Impacts of Aerosol Shortwave Radiation Absorption on the Dynamics of an Idealized Convective Atmospheric Boundary Layer

Barbaro, Eduardo; Arellano, Jordi Vilà‐Guerau de; Krol, Maarten; Holtslag, A.A.M.

doi:10.1007/s10546-013-9800-7

Cited by 66 publications

(53 citation statements)

References 50 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…In principle a seasonal cycle is also expected: higher boundary layers occur in summer, when the thermal convection is strongest. A possible interpretation of the results seen on the top row (decline of H aer 75 with increasing AOD) is that growth of the boundary layer through convection is weakened by the presence of high aerosol loadings (see also Barbaro et al, 2013). Without independent simultaneous observations with other techniques, it can however not be excluded that this effect is related to the measurement technique itself (i.e.…”

Section: Profile Heightsmentioning

confidence: 98%

MAX-DOAS observations of aerosols, formaldehyde and nitrogen dioxide in the Beijing area: comparison of two profile retrieval approaches

et al. 2015

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Abstract.A 4-year data set of MAX-DOAS observations in the Beijing area (2008)(2009)(2010)(2011)(2012) is analysed with a focus on NO 2 , HCHO and aerosols. Two very different retrieval methods are applied. Method A describes the tropospheric profile with 13 layers and makes use of the optimal estimation method. Method B uses 2-4 parameters to describe the tropospheric profile and an inversion based on a leastsquares fit. For each constituent (NO 2 , HCHO and aerosols) the retrieval outcomes are compared in terms of tropospheric column densities, surface concentrations and "characteristic profile heights" (i.e. the height below which 75 % of the vertically integrated tropospheric column density resides).We find best agreement between the two methods for tropospheric NO 2 column densities, with a standard deviation of relative differences below 10 %, a correlation of 0.99 and a linear regression with a slope of 1.03. For tropospheric HCHO column densities we find a similar slope, but also a systematic bias of almost 10 % which is likely related to differences in profile height. Aerosol optical depths (AODs) retrieved with method B are 20 % high compared to method A. They are more in agreement with AERONET measurements, which are on average only 5 % lower, however with considerable relative differences (standard deviation ∼ 25 %). With respect to near-surface volume mixing ratios and aerosol extinction we find considerably larger relative differences: 10 ± 30, −23 ± 28 and −8 ± 33 % for aerosols, HCHO and NO 2 respectively. The frequency distributions of these near-surface concentrations show however a quite good agreement, and this indicates that near-surface concentrations derived from MAX-DOAS are certainly useful in a climatological sense. A major difference between the two methods is the dynamic range of retrieved characteristic profile heights which is larger for method B than for method A. This effect is most pronounced for HCHO, where retrieved profile shapes with method A are very close to the a priori, and moderate for NO 2 and aerosol extinction which on average show quite good agreement for characteristic profile heights below 1.5 km.One of the main advantages of method A is the stability, even under suboptimal conditions (e.g. in the presence of clouds). Method B is generally more unstable and this explains probably a substantial part of the quite large relative differences between the two methods. However, despite a relatively low precision for individual profile retrievals it appears as if seasonally averaged profile heights retrieved with method B are less biased towards a priori assumptions than those retrieved with method A. This gives confidence in the result obtained with method B, namely that aerosol extinction profiles tend on average to be higher than NO 2 profiles in spring and summer, whereas they seem on average to be of the same height in winter, a result which is especially relevant in relation to the validation of satellite retrievals.Published by Copernicus Publications on behalf of t...

show abstract

Section: Profile Heightsmentioning

confidence: 98%

MAX-DOAS observations of aerosols, formaldehyde and nitrogen dioxide in the Beijing area: comparison of two profile retrieval approaches

et al. 2015

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…To this end, the same radiation and land surface models used in our LES are implemented in the MXL model [Heus et al, 2010;van Heerwaarden et al, 2010]. The MXL model used here is an extension of that described by van Heerwaarden et al [2010] and Barbaro et al [2013], with the inclusion of the DE model for the SW radiation calculations. The simplified CBL dynamics in the MXL model assumes a well-mixed CBL with constant vertical profiles of the state variables.…”

Section: 1002/2013jd021237mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Similar to Angevine et al [1998] and Barbaro et al [2013] we calculate the two contributions of the heat budget: (i) potential temperature turbulent vertical flux divergence (- and (ii) aerosol heating rate (…”

