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The year 2008 marks the centenary of the seminal paper by Gustav Mie on electromagnetic scattering by homogeneous spherical particles. Having been cited in almost 4,000 journal articles since 1955 (according to the Science Citation Index Expanded database), Mie s paper has been among the more influential scientific publications of the twentieth century. It has affected profoundly the development of a great variety of natural science disciplines including atmospheric radiation, meteorological optics, remote sensing, aerosol physics, astrophysics, and biomedical optics. Mies paper represented a fundamental advancement over the earlier publications by Ludvig Lorenz in that it was explicitly based on the Maxwell equations, gave the final solution in a convenient form suitable for practical computations, and imparted physical reality to the abstract concept of electromagnetic scattering. The Mie solution anticipated such general concepts as far-field scattering and the Sommerfeld-Silver-Müller boundary conditions at infinity as well as paved the way to such important extensions as the separation of variables method for spheroids and the T-matrix method. Key ingredients of the Mie theory are quite prominent in the superposition T-matrix method for clusters of particles and even in the recent microphysical derivation of the radiative transfer equation. Among the most illustrative uses of the Mie solution have been the explanation of the spectacular optical displays caused by cloud and rain droplets, the identification of sulfuric acid particles in the atmosphere of Venus from Earth-based polarimetry, and optical particle characterization based on measurements of morphology-dependent resonances. Yet it is clear that the full practical potential of the Mie theory is still to be revealed.
The year 2008 marks the centenary of the seminal paper by Gustav Mie on electromagnetic scattering by homogeneous spherical particles. Having been cited in almost 4,000 journal articles since 1955 (according to the Science Citation Index Expanded database), Mie s paper has been among the more influential scientific publications of the twentieth century. It has affected profoundly the development of a great variety of natural science disciplines including atmospheric radiation, meteorological optics, remote sensing, aerosol physics, astrophysics, and biomedical optics. Mies paper represented a fundamental advancement over the earlier publications by Ludvig Lorenz in that it was explicitly based on the Maxwell equations, gave the final solution in a convenient form suitable for practical computations, and imparted physical reality to the abstract concept of electromagnetic scattering. The Mie solution anticipated such general concepts as far-field scattering and the Sommerfeld-Silver-Müller boundary conditions at infinity as well as paved the way to such important extensions as the separation of variables method for spheroids and the T-matrix method. Key ingredients of the Mie theory are quite prominent in the superposition T-matrix method for clusters of particles and even in the recent microphysical derivation of the radiative transfer equation. Among the most illustrative uses of the Mie solution have been the explanation of the spectacular optical displays caused by cloud and rain droplets, the identification of sulfuric acid particles in the atmosphere of Venus from Earth-based polarimetry, and optical particle characterization based on measurements of morphology-dependent resonances. Yet it is clear that the full practical potential of the Mie theory is still to be revealed.
Abstract
Described is an improved algorithm that uses channel 1 and 2 radiances of the Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR) to retrieve the aerosol optical thickness and Ångström exponent over the ocean. Specifically discussed are recent changes in the algorithm as well as the results of a sensitivity study analyzing the effect of several sources of retrieval errors not addressed previously. Uncertainties in the AVHRR radiance calibration (particularly in the deep-space count value) may be among the major factors potentially limiting the retrieval accuracy. A change by one digital count may lead to a 50% change in the aerosol optical thickness and a change of 0.4 in the Ångström exponent. On the other hand, the performance of two-channel algorithms weakly depends on a specific choice of the aerosol size distribution function with less than 10% changes in the optical thickness resulting from replacing a power law with a bimodal modified lognormal distribution. The updated algorithm is applied to a 10-yr period of observations (Jul 1983–Aug 1994), which includes data from NOAA-7, NOAA-9 (Feb 1985–Nov 1988), and NOAA-11 satellites. (The results are posted online at http://gacp.giss.nasa.gov/retrievals.)
