Abstract:During an exceptionally warm September in 2016, unique and stable weather conditions contributed to a heat wave over Poland, allowing for observations of aerosol optical properties, using a variety of ground-based and satellite remote sensors. The data set collected during 11-16 September 2016 was analysed in terms of aerosol transport (HYbrid Single-Particle Lagrangian Integrated Trajectory model (HYSPLIT)), aerosol load model simulations (Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service (CAMS), Navy Aerosol Analysis and Prediction System (NAAPS), Global Environmental Multiscale-Air Quality (GEM-AQ), columnar aerosol load measured at ground level (Aerosol Robotic NETwork (AERONET), Polish Aerosol Research Network (PolandAOD)) and from satellites (Spinning Enhanced Visible and Infrared Imager (SEVIRI), Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS)), as well as with 24/7 PollyXT Raman Lidar observations at the European Aerosol Research Lidar Network (EARLINET) site in Warsaw. Analyses revealed a single day of a relatively clean background aerosol related to an Arctic air-mass inflow, surrounded by a few days with a well increased aerosol load of differing origin: pollution transported from Germany and biomass burning from Ukraine. Such conditions proved excellent to test developed-in-house algorithms designed for near real-time aerosol optical depth (AOD) derivation from the SEVIRI sensor. The SEVIRI AOD maps derived over the territory of Poland, with an exceptionally high resolution (every 15 min; 5.5 × 5.5 km 2 ), revealed on an hourly scale, very low aerosol variability due to heat wave conditions. Comparisons of SEVIRI with NAAPS and CAMS AOD maps show strong qualitative similarities; however, NAAPS underestimates AOD and CAMS tends to underestimate it on relatively clean days (<0.2), and overestimate it for a high aerosol load (>0.4). A slight underestimation of the SEVIRI AOD is reported for pixel-to-column comparisons with AODs of several radiometers (AERONET, PolandAOD) and Lidar (EARLINET) with high correlation coefficients (r 2 of 0.8-0.91) and low root-mean-square error (RMSE of 0.03-0.05). A heat wave driven increase of the boundary layer height of 10% is accompanied with the AOD increase of 8-12% for an urban site dominated by anthropogenic pollution. Contrary trend, with an AOD decrease of around 4% for a rural site dominated by a long-range transported biomass burning aerosol is reported. There is a positive feedback of heat wave conditions on local and transported pollution and an extenuating effect on transported biomass burning aerosol. The daytime mean SEVIRI PM2.5 converted from the SEVIRI AODs at a pixel representative for Warsaw is in agreement with the daily mean PM2.5 surface measurements, whereby SEVIRI PM2.5 and Lidar-derived Ångström exponent are anti-correlated.

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In this paper impact of intensive biomass burning (BB) in North America in July 2015, on aerosol optical and microphysical properties measured in the European Arctic, is discussed. This study was made within the framework of the Impact of Absorbing aerosols on Radiating forcing in the European Arctic project. During the BB event aerosol optical depth (AOD) at 500 nm exceeded 1.2 in Spitsbergen and 0.7 in Andenes (Norway). Angstrom exponent exceeded 1.4, while the absorbing Angstrom exponent varied between 1 and 1.25. BB aerosols were observed in humid atmosphere with a total water vapor column between 2 and 2.5 cm. In such conditions aerosols are activated and may produce clouds at different altitudes. Vertical structure of aerosol plumes over Svalbard, obtained from ceilometers and lidars, shows variability of range‐corrected signal between surface and middle and upper troposphere. Aerosol backscattering coefficients show values up to 10−5 m−1 sr−1 at 532 nm. Aerosol surface observations indicate chemical composition typical for biomass burning particles and very high single scattering properties. Scattering and absorption coefficients at 530 nm were up to 130 and 15 Mm−1, respectively. Single scattering albedo at the surface varied from 0.9 to 0.94. The averaged values over the entire atmospheric column ranged from 0.93 to 0.99. Preliminary statistics of model and Sun photometer data as well as previous studies indicate that this event, in the Arctic region, must be considered extreme (such AOD was not observed in Svalbard since 2005) with a significant impact on energy budget.