Optical properties and effects on direct solar irradiance of aerosols: Asian East case

Abstract

Atmospheric aerosol is an important factor that affects solar irradiance. In this study, we examined the total atmospheric optical depth, aerosol optical depth AOD and the vertical particle size distribution in East Asia in terms of aerosol type during three years. The temporal variation of the aerosol optical depth for each site showed a constant mode renewed each year, the large AOD0,5 are recorded in spring and summer in an almost periodic manner, with maximums around 0.95 in Seoul, 0.08 in Chiang Mai and 1.34 in EPA-NCU. The particle size distributions under a bimodal lognormal form present a remarkable increase in volume concentration of fine and coarse modes during spring. The aerosols reduce solar irradiance by 37.33 ± 0.78% in Chiang Mai, 33.48 ± 6.43% in EPA-NCU and 38.59 ± 3.86% in Seoul.

Effect of the main active volcanoes on aerosol optical properties

“…During the eruption, multiple plumes are injected at different altitudes and points in time containing SO2 and ash, making this eruption challenging for the modelling world [10]. The responses of climate also help us to understand important radiative and dynamical processes that contribute to the climate system to both natural and anthropogenic forcing [2].…”