The NOAA-9 record reveals a seasonal cycle with maxima occurring around January–February and minima in June–July in the globally averaged aerosol optical thickness. The NOAA-7 data appear to show a residual effect of the El Chichón eruption (Mar 1982) as increased optical thickness values in the beginning of the record. The June 1991 eruption of Mt. Pinatubo resulted in a sharp increase in the aerosol load to more than double its normal value. The NOAA-9 record shows no discernible long-term trends in the global and hemisphere averages of the optical thickness and Ångström exponent. On the other hand, there is a discontinuity in the Ångström exponent values derived from NOAA-9 and NOAA-11 data and a significant temporal trend in the NOAA-11 record. The latter is unlikely to be related to the Mt. Pinatubo eruption and may be indicative of a serious calibration problem.
The NOAA-9 record shows that the Northern Hemisphere mean optical thickness systematically exceeds that averaged over the Southern Hemisphere. Zonal means of the optical thickness exhibit an increase in the tropical regions of the Northern Hemisphere associated with annual desert dust outbursts and a springtime increase at middle latitudes of the Northern Hemisphere. Increased aerosol loads observed at middle latitudes of the Southern Hemisphere are probably associated with higher sea salt particle concentrations. Reliable extension of the retrieval record beyond the NOAA-9 lifetime will help to corroborate these findings.
Abstract
Described is an improved algorithm that uses channel 1 and 2 radiances of the Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR) to retrieve the aerosol optical thickness and Ångström exponent over the ocean. Specifically discussed are recent changes in the algorithm as well as the results of a sensitivity study analyzing the effect of several sources of retrieval errors not addressed previously. Uncertainties in the AVHRR radiance calibration (particularly in the deep-space count value) may be among the major factors potentially limiting the retrieval accuracy. A change by one digital count may lead to a 50% change in the aerosol optical thickness and a change of 0.4 in the Ångström exponent. On the other hand, the performance of two-channel algorithms weakly depends on a specific choice of the aerosol size distribution function with less than 10% changes in the optical thickness resulting from replacing a power law with a bimodal modified lognormal distribution. The updated algorithm is applied to a 10-yr period of observations (Jul 1983–Aug 1994), which includes data from NOAA-7, NOAA-9 (Feb 1985–Nov 1988), and NOAA-11 satellites. (The results are posted online at http://gacp.giss.nasa.gov/retrievals.)
The NOAA-9 record reveals a seasonal cycle with maxima occurring around January–February and minima in June–July in the globally averaged aerosol optical thickness. The NOAA-7 data appear to show a residual effect of the El Chichón eruption (Mar 1982) as increased optical thickness values in the beginning of the record. The June 1991 eruption of Mt. Pinatubo resulted in a sharp increase in the aerosol load to more than double its normal value. The NOAA-9 record shows no discernible long-term trends in the global and hemisphere averages of the optical thickness and Ångström exponent. On the other hand, there is a discontinuity in the Ångström exponent values derived from NOAA-9 and NOAA-11 data and a significant temporal trend in the NOAA-11 record. The latter is unlikely to be related to the Mt. Pinatubo eruption and may be indicative of a serious calibration problem.
The NOAA-9 record shows that the Northern Hemisphere mean optical thickness systematically exceeds that averaged over the Southern Hemisphere. Zonal means of the optical thickness exhibit an increase in the tropical regions of the Northern Hemisphere associated with annual desert dust outbursts and a springtime increase at middle latitudes of the Northern Hemisphere. Increased aerosol loads observed at middle latitudes of the Southern Hemisphere are probably associated with higher sea salt particle concentrations. Reliable extension of the retrieval record beyond the NOAA-9 lifetime will help to corroborate these findings.
