2015, International Satellite Cloud Climatology Project (ISCCP) H-series cloud type data during 2001–2009 and precipitation rate associated with different cloud types using Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) satellite products during 2001–2009. Different cloud types were determined using MODIS cloud optical thickness and cloud top pressure data based on ISCCP algorithm. The results showed that stratocumulus and cumulus clouds have maximum occurrence frequency over marine areas especially southern seas. The maximum frequency of nimbostratus and deep convective occurrence occurred over mountainous regions particularly at the time of Aqua overpass and cirrus and cirrostratus are observed over southeast of Iran during warm months due to monsoon system. Altostratus cloud is extended in each month except January, at the time of Terra overpass while nimbostratus is seen at the time of Aqua overpass during warm months in the study area. Cumulus and altocumulus clouds have shown remarkable frequency in all months especially over marine regions during warm and fall months. The higher value of precipitation rate is related to altostratus with a rate approximately 7 mm/h at the time of Terra overpass during April. Altostratus has the maximum recorded precipitation rate except in Nov., Dec., Sep., and Jan. at the time of Terra overpass, whereas the maximum precipitation rate is linked to nimbostratus cloud activity (up to 5 mm/h) except for March, April, and Sep. at the time of Aqua overpass. Deep convective (up to 1.32 mm/h), cirrostratus (up to 1.11 mm/h), and cirrus (0.02 mm/h) are observed only in warm months. The results were compared with ISCCP cloud types so that precipitation rate classified from low to high and Spearman rank correlation was calculated. The results showed good agreement between these two cloud type data; however, there were few notable difference between them.     

Studies on aerosol properties during ICARB-2006 campaign period at Hyderabad,India using ground-based measurements and satellite data

Continuous and campaign-based aerosol field measurements are essential in understanding fundamental atmospheric aerosol processes and for evaluating their effect on global climate, environment and human life. Synchronous measurements of Aerosol Optical Depth (AOD), Black Carbon (BC) aerosol mass concentration and aerosol particle size distribution were carried out during the campaign period at tropical urban regions of Hyderabad, India. Daily satellite datasets of DMSP-OLS were processed for night-time forest fires over the Indian region in order to understand the additional sources (forest fires) of aerosol. The higher values in black carbon aerosol mass concentration and aerosol optical depth correlated well with forest fires occurring over the region. Ozone Monitoring Instrument (OMI) aerosol index (AI) variations showed absorbing aerosols over the region and correlated with ground measurements.     

Role of dynamics in the advection of aerosols over the Arabian Sea along the west coast of peninsular India during pre-monsoon season: A case study based on satellite data and regional climate model

The circulation dynamics of an event marked by the formation of an aerosol cluster off the coast of Maharashtra on April 22, 2006, its southward migration along the Indian west coast with a mean speed of ~200 km/day and its final dissipation after reaching the end of the peninsula by April 28, 2006 as revealed by MODIS (Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer) against the pre-monsoon conditions of April 2006 are examined in this study. The maximum aerosol concentration in the cluster was found getting confined to lower and lower altitudes during its southward movement. The NCEP/NCAR (National Centers for Environmental Prediction/National Center for Atmospheric Research) reanalysis wind field indicates that the atmospheric circulation, especially the horizontal wind convergence is the major factor that guides the formation and the dynamics of the cluster. Fine mode fraction from MODIS suggests that the cluster mainly consists of coarse dust particles. The regional climate model, RegCM3 with an efficient dust generation module simulates the formation and movement of the cluster appreciably well. The simulations which also exhibit the altitudinally descending nature of the cluster during its southward movement confirm the mechanism which governs the cluster dynamics suggested based on MODIS and NCEP/NCAR reanalysis data.     

