Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

Clear-sky aerosol radiative forcing effects based on multi-site AERONET observations over Europe

  • Published:
Meteorology and Atmospheric Physics Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Summary

One of the great unknowns in climate research is the contribution of aerosols to climate forcing and climate perturbation. In this study, retrievals from AERONET are used to estimate the direct clear-sky aerosol top-of-atmosphere and surface radiative forcing effects for 12 multi-site observing stations in Europe. The radiative transfer code sdisort in the libRadtran environment is applied to accomplish these estimations. Most of the calculations in this study rely on observations which have been made for the years 1999, 2000, and 2001. Some stations do have observations dating back to the year of 1995. The calculations rely on a pre-compiled aerosol optical properties database for Europe. Aerosol radiative forcing effects are calculated with monthly mean aerosol optical properties retrievals and calculations are presented for three different surface albedo scenarios. Two of the surface albedo scenarios are generic by nature bare soil and green vegetation and the third relies on the ISCCP (International Satellite Cloud Climatology Project) data product. The ISCCP database has also been used to obtain clear-sky weighting fractions over AERONET stations. The AERONET stations cover the area 0° to 30° E and 42° to 52° N. AERONET retrievals are column integrated and this study does not make any seperation between the contribution of natural and anthropogenic components. For the 12 AERONET stations, median clear-sky top-of-atmosphere aerosol radiative forcing effect values for different surface albedo scenarios are calculated to be in the range of −4 to −2 W/m2. High median radiative forcing effect values of about −6 W/m2 were found to occur mainly in the summer months while lower values of about −1 W/m2 occur in the winter months. The aerosol surface forcing also increases in summer months and can reach values of −8 W/m2. Individual stations often have much higher values by a factor of 2. The median top-of-atmosphere aerosol radiative forcing effect efficiency is estimated to be about −25 W/m2 and their respective surface efficiency is around −35 W/m2. The fractional absorption coefficient is estimated to be 1.7, but deviates significantly from station to station. In addition, it is found that the well known peak of the aerosol radiative forcing effect at a solar zenith angle of about 75° is in fact the average of the peaks occurring at shorter and longer wavelengths. According to estimations for Central Europe, based on mean aerosol optical properties retrievals from 12 stations, the critical threshold of the aerosol single scattering albedo, between cooling and heating in the presence of an aerosol layer, is close between 0.6 and 0.76.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • O Boucher SE Schwartz TP Ackerman TL Anderson B Bergstrom B Bonnel P Chóylek A Dahlback Y Fouquart Q Fu RN Halthore JM Haywood T Iversen S Kato S Kinne A Kirkevåg KR Knapp A Lacis I Laszlo MI Mischenko S Nemesure V Ramaswamy DL Roberts P Russeli ME Schlesinger GL Stephens R Wagener M Wang J Wong F Yang (1998) ArticleTitleIntercomparison of models representing direct shortwave radiative forcing by sulfate aerosols J Geophys Res 103 16,979–16,998 Occurrence Handle10.1029/98JD00997

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • RJ Charlson SE Schwartz JM Hales RD Cess JA Coakley JE Hansen DJ Hofmann (1992) ArticleTitleClimate forcing by anthropogenic aerosols Science 255 423–430 Occurrence Handle10.1126/science.255.5043.423

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • CE Chung V Ramanathan D Kim IA Podgorny (2005) ArticleTitleGlobal anthropogenic aerosol direct forcing derived from satellite and ground-based observations J Geophys Res 110 D24207 Occurrence Handle10.1029/2005JD006356

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • P Chylek JA Coakley (1974) ArticleTitleAerosols and climate Science 183 75–77 Occurrence Handle10.1126/science.183.4120.75

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • JA Coakley RD Cess FB Yurevich (1983) ArticleTitleThe effect of tropospheric aerosols on the Earth’s radiation budget: a parameterization for climate models J Atmos Sci 40 116–138 Occurrence Handle10.1175/1520-0469(1983)040<0116:TEOTAO>2.0.CO;2

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • DJ Delene JA Ogren (2002) ArticleTitleVariability of aerosol optical properties at four North American surface monitoring sites J Atmos Sci 59 1135–1150 Occurrence Handle10.1175/1520-0469(2002)059<1135:VOAOPA>2.0.CO;2

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • O Dubovik MD King (2000) ArticleTitleA flexible inversion algorithm for retrieval of aerosol optical properties from Sun and sky radiance measurements J Geophys Res 10 20,673–20,696