Abstract
A data library is developed containing the scattering, absorption, and polarization properties of ice particles in the spectral range from 0.2 to 100 μm. The properties are computed based on a combination of the Amsterdam discrete dipole approximation (ADDA), the T-matrix method, and the improved geometric optics method (IGOM). The electromagnetic edge effect is incorporated into the extinction and absorption efficiencies computed from the IGOM. A full set of single-scattering properties is provided by considering three-dimensional random orientations for 11 ice crystal habits: droxtals, prolate spheroids, oblate spheroids, solid and hollow columns, compact aggregates composed of eight solid columns, hexagonal plates, small spatial aggregates composed of 5 plates, large spatial aggregates composed of 10 plates, and solid and hollow bullet rosettes. The maximum dimension of each habit ranges from 2 to 10 000 μm in 189 discrete sizes. For each ice crystal habit, three surface roughness conditions (i.e., smooth, moderately roughened, and severely roughened) are considered to account for the surface texture of large particles in the IGOM applicable domain. The data library contains the extinction efficiency, single-scattering albedo, asymmetry parameter, six independent nonzero elements of the phase matrix (P 11, P 12, P 22, P 33, P 43, and P 44), particle projected area, and particle volume to provide the basic single-scattering properties for remote sensing applications and radiative transfer simulations involving ice clouds. Furthermore, a comparison of satellite observations and theoretical simulations for the polarization characteristics of ice clouds demonstrates that ice cloud optical models assuming severely roughened ice crystals significantly outperform their counterparts assuming smooth ice crystals.
Abstract
A data library is developed containing the scattering, absorption, and polarization properties of ice particles in the spectral range from 0.2 to 100 μm. The properties are computed based on a combination of the Amsterdam discrete dipole approximation (ADDA), the T-matrix method, and the improved geometric optics method (IGOM). The electromagnetic edge effect is incorporated into the extinction and absorption efficiencies computed from the IGOM. A full set of single-scattering properties is provided by considering three-dimensional random orientations for 11 ice crystal habits: droxtals, prolate spheroids, oblate spheroids, solid and hollow columns, compact aggregates composed of eight solid columns, hexagonal plates, small spatial aggregates composed of 5 plates, large spatial aggregates composed of 10 plates, and solid and hollow bullet rosettes. The maximum dimension of each habit ranges from 2 to 10 000 μm in 189 discrete sizes. For each ice crystal habit, three surface roughness conditions (i.e., smooth, moderately roughened, and severely roughened) are considered to account for the surface texture of large particles in the IGOM applicable domain. The data library contains the extinction efficiency, single-scattering albedo, asymmetry parameter, six independent nonzero elements of the phase matrix (P 11, P 12, P 22, P 33, P 43, and P 44), particle projected area, and particle volume to provide the basic single-scattering properties for remote sensing applications and radiative transfer simulations involving ice clouds. Furthermore, a comparison of satellite observations and theoretical simulations for the polarization characteristics of ice clouds demonstrates that ice cloud optical models assuming severely roughened ice crystals significantly outperform their counterparts assuming smooth ice crystals.
Abstract
The extensive set of measurements performed during the Chesapeake Lighthouse and Aircraft Measurements for Satellites (CLAMS) experiment provides a unique opportunity to evaluate aerosol retrievals over the ocean from multiangle, multispectral photometric, and polarimetric remote sensing observations by the airborne Research Scanning Polarimeter (RSP) instrument.
Previous studies have shown the feasibility of retrieving particle size distributions and real refractive indices from such observations for visible wavelengths without prior knowledge of the ocean color. This work evaluates the fidelity of the aerosol retrievals using RSP measurements during the CLAMS experiment against aerosol properties derived from in situ measurements, sky radiance observations, and sun-photometer measurements, and further extends the scope of the RSP retrievals by using a priori information about the ocean color to constrain the aerosol absorption and vertical distribution.
