Estimation Of Aerosol Optical Depth From Pyranometer Measurements At Thessaloniki, Greece.pdf

Effective Aerosol Optical Depth from Pyranometer Measurements in Thessaloniki, Greece (2013)

This study investigates the potential of pyranometer measurements of surface solar radiation (SSR) for estimating atmospheric aerosol optical depth (AOD). Using data from Thessaloniki, Greece, researchers developed and validated a method that leverages radiative transfer simulations.

Key Points:

Method: The approach combines pyranometer SSR data with total water vapor column information to calculate the AOD. Radiative transfer simulations are used to bridge the gap between observed SSR and AOD.
Validation: The calculated AOD agreed well with co-located AERONET measurements, demonstrating a correlation coefficient of 0.9 and errors within ±20% or ±0.05 of AERONET values. This performance is comparable to current satellite-based aerosol methods.
Limitations: Differences between the calculated and AERONET AOD can be attributed to variations in aerosol properties not accounted for in the radiative transfer simulations, such as single scatter albedo and angular dependence. The method is also sensitive to calibration offsets between the simulations and pyranometer data.
Advantages: Pyranometer data provide a valuable historical record of SSR, allowing for long-term studies of aerosol-climate interactions that predate dedicated satellite observations.

Conclusion:

The study concludes that pyranometer measurements of SSR offer a promising tool for estimating past and present atmospheric AOD, expanding our knowledge of aerosol loads beyond the scope of traditional satellite and ground-based monitoring.