Section: Aerosol Effects On the Surface Fluxes And Aerosol Heating Ratementioning

confidence: 99%

“…Depending on the aerosol characteristics [Liu and Ou, 1990;Wang et al, 2009], chemical composition [Yu and Zhang, 2011], and vertical distribution [Knapp et al, 2002;Raut and Chazette, 2008;Sakaeda et al, 2011], their effects on the surface radiation/energy budgets range from negligible to very significant [see also Kaufman et al, 2002;Matthias and Bosenberg, 2002;Forster et al, 2007;Arneth et al, 2010;Costabile et al, 2013]. More specifically, aerosols modify the convective boundary layer (CBL) dynamics changing its depth, vertical structure, and entrainment zone characteristics [Ackerman, 1977;Venkatram and Viskanta, 1977;Zhang et al, 2010;Barbaro et al, 2013].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Aerosols in the convective boundary layer: Shortwave radiation effects on the coupled land‐atmosphere system

et al. 2014

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

By combining observations and numerical simulations, we investigated the responses of the surface energy budget and the convective boundary layer (CBL) dynamics to the presence of aerosols. A detailed data set containing (thermo)dynamic observations at CESAR (Cabauw Experimental Site for Atmospheric Research) and aerosol information from the European Integrated Project on Aerosol, Cloud, Climate, and Air Quality Interactions was employed to design numerical experiments reproducing two typical clear-sky days, each characterized by contrasting thermodynamic initial profiles: (i) residual layer above a strong surface inversion and (ii) well-mixed CBL connected to the free troposphere by a capping inversion, without the residual layer in between. A large-eddy simulation (LES) model and a mixed-layer (MXL) model, coupled to a broadband radiative transfer code and a land surface model, were used to study the impacts of aerosols on shortwave radiation. Both the LES model and the MXL model results reproduced satisfactorily the observations for both days. A sensitivity analysis on a wide range of aerosol properties was conducted. Our results showed that higher loads of aerosols decreased irradiance imposing an energy restriction at the surface, delaying the morning onset of the CBL and advancing its afternoon collapse. Moderately to strongly absorbing aerosols increased the heating rate contributing positively to increase the afternoon CBL height and potential temperature and to decrease Bowen ratio. In contrast, scattering aerosols were associated with smaller heating rates and cooler and shallower CBLs. Our findings advocate the need for accounting for the aerosol influence in analyzing surface and CBL dynamics.

show abstract

“…As an example, the studies on the atmospheric transport and diffusion of pollutants [1,2], mountain-valley and land-sea breezes [3], turbulence and wind regime [4] and parameters of climate models and general circulation [5] can benefit from the knowledge improvements about ABL.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Daily Cycle of the Atmospheric Boundary Layer Heights over Pasture Site in Amazonia

Neves¹,

Fisch²

2015

ajee

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

A better descriptions of the atmospheric boundary layer (ABL) properties in Amazonia, such as its time evolution is necessary, especially for studies involving weather forecast and climatic simulation. The objective of this work was integrate and comparing data of the ABL characteristics made by different techniques in RaCCI/LBA experiment, held in southwestern Amazonia pasture site during the dry-to-wet seasons of 2002. For daytime it was possible to observe that there is an abrupt growth of the Convective Boundary Layer (CBL) between 08 and 11 Local Time (LT) with a stationary pattern between 14 and 17 LT. The maximum heights at late afternoon were around 1500 m. The onset of the Nocturnal Boundary Layer (NBL) occurs before the sunset (18 LT) and its height is very stable during the whole night (typical values around 180-250 m). The erosion of the NBL lasts for 2 hours and it is complete at 08 LT.

show abstract

Impacts of Aerosol Shortwave Radiation Absorption on the Dynamics of an Idealized Convective Atmospheric Boundary Layer

Cited by 66 publications

References 50 publications

MAX-DOAS observations of aerosols, formaldehyde and nitrogen dioxide in the Beijing area: comparison of two profile retrieval approaches

MAX-DOAS observations of aerosols, formaldehyde and nitrogen dioxide in the Beijing area: comparison of two profile retrieval approaches

Aerosols in the convective boundary layer: Shortwave radiation effects on the coupled land‐atmosphere system

The Daily Cycle of the Atmospheric Boundary Layer Heights over Pasture Site in Amazonia

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About