Influence of circulation parameters on the AOD variations over the Bay of Bengal during ICARB

MODIS (Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer) level-3 aerosol data, NCEP (National Centers for Environmental Prediction) reanalysis winds and QuikSCAT ocean surface winds were made use of to examine the role of atmospheric circulation in governing aerosol variations over the Bay of Bengal (BoB) during the first phase of the ICARB (Integrated Campaign for Aerosols, gases and Radiation Budget) campaign (March 18–April 12, 2006). An inter-comparison between MODIS level-3 aerosol optical depth (AOD) data and ship-borne MICROTOPS measurements showed good agreement with correlation 0.92 (p < 0.0001) and a mean MODIS underestimation by 0.01. During the study period, the AOD over BoB showed high values in the northern/north western regions, which reduced towards the central and southern BoB. The wind patterns in lower atmospheric layers (> 850 hPa) indicated that direct transport of aerosols from central India was inhibited by the presence of a high pressure and a divergence over BoB in the lower altitudes. On the other hand, in the upper atmospheric levels, winds from central and northern India stretched south eastwards and converged over BoB with a negative vorticity indicative of a downdraft. These wind patterns pointed to the possibility of aerosol transport from central India to BoB by upper level winds. This mechanism was further confirmed by the significant correlations that AOD variations over BoB showed with aerosol flux convergence and flux vorticity at upper atmospheric levels (600–500 hPa). AOD in central and southern BoB away from continental influences displayed an exponential dependence on the QuikSCAT measured ocean surface wind speed. This study shows that particles transported from central and northern India by upper atmospheric circulations as well as the marine aerosols generated by ocean surface winds contributed to the AOD over the BoB during the first phase of ICARB.     

Relationship between MODIS based Aerosol Optical Depth and PM10 over Croatia

This study analyzes the relationship between Aerosol Optical Depth (AOD) obtained from Terra and Aqua Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) and ground-based PM10 mass concentration distribution over a period of 5 years (2008–2012), and investigates the applicability of satellite AOD data for ground PM10 mapping for the Croatian territory. Many studies have shown that satellite AOD data are correlated to ground-based PM mass concentration. However, the relationship between AOD and PM is not explicit and there are unknowns that cause uncertainties in this relationship. The relationship between MODIS AOD and ground-based PM10 has been studied on the basis of a large data set where daily averaged PM10 data from the 12 air quality stations across Croatia over the 5 year period are correlated with AODs retrieved from MODIS Terra and Aqua. A database was developed to associate coincident MODIS AOD (independent) and PM10 data (dependent variable). Additional tested independent variables (predictors, estimators) included season, cloud fraction, and meteorological parameters — including temperature, air pressure, relative humidity, wind speed, wind direction, as well as planetary boundary layer height — using meteorological data from WRF (Weather Research and Forecast) model. It has been found that 1) a univariate linear regression model fails at explaining the data variability well which suggests nonlinearity of the AOD-PM10 relationship, and 2) explanation of data variability can be improved with multivariate linear modeling and a neural network approach, using additional independent variables.     

撒哈拉地区沙尘气溶胶南北空间型分布特征及其成因

本次研究利用MODIS、CALIPSO等卫星观测资料以及MERRA-2再分析资料分析了2007–2017年撒哈拉地区气溶胶光学厚度的空间分布特征.结果表明,撒哈拉地区气溶胶光学厚度的空间分布具有明显的季节变化,夏季沙尘气溶胶光学厚度高值区位于撒哈拉北部地区,高达0.6以上;而冬季沙尘气溶胶光学厚度高值区位于撒哈拉南部地...     

A MODIS-based modeling scheme for the estimation of downward surface shortwave radiation under cloud-free conditions

Atmospheric aerosol optical depth (AOD) plays an important role in radiation modeling and partly determines the accuracy of estimated downward surface shortwave radiation (DSSR). In this study, Iqbal’s model C was used to estimate DSSR under cloud-free conditions over the Koohin and Chitgar sites in Tehran, Iran; the estimated DSSR was based on (1) our proposed hybrid modeling scheme where the AOD is retrieved using the Simplified Aerosol Retrieval Algorithm (SARA), ground-based measurements at the AERONET site in Zanjan and (2) the AOD from the Terra MODerate-resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) sensor. Several other Terra MODIS land and atmospheric products were also used as input data, including geolocation properties, water vapor, total ozone, surface reflectance, and top-of-atmosphere (TOA) radiance. SARA-based DSSR and MODIS-based DSSR were evaluated with ground-based DSSR measurements at the Koohin and Chitgar sites in 2011 and 2013, respectively; the averaged statistics for SARA-based DSSR [R ² ≈ 0.95, RMSE ≈ 22 W/m² (2.5% mean value), and bias ≈ 3 W/m²] were stronger than those for MODIS-based DSSR [R ² ≈ 0.79, RMSE ≈ 51 W/m² (5.8% mean value), and bias ≈ 34 W/m²]. These results show that the proposed hybrid scheme can be used at regional to global scales under the assumption of future access to spatially distributed AERONET sites. Additionally, the robustness of this modeling scheme was exemplified by estimating the aerosol radiative forcing (ARF) during a dust storm in Southwest Asia. The results were comparable to those of previous studies and showed the strength of our modeling scheme.     

