scholarly journals The Asian tropopause aerosol layer within the 2017 monsoon anticyclone: microphysical properties derived from aircraft-borne in situ measurements

2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (19) ◽  
pp. 15259-15282
Author(s):  
Christoph Mahnke ◽  
Ralf Weigel ◽  
Francesco Cairo ◽  
Jean-Paul Vernier ◽  
Armin Afchine ◽  
...  

Abstract. The Asian summer monsoon is an effective pathway for aerosol particles and precursors from the planetary boundary layer over Central, South, and East Asia into the upper troposphere and lower stratosphere. An enhancement of aerosol particles within the Asian monsoon anticyclone (AMA), called the Asian tropopause aerosol layer (ATAL), has been observed by satellites. We discuss airborne in situ and remote sensing observations of aerosol microphysical properties conducted during the 2017 StratoClim field campaign within the AMA region. The aerosol particle measurements aboard the high-altitude research aircraft M55 Geophysica (maximum altitude reached of ∼20.5 km) were conducted with a modified ultra-high-sensitivity aerosol spectrometer – airborne (UHSAS-A; particle diameter detection range of 65 nm to 1 µm), the COndensation PArticle counting System (COPAS, detecting total concentrations of submicrometer-sized particles), and the New Ice eXpEriment – Cloud and Aerosol Spectrometer with Detection of POLarization (NIXE-CAS-DPOL). In the COPAS and UHSAS-A vertical particle mixing ratio (PMR) profiles and the size distribution profiles (for number, surface area, and volume concentration), the ATAL is evident as a distinct layer between ∼370 and 420 K potential temperature (Θ). Within the ATAL, the maximum detected PMRs (from the median profiles) were ∼700 mg−1 for particle diameters between 65 nm and 1 µm (UHSAS-A) and higher than 2500 mg−1 for diameters larger than 10 nm (COPAS). These values are up to 2 times higher than those previously found at similar altitudes in other tropical locations. The difference between the PMR profiles measured by the UHSAS-A and the COPAS indicate that the region below the ATAL at Θ levels from 350 to 370 K is influenced by the nucleation of aerosol particles (diameter <65 nm). We provide detailed analyses of the vertical distribution of the aerosol particle size distributions and the PMR and compare these with previous tropical and extratropical measurements. The backscatter ratio (BR) was calculated based on the aerosol particle size distributions measured in situ. The resulting data set was compared with the vertical profiles of the BR detected by the multiwavelength aerosol scatterometer (MAS) and an airborne miniature aerosol lidar (MAL) aboard the M55 Geophysica and by the satellite-borne Cloud-Aerosol Lidar with Orthogonal Polarization (CALIOP). The data of all four methods largely agree with one another, showing enhanced BR values in the altitude range of the ATAL (between ∼15 and 18.5 km) with a maximum at 17.5 km altitude. By means of the AMA-centered equivalent latitude calculated from meteorological reanalysis data, it is shown that such enhanced values of the BR larger than 1.1 could only be observed within the confinement of the AMA.

2018 ◽  
Vol 10 (11) ◽  
pp. 1753 ◽  
Author(s):  
Huige Di ◽  
Qiyu Wang ◽  
Hangbo Hua ◽  
Siwen Li ◽  
Qing Yan ◽  
...  

The use of Raman and high-spectral lidars enables measurements of a stratospheric aerosol extinction profile independent of backscatter, and a multi-wavelength (MW) lidar can obtain additional information that can aid in retrieving the microphysical characteristics of the sampled aerosol. The inversion method for retrieving aerosol particle size distributions and microphysical particle parameters from MW lidar data was studied. An inversion algorithm for retrieving aerosol particle size distributions based on the regularization method was established. Based on the inversion of regularization, the inversion method was optimized by choosing the base function closest to the aerosol distribution. The logarithmic normal distribution function was selected over the triangle function as the base function for the inversion. The averaging procedure was carried out for three main types of aerosol. The 1% averaging result near the minimum of the discrepancy gave the best estimate of the particle parameters. The accuracy and stabilization of the optimized algorithm for microphysical parameters were tested by scores of aerosol size distributions. The systematic effects and random errors impacting the inversion were also considered, and the algorithm was tested by the data, showing 10% systematic error and 15% random error. At the same time, the reliability of the proposed algorithm was also verified by using the aerosol particle size distribution data of the aircraft. The inversion results showed that the algorithm was reliable in retrieving the aerosol particle size distributions at vertical heights using lidar data.


2011 ◽  
Vol 22 (1) ◽  
pp. 23-34 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. Wraith ◽  
C. Alston ◽  
K. Mengersen ◽  
T. Hussein

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