Aerosol retrievals from multiple spaceborne sensors, including MODIS (on Terra and Aqua), MISR, OMI, POLDER, CALIOP, and SeaWiFS – altogether, a total of 11 different aerosol products – were comparatively analyzed using data collocated with ground-based aerosol observations from the Aerosol Robotic Network (AERONET) stations within the Multi-sensor Aerosol Products Sampling System (MAPSS, http:...

This study demonstrates the feasibility of small satellite, namely PROBA platform with the compact high resolution imaging spectrometer (CHRIS), for aerosol retrieval in Hong Kong. The rationale of our technique is to estimate the aerosol reflectances by decomposing the Top of Atmosphere (TOA) reflectances from surface reflectance and Rayleigh path reflectances. For the determination of surface...

[1] Using eighteen months (June–August, 2000–2005) of spatially and temporally collocated Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) and the Clouds and the Earth’s Radiant Energy System (CERES) data from the Terra satellite over the Atlantic Ocean [10W–60W, 0–30N], we first separate the dust aerosol optical thickness at 0.55 mm (AOT) from the total column MODIS AOT. We then calculate...

A cloud-masking algorithm based on the spatial variability of reflectances at the top of the atmosphere in visible wavelengths was developed for the retrieval of aerosol properties by MODIS. It is shown that the spatial pattern of cloud reflectance as observed from space is very different from that of aerosols. Clouds show a very high spatial variability in the scale of a hundred metres to a fe...

One of the objectives of the ENVISAT project AO-164 on “Environmental Research in the Eastern Alps” is the development of algorithms for retrieval of water quality parameters of lakes from MERIS data. In order to test and validate atmospheric correction algorithms and to provide basic data for the development of algorithms for retrieval of limnological parameters and aerosol loadings, several f...

Shipborne aerosol lidar observations were performed aboard the research vessel Polarstern in 2009 and 2010 during three north-south cruises from about 50°N to 50°S. The aerosol data set provides an excellent opportunity to characterize and contrast the vertical aerosol distribution over the Atlantic Ocean in the polluted northern and relatively clean southern hemisphere. Three case studies, an ...

Global and diffuse UV-visible solar irradiances are routinely measured since 2003 with a spectroradiometer operated by the Laboratoire d’Optique Atmosphérique (LOA) located in Villeneuve d’Ascq, France. The analysis of the direct irradiance derived by cloudless conditions enables retrieving the aerosol optical thickness (AOT) spectrum in the 330–450 nm range. The site hosts also sunphotometers ...

This study examines aerosol properties in the vicinity of clouds by analyzing high-resolution atmospheric correction parameters provided in the MODIS (Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer) ocean color product. The study analyzes data from a 2 week long period of September in 10 years, covering a large area in the northeast Atlantic Ocean. The results indicate that on the one hand, the ...