    Google Scholar 

  • O Dubovik A Smirnov BN Holben MD King YJ Kaufman TF Eck I Slutsker (2000) ArticleTitleAccuracy assessments of aerosol optical properties retrieved from Aerosol Robotic Network (AERONET) sun and sky radiance measurements J Geophys Res 105 9791–9806 Occurrence Handle10.1029/2000JD900040

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • O Dubovik BN Holben TF Eck A Smirnov YJ Kaufman MD King D Tanré I Slutsker (2002a) ArticleTitleVariability of absorption and optical properties of key aerosol types observed in worldwide locations J Atmos Sci 59 590–608 Occurrence Handle10.1175/1520-0469(2002)059<0590:VOAAOP>2.0.CO;2

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • O Dubovik BN Holben T Lapyonok A Sinyuk MI Mishchenko P Yang I Slutsker (2002b) ArticleTitleNon-spherical aerosol retrieval method employing light scattering by spheriods Geophys Res Lett 29 54-1–54-4 Occurrence Handle10.1029/2001GL014506

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • D Ganguly H Gadhavi A Jayaraman TA Rajesh A Misra (2005) ArticleTitleSingle scattering albedo of aerosols over the central India: implications for the regional aerosol radiative forcing Geophys Res Lett 32 L13821 Occurrence Handle10.1029/2005GL023023

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gonzi S, Baumgartner D, Putz E (2002) Aerosol Climatology and optical properties of key aerosol types observed in Europe. IGAM/UG Technical Report for EU Np. 1/2002

  • JE Hansen M Sato R Ruedy (1997) ArticleTitleRadiative forcing and climate response J Geophys Res 102 6831–6864 Occurrence Handle10.1029/96JD03436

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • JM Haywood O Boucher (2000) ArticleTitleEstimates of the direct and indirect radiative forcing due to tropospheric aerosols: a review Rev Geophys 38 513–543 Occurrence Handle10.1029/1999RG000078

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • JM Haywood V Ramaswamy (1998) ArticleTitleGlobal sensitivity studies of the direct radiative forcing due to anthropogenic sulfate and black carbon aerosols J Geophys Res 103 6043–6058 Occurrence Handle10.1029/97JD03426

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • JM Haywood KP Shine (1995) ArticleTitleThe effect of anthropogenic sulfate and soot aerosol on the clear sky planetary radiation budget Geophys Res Lett 2 603–606 Occurrence Handle10.1029/95GL00075

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • JM Haywood PN Francis MD Glew O Dubovik BN Holben (2003a) ArticleTitleComparison of aerosol size distributions, radiative properties, and optical depths determined by aircraft observations and Sun photometers during SAFARI-2000 J Geophys Res 108 IssueIDD13 8471 Occurrence Handle10.1029/2002JD002250

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Haywood JM, Osborne SR, Francisx PN, Keil A, Formenti P, Andrea MO, Kaye PH (2003b) The mean physical and optical properties of regional haze dominated by biomass burning aerosol measured from the C-130 aircraft during SAFARI 2000. J Geophys Res 108 (DOI: 10.1029/2002JD002226)

  • M Hess P Koepke I Schult (1998) ArticleTitleOptical properties of aerosols and clouds: the software package OPAC B Am Met Soc 79 831–844 Occurrence Handle10.1175/1520-0477(1998)079<0831:OPOAAC>2.0.CO;2

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • BN Holben et al. (1998) ArticleTitleAERONET – A federated instrument network and data archive for aerosol characterization Remote Sens Environ 66 1–16 Occurrence Handle10.1016/S0034-4257(98)00031-5

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • IPCC International Panel on Climate Change (2001)

  • International Satellite Cloud Climatology Project (ISCCP) 2002: http://isccp.giss.nasa.gov/

  • MZ Jacobson (2001) ArticleTitleStrong radiative heating due to the mixing state of black carbon in atmospheric aerosols Nature 409 695–697 Occurrence Handle10.1038/35055518

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • YJ Kaufman D Tanre O Boucher (2002) ArticleTitleA satellite view of aerosols in the climate system Nature 419 215–223 Occurrence Handle10.1038/nature01091

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • U Lohman J Feichter (2001) ArticleTitleCan the direct and semi-direct aerosol effect compete with the indirect effect on a global scale? Geophys Res Lett 28 159–161 Occurrence Handle10.1029/2000GL012051

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • U Lohman G Lesins (2002) ArticleTitleStronger constraints on the anthropogenic indirect aerosol effect Science 298 1012–1015 Occurrence Handle10.1126/science.1075405

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Markowicz KM, Flatau PJ, Ramana MV, Crutzen PJ, Ramanathan V (2002) Absorbing mediterranean aerosols lead to large reduction in the solar radiation at the surface. Geophys Res Lett 29(20) (DOI: 10.1029/2002GL015767)

