Analyses of aerosol properties in Hefei based on polarization measurements of a sun photometer

• Published in: International journal of remote sensing Vol. 33; no. 1; pp. 69 - 80
• Main Authors: Wang, Jiacheng, Yang, Shizhi, Zhao, Qiang, Cui, Shengcheng
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Abingdon Taylor & Francis 01.01.2012
• Subjects: algorithms; Animal, plant and microbial ecology; Applied geophysics; Biological and medical sciences; Earth sciences; Earth, ocean, space; Exact sciences and technology; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; General aspects. Techniques; Internal geophysics; spring; Teledetection and vegetation maps; algorithms; Tracking; time variations; data; aerosols; springs; fine-grained materials; Trend; analysis; Information; Sun; 2008; 2006; depth; Geometric mean; Wave reflection property; Dependence; Parameter; magnitude; polarization; Season; size distribution; albedo; standard deviation
• ISSN: 1366-5901; 0143-1161; 1366-5901
• DOI: 10.1080/01431161.2011.562254

Data collected with a CIMEL CE-318 sun-tracking photometer in Hefei between 2006 and 2008 were collected and inverted using an algorithm which takes polarization information into account. The aerosol optical depths (AOD) showed a pronounced temporal trend, with a maximum value of 0.55 at 440 nm in spring, and values around 0.45 in the remaining seasons. The Ångström parameter for all seasons exceeds 0.80 even in spring. Size distribution showed that both fine and coarse aerosol fractions change significantly and periodically in magnitude and shape during a year. Geometric mean radii for fine and coarse modes are 0.18 μm (standard deviation is 0.016) and 2.7 μm (standard deviation is 0.37), respectively. The spectral dependence of single scattering albedo and reflective index is distinct in the four seasons due to the different aerosol components. All these properties are reported, and it is expected that these aerosol characterizations will help refine aerosol models and clarify the mechanisms of aerosol radiative forcing.