It is shown that the fine component of the aerosol observed on 17 July 2001 consisted predominantly of dirty sulfatelike particles with an extinction optical thickness of several tenths in the visible, an effective radius of 0.15 ± 0.025 μm and a single scattering albedo of 0.91 ± 0.03 at 550 nm. Analyses of the ocean color and sky radiance observations favor the lower boundary of aerosol single scattering albedo, while in situ measurements favor its upper boundary. Both analyses support the polarimetric retrievals of fine-aerosol effective radius and the consequent spectral variation in extinction optical depth. The estimated vertical distribution of this aerosol component depends on assumptions regarding the water-leaving radiances and is consistent with the top of the aerosol layer being close to the aircraft height (3500 m), with the bottom of the layer being between 2.7 km and the surface. The aerosol observed on 17 July 2001 also contained coarse-mode particles. Comparison of RSP data with sky radiance and in situ measurements suggests that this component consists of nonspherical particles with an effective radius in excess of 1 μm, and with the extinction optical depth being much less than one-tenth at 550 nm.
Abstract
The extensive set of measurements performed during the Chesapeake Lighthouse and Aircraft Measurements for Satellites (CLAMS) experiment provides a unique opportunity to evaluate aerosol retrievals over the ocean from multiangle, multispectral photometric, and polarimetric remote sensing observations by the airborne Research Scanning Polarimeter (RSP) instrument.
Previous studies have shown the feasibility of retrieving particle size distributions and real refractive indices from such observations for visible wavelengths without prior knowledge of the ocean color. This work evaluates the fidelity of the aerosol retrievals using RSP measurements during the CLAMS experiment against aerosol properties derived from in situ measurements, sky radiance observations, and sun-photometer measurements, and further extends the scope of the RSP retrievals by using a priori information about the ocean color to constrain the aerosol absorption and vertical distribution.
It is shown that the fine component of the aerosol observed on 17 July 2001 consisted predominantly of dirty sulfatelike particles with an extinction optical thickness of several tenths in the visible, an effective radius of 0.15 ± 0.025 μm and a single scattering albedo of 0.91 ± 0.03 at 550 nm. Analyses of the ocean color and sky radiance observations favor the lower boundary of aerosol single scattering albedo, while in situ measurements favor its upper boundary. Both analyses support the polarimetric retrievals of fine-aerosol effective radius and the consequent spectral variation in extinction optical depth. The estimated vertical distribution of this aerosol component depends on assumptions regarding the water-leaving radiances and is consistent with the top of the aerosol layer being close to the aircraft height (3500 m), with the bottom of the layer being between 2.7 km and the surface. The aerosol observed on 17 July 2001 also contained coarse-mode particles. Comparison of RSP data with sky radiance and in situ measurements suggests that this component consists of nonspherical particles with an effective radius in excess of 1 μm, and with the extinction optical depth being much less than one-tenth at 550 nm.
Abstract
For an 8-month period aerosol optical depth (AOD) is compared, derived over global oceans with five different retrieval algorithms applied to four satellite instruments flown on board three satellite platforms. The Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR) was flown on board NOAA-14, the Ocean Color and Temperature Scanner (OCTS) and the Polarization and Directionality of the Earth's Reflectances (POLDER) on board the Advanced Earth Observing Satellite (ADEOS), and the Total Ozone Mapping Spectrometer (TOMS) on board the Earth Probe satellites. The aerosol data are presented on the same format and converted to the same wavelength in the comparison and can therefore be a useful tool in validation of global aerosol models, in particular models that can be driven with meteorological data for the November 1996 to June 1997 period studied here. Large uncertainties in the global mean AOD are found. There is at least a factor of 2 difference between the AOD from the retrievals. The largest uncertainties are found in the Southern Hemisphere, and the smallest differences mostly near the continents in the Northern Hemisphere. The largest relative differences are probably caused by differences in cloud screening.