Trend of total column ozone over Mexico from TOMS and OMI data (1978-2013)

Using satellite measurements from the Total Ozone Mapping Spectrometer (TOMS) and Ozone Monitoring Instrument (OMI) version 8, this work presents the total column ozone (TCO) trends over Mexico and, in particular, over the state of Zacatecas. Interannual variations and their statistical dispersion show a surprisingly systematic behavior. Yearly low values occur during December and January, while high values between April and May. A significant depletion of about 2.5% in TCO between 1978 and 1994 is derived from their statistical analysis, which also shows stabilization from 1996 to 2013. Although the depletion is merely significant, it is a sign that the studied regions, crossed by the Tropic of Cancer, have not escaped to the depletion of the ozone layer. The characterization described herein is important in terms of the correlation of TCO and ultraviolet radiation levels.     

Spatiotemporal analysis of dust patterns over Mesopotamia and their impact on Khuzestan province,Iran

Dust storms are yet quite frequent in various parts of the world, particularly ancient Mesopotamia (approximately corresponding to most parts of Iraq as well as certain surrounding regions toward its north). To add to the ongoing difficulty, monitoring dust patterns has been proven to be a rather difficult endeavor given the absence of reliable ground-based monitoring stations in the corresponding area. Additionally, western provinces of Iran, especially Khuzestan in the southwest of Iran, have been severely affected by dust storms carried by the westerly winds, blown through neighboring countries in ancient Mesopotamia. This study proceeds to employ aerosol optical depth (AOD), extracted from the MODerate-resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer onboard the Terra spacecraft, to assess spatial dust variations between 2001 and 2017 over the Khuzestan province and ancient Mesopotamia. The variations were also correlated with the temporal dust changes in the Khuzestan province. Frequency of occurrence for AOD?>?1 was used to identify and categorize major dust sources in the aforementioned regions. The findings were indicative of an increasing trend in the annual AODs of the Khuzestan province, which eventually led to a significant increase from 2008 toward the end of 2012, but decreased again in the following years. Correspondingly, the entire time period (2001–2017) was further divided into three sub-periods: the first time period spanning from 2001 to 2007, followed by the second from 2008 to 2012 and finally a third time period from 2013 to 2017. Dust source identification was speculative of numerous dust spots in Iraq, Syria, Kuwait and also the southern parts of Khuzestan province which have become more active in recent years. Additionally, a large active dust spot was pinpointed between the northwest Iraq and eastern Syria border which has become extremely active during the second time period, possibly due to a severe drought in the Fertile Crescent.

     

A SOAP Web Service for accessing MODIS land product subsets

Remote sensing data from satellites have provided valuable information on the state of the earth for several decades. Since March 2000, the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) sensor on board NASA’s Terra and Aqua satellites have been providing estimates of several land parameters useful in understanding earth system processes at global, continental, and regional scales. However, the HDF-EOS file format, specialized software needed to process the HDF-EOS files, data volume, and the high spatial and temporal resolution of MODIS data make it difficult for users wanting to extract small but valuable amounts of information from the MODIS record. To overcome this usability issue, the NASA-funded Distributed Active Archive Center (DAAC) for Biogeochemical Dynamics at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) developed a Web service that provides subsets of MODIS land products using Simple Object Access Protocol (SOAP). The ORNL DAAC MODIS subsetting Web service is a standard based way of serving satellite data that exploits a fairly established and popular Internet protocol to allow users access to massive amounts of remote sensing data. The Web service provides MODIS land product subsets up to 201 × 201 km in a non-proprietary comma delimited text file format. Users can programmatically query the Web service to extract MODIS land parameters for real time data integration into models, decision support tools or connect to workflow software. Information regarding the MODIS SOAP subsetting Web service is available on the World Wide Web (WWW) at .     

