Taklimakan dust aerosol radiative heating derived from CALIPSO observations using the Fu-Liou radiation model with CERES constraints

Abstract

Abstract. The dust aerosol radiative forcing and heating rate over the Taklimakan Desert in northwestern China in July 2006 are estimated using the Fu-Liou radiative transfer model along with satellite observations. The vertical distributions of the dust aerosol extinction coefficient are derived from the CALIPSO (Cloud-Aerosol Lidar and Infrared Pathfinder Satellite Observations) lidar measurements. The CERES (Cloud and the Earth's Energy Budget Scanner) measurements of reflected solar radiation are used to constrain the dust aerosol type in the radiative transfer model, which determines the dust aerosol single-scattering albedo and asymmetry factor as well as the aerosol optical properties spectral dependencies. We find that the dust aerosol radiative heating and effect have a significant impact on the energy budget over the Taklimakan desert. In the atmospheres containing light, moderate and heavy dust layers, the dust aerosols heat the atmosphere by up to 1, 2, and 3 K day−1, respectively. The maximum daily mean radiative heating rate reaches 5.5 K day−1 at 5 km on 29 July. The averaged daily mean net radiative effect of the dust are 44.4, −41.9, and 86.3 W m−2, respectively, at the top of the atmosphere (TOA), surface, and in the atmosphere. Among these effects about two thirds of the warming effect at the TOA is related to the longwave radiation, while about 90% of the atmospheric warming is contributed by the solar radiation. At the surface, about one third of the dust solar radiative cooling effect is compensated by its longwave warming effect. The large modifications of radiative energy budget by the dust aerosols over Taklimakan Desert should have important implications for the atmospheric circulation and regional climate, topics for future investigations.

Thirteen Years of Aerosol Radiative Forcing in Southwestern Iberian Peninsula

“…This tendency of cooling the Earth-atmosphere system due to the effect of desert dust aerosols agrees with results reported for other regions (e.g., Costa et al, 2006;Derimian et al, 2006; th and 75 th percentiles (top/bottom box limits) and data within 1.5 times the interquartile range (whiskers) are shown. Lyamani et al, 2006;Cachorro et al, 2008;GuerreroRascado et al, 2009;Huang et al, 2009;García et al, 2012;Santos et al, 2013;Valenzuela et al, 2012;Obregón et al, 2015a).…”

Lidar Measurements of the Vertical Distribution of Aerosol Optical and Physical Properties over Central Asia

“…Due to the lack of extensive data on aerosol vertical profiles, there are large uncertainties in forecasting atmospheric radiative forcing due to differences in the vertical profiles of the atmospheric aerosol as applied in models. The ability to retrieve information on the spatial structure of aerosols by ground-based remote multiwavelength laser sensing allows for not only the identification of particle layers aloft but also the ability to study transport processes and to lower uncertainty in estimates of radiative forcing that are sensitive to the vertical distribution of aerosols [3]. There is also value in studying the vertical structure of particles in locations close to major dust emissions sources [4].…”

Investigation of Aerosol Optical Depth (AOD) and Ångström Exponent over the Desert Region of Northwestern China Based on Measurements from the China Aerosol Remote Sensing Network (CARSNET)

“…Among the ten sites, Tazhong and Hotan are located in the Taklamakan Desert, one of the largest sand deserts in the world. The desert covers an area of 270,000 km 2 , and includes of the Tarim Basin, which is 1000 km long and 400 km wide (Huang et al, 2009). It is regarded as one of the largest sources of Asian Aeolian dust aerosol (Mikami et al, 2006).…”

“…Cheng et al (2006) indicated that high AOD corresponded to dust event occurrence, while the Ångström exponent decreased with increasing AOD to zero or negative values, when very dusty events occurred in the Hunshan Dake desert. Huang et al (2009) determined that both shortwave and longwave radiative forcing of dust aerosols played an important role in the radiative energy budget, at both the top of the atmosphere and the surface. Xia and Zong (2009) demonstrated that Earth's system was cooled in the shortwave but warmed in the longwave by Taklamakan dust aerosols.…”