Abstract
For an 8-month period aerosol optical depth (AOD) is compared, derived over global oceans with five different retrieval algorithms applied to four satellite instruments flown on board three satellite platforms. The Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR) was flown on board NOAA-14, the Ocean Color and Temperature Scanner (OCTS) and the Polarization and Directionality of the Earth's Reflectances (POLDER) on board the Advanced Earth Observing Satellite (ADEOS), and the Total Ozone Mapping Spectrometer (TOMS) on board the Earth Probe satellites. The aerosol data are presented on the same format and converted to the same wavelength in the comparison and can therefore be a useful tool in validation of global aerosol models, in particular models that can be driven with meteorological data for the November 1996 to June 1997 period studied here. Large uncertainties in the global mean AOD are found. There is at least a factor of 2 difference between the AOD from the retrievals. The largest uncertainties are found in the Southern Hemisphere, and the smallest differences mostly near the continents in the Northern Hemisphere. The largest relative differences are probably caused by differences in cloud screening.
The NASA Glory mission is intended to facilitate and improve upon long-term monitoring of two key forcings influencing global climate. One of the mission's principal objectives is to determine the global distribution of detailed aerosol and cloud properties with unprecedented accuracy, thereby facilitating the quantification of the aerosol direct and indirect radiative forcings. The other is to continue the 28-yr record of satellite-based measurements of total solar irradiance from which the effect of solar variability on the Earth's climate is quantified. These objectives will be met by flying two state-of-the-art science instruments on an Earth-orbiting platform. Based on a proven technique demonstrated with an aircraft-based prototype, the Aerosol Polarimetry Sensor (APS) will collect accurate multiangle photopolarimetric measurements of the Earth along the satellite ground track within a wide spectral range extending from the visible to the shortwave infrared. The Total Irradiance Monitor (TIM) is an improved version of an instrument currently flying on the Solar Radiation and Climate Experiment (SORCE) and will provide accurate and precise measurements of spectrally integrated sunlight illuminating the Earth. Because Glory is expected to fly as part of the A-Train constellation of Earth-orbiting spacecraft, the APS data will also be used to improve retrievals of aerosol climate forcing parameters and global aerosol assessments with other A-Train instruments. In this paper, we detail the scientific rationale and objectives of the Glory mission, explain how these scientific objectives dictate the specific measurement strategy, describe how the measurement strategy will be implemented by the APS and TIM, and briefly outline the overall structure of the mission. It is expected that the Glory results will be used extensively by members of the climate, solar, atmospheric, oceanic, and environmental research communities as well as in education and outreach activities.
The NASA Glory mission is intended to facilitate and improve upon long-term monitoring of two key forcings influencing global climate. One of the mission's principal objectives is to determine the global distribution of detailed aerosol and cloud properties with unprecedented accuracy, thereby facilitating the quantification of the aerosol direct and indirect radiative forcings. The other is to continue the 28-yr record of satellite-based measurements of total solar irradiance from which the effect of solar variability on the Earth's climate is quantified. These objectives will be met by flying two state-of-the-art science instruments on an Earth-orbiting platform. Based on a proven technique demonstrated with an aircraft-based prototype, the Aerosol Polarimetry Sensor (APS) will collect accurate multiangle photopolarimetric measurements of the Earth along the satellite ground track within a wide spectral range extending from the visible to the shortwave infrared. The Total Irradiance Monitor (TIM) is an improved version of an instrument currently flying on the Solar Radiation and Climate Experiment (SORCE) and will provide accurate and precise measurements of spectrally integrated sunlight illuminating the Earth. Because Glory is expected to fly as part of the A-Train constellation of Earth-orbiting spacecraft, the APS data will also be used to improve retrievals of aerosol climate forcing parameters and global aerosol assessments with other A-Train instruments. In this paper, we detail the scientific rationale and objectives of the Glory mission, explain how these scientific objectives dictate the specific measurement strategy, describe how the measurement strategy will be implemented by the APS and TIM, and briefly outline the overall structure of the mission. It is expected that the Glory results will be used extensively by members of the climate, solar, atmospheric, oceanic, and environmental research communities as well as in education and outreach activities.