Latitudinal and longitudinal variation in aerosol characteristics from Sun photometer and MODIS over the Bay of Bengal and Arabian Sea during ICARB

Spatial variations in aerosol optical properties as function of latitude and longitude are analysed over the Bay of Bengal and Arabian Sea during ICARB cruise period of March–May 2006 from in situ sun photometer and MODIS (Terra, Aqua) satellite measurements. Monthly mean 550 nm aerosol optical depths (AODs) over the Bay of Bengal and Arabian Sea show an increase from March to May both in spatial extent and magnitude. AODs are found to increase with latitude from 4°N to 20°N over the Bay of Bengal while over Arabian Sea, variations are not significant. Sun photometer and MODIS AODs agree well within ±1σ variation. Bay of Bengal AOD (0.28) is higher than the Arabian Sea (0.24) latitudinally. Aerosol fine mode fraction (FMF) is higher than 0.6 over Bay of Bengal, while FMF in the Arabian Sea is about 0.5. Bay of Bengal α(～1) is higher than the Arabian Sea value of 0.7, suggesting the dominance of fine mode aerosols over Bay of Bengal which is corroborated by higher FMF values over Bay of Bengal. Air back trajectory analyses suggest that aerosols from different source regions contribute differently to the optical characteristics over the Bay of Bengal and Arabian Sea.     

Application of neural network and MODIS 250m imagery for estimating suspended sediments concentration in Hangzhou Bay,China

Suspended sediments concentration (SSC) in surface water derived from bottom sediment resuspension or discharge of sediment-laden rivers is an important indication of coastal water quality and changes rapidly in high-energy coastal area. Since artificial neural networks (ANN) had been proven successful in modeling a variety of geophysical transfer functions, an ANN model to simulate the relationship between surface water SSC and satellite-received radiances was employed. In situ SSC measurements from the Hangzhou Bay and the Moderate-resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) 250 m daily products were adopted in this study. Significant correlations were observed between in situ measurements and band 1–2 reflectance values of MODIS images, respectively. Results indicated that application of ANN model with one hidden layer appeared to yield superior simulation performance (r ² = 0.98; n = 25) compared with regression analysis method. The RMSE for the ANN model was less than 10%, whereas the RMSE for the regression analysis was more than 25%. Results also showed that different tidal situations affect the model simulation results to some extent. The SSC of surface water in Hangzhou Bay is high and changes rapidly due to tidal flood and ebb during a tidal cycle. The combined utilization of Terra and Aqua MODIS data can capture the tidal cycle induced dynamic of surface water SSC. This study demonstrated that MODIS 250 m daily products and ANN model are useful for monitoring surface SSC dynamic within high-energy coastal water environments.     

A technique for improving MODIS standard snow products for snow cover monitoring over Eastern Turkey

Daily snow cover maps at 500 m resolution are available from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) sensors on NASA's Terra and Aqua satellites. However, information of the ground can only be obtained during clear sky conditions. In addition, the spectral similarity between clouds and snow in the visible part of the spectrum causes some ambiguities in separation of them. The dynamic behavior of clouds with their tendency to move faster often enables discrimination between cloud and snow, since snow remains relatively stationary. In this study, a daily merging methodology to combine Terra and Aqua based snow maps are proposed, and the benefits of this combination are evaluated. The methodology was tested for Eastern Turkey covering the period from December 2002 to March 2003. Merged maps derived from the standard daily snow maps from Terra (MOD10A1) and Aqua (MYD10A1) reduce the cloud cover present in any one image alone, provide better representation of the surface snow cover, and indicate better agreement with ground snow measurements than when either one is used alone. For “on the ground data date” analyses yielded 31% match ratios for MOD10A1 and MYD10A1, whereas combined images enabled 38%. One- to 2-day temporal window shifting enabled further 7% and 5% improvements in match ratios, respectively. The maximum improvement of 25% was achieved in January of 2003. The proposed methodology provides an easy and effective way to improve snow cover maps with little effort and provides fewer cloud-contaminated images for snow monitoring, for hydrology, and water resource management.     