  • B Mayer A Kylling (2005) ArticleTitleTechnical note: The libRadtran software package for radiative transfer calculations – description and examples of use Atmos Chem Phys Discuss 5 1319–1381

    Google Scholar 

  • Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectrometer (MODIS) Product: http://modis-atmos.gsfc.nasa.gov/

  • Nakajima T et al (2003) Significance of direct and indirect radiative forcings of aerosols in the East China Sea region. J Geophys Res 108 (DOI: 10.2029/2002JD003261)

  • S Nemesure R Wagener SE Schwartz (1995) ArticleTitleDirect shortwave forcing of climate by the anthropogenic sulfate aerosol: sensitivity to particle size, composition, and relative humidity J Geophys Res 10 26,105–26,116

    Google Scholar 

  • Pandithurai G, Pinker RT, Takamura T, Devara PCS (2004) Aerosols radiative forcing over a tropical urban site in India. Geophys Res J 31 (DOI: 10.1029/2004GL019702)

  • Penner JE (ed) et al (2001) Aerosols, their direct and indirect effects. IPCC, climate change 2001: The scientific basis, chap. 5, pp 289–348

  • V Ramanathan et al. (2001a) ArticleTitleIndian Ocean experiment: an integrated analysis of the climate forcing and effects of the great Indo-Asian haze J Geophys Res 106 28,371–28,398 Occurrence Handle10.1029/2001JD900133

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • V Ramanathan PJ Crutzen JT Kiehl D Rosenfeld (2001b) ArticleTitleAerosols, climate, and the hydrological cycle Science 294 2119–2124 Occurrence Handle10.1126/science.1064034

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • JS Reid et al. (2003) ArticleTitleComparison of size and morphological measurements of coarse mode dust particles from Africa J Geophys Res 108 IssueIDD19 8593 Occurrence Handle10.1029/2002JD002485

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • SK Satheesh (2002) ArticleTitleAerosol radiative forcing over land: effect of surface and cloud reflection Ann Geophys 20 2105–2109 Occurrence Handle10.5194/angeo-20-2105-2002

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • SK Satheesh V Ramanathan (2000) ArticleTitleLarge differences in tropical aerosol forcing at the top of the atmosphere and Earth’s surface Nature 405 60–63 Occurrence Handle10.1038/35011039

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • JH Seinfeld SN Pandis (1998) Atmospheric chemistry and physics Wiley New York

    Google Scholar 

  • A Smirnov BN Holben TF Eck O Dubovik I Slutsker (2000) ArticleTitleCloud screening and quality control algorithms for the AERONET database Rem Sens Environ 73 337–349 Occurrence Handle10.1016/S0034-4257(00)00109-7

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • T Takemura T Nakajima O Dubovik BN Holben S Kinne (2002) ArticleTitleSingle-scattering albedo and radiative forcing of various species with a global three-dimension model J Climate 15 333–352 Occurrence Handle10.1175/1520-0442(2002)015<0333:SSAARF>2.0.CO;2

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • OB Toon CP Mckay TP Ackerman K Santhanam (1989) ArticleTitleRapid calculation of radiative heating rates and photodissociation rates in inhomogeneous multiple scattering atmospheres J Geophys Res 94 16,287–16,301

    Google Scholar 

  • DS Wilks (1995) Statistical methods in the atmospheric sciences Academic Press New York

    Google Scholar 

  • JG Won SC Yoon SW Kim (2004) ArticleTitleEstimation of direct radiative forcing of Asian dust aerosols with sun/sky radiometer and lidar measurements at Gosan, Korea J Met Soc Japan 82 115–130 Occurrence Handle10.2151/jmsj.82.115

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Geophysics, Astrophysics and Meteorology, Institute for Physics, University of Graz, Graz, Austria

    S. Gonzi & E. Putz

  2. Laboratoire d’Optique Atmosphérique, Université des Sciences et Technologies de Lille, France

    O. Dubovik

  3. Kanzelhöhe Solar Observatory, University of Graz, Graz, Austria

    D. Baumgartner

Authors
  1. S. Gonzi
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. O. Dubovik
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. D. Baumgartner
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. E. Putz
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Gonzi, S., Dubovik, O., Baumgartner, D. et al. Clear-sky aerosol radiative forcing effects based on multi-site AERONET observations over Europe. Meteorol. Atmos. Phys. 96, 277–291 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00703-006-0212-9

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Revised:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00703-006-0212-9

Keywords

Search

Navigation