European