An atmospheric instability derived with MODIS profile using real-time direct broadcast data over the Indian region

In this study, assessing the atmospheric instability, a new index, named here as MODIS (Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer) profile index (MPI), has been statistically computed using temperature and moisture profile data from the real-time direct broadcast receiving systems installed at three places of India Meteorological Department. The training dataset has been prepared using MODIS temperature and moisture profile from the Aqua and Terra satellites over the Indian region for clear and convective weather conditions during the period of March to June 2011. The MPI values are produced at 5?×?5?km pixel resolution when at least 6 out of 9 FOVs from MODIS granules are found cloud free. If more than 3 FOVs are cloudy, the MPI has not been computed. The formulation of MPI and its comparison have been examined with well-established traditionally used K index, Lifted Index and total totals index derived from radiosonde profiles of temperature, pressure and humidity. It has been observed that in most of the cases, MPI has well correlated with those derived from ground truth observations. Therefore, spatially interpolated MPI can be utilized as an indicator for regional and location-specific forecast over the areas where radiosonde data are not available. The results also indicated that MPI can be used as a sensitive measure in very early stages of instability developments such as thunderstorm and rainfall because no other single stability index can provide a distinct threshold value for these events. Therefore, a single MPI value at a certain threshold can be treated as a stability index instead of other available indices. It is also being proposed that the inclusion of MPI as a stability parameter in physical or numerical modeling can improve accurate local severe storm predictions as a useful predictor and can also be used as diagnostic tools. The MPI can make a useful simulation using entire temperature and moisture profile data for the assessment of instability significantly to severe weather forecasting since other instability indices are often derived from a fixed pressure level quantity of vertical profile parameters.     

多源遥感数据反演土壤水分方法

基于ASAR-APP影像数据和光学影像数据,根据水云模型研究了小麦覆盖下地表土壤含水量的反演方法。利用TM和MODIS影像构建的植被生物、物理参数与实测小麦含水量进行回归分析,发现TM影像提取的归一化水分指数(NDWI)反演精度较好,相关系数达到0.87。根据这一关系,结合水云模型并联立裸露地表土壤湿度反演模型,建立了基于多源遥感数据的土壤含水量反演模型和参数统一求解方案。反演结果表明:该方案可得到理想的土壤水分反演精度,并可控制参数估计的误差。反演土壤含水量和准同步实测数据的相关系数为0.9,均方根误差为3.83%。在此基础上,分析了模型参数的敏感性,并制作了研究区土壤缺水量分布图。     

Aerosol pollution and its impact on regional climate during Holi festival inferred from ground-based and satellite remote sensing observations

In this paper, we report some salient features from a suit of special experiments that have been conducted over a coastal site (Mumbai) during February 23–March 03, 2010, encompassing an Indian festival, namely Holi, using solar radiometers and pyranometer. The results of the analysis of observations at the experimental site show higher (more than double) aerosol optical depth, water vapor, and lower down-welling short-wave radiative flux during the festival period. This is considered to be due to anthropogenic activities and associated meteorological conditions at the experimental location. To illustrate further, Angstrom parameters (alpha, denoting the aerosol size distribution, and beta, representing the loading) are examined. These parameters are found to be greater on Holi day as compared to those on the normal (control, pre-, and post-Holi) days, suggesting an increase in accumulation mode (smaller size) particle loading. The aerosol size spectra exhibited bimodal/power-law distribution with a dominant peak, modulated by anthropogenic activities, involving local and long-range transport of dust and smoke (emanated from biomass-burning) aerosols, which is consistent with MODIS satellite observations. The aerosol direct radiative forcing estimation indicated cooling at the bottom of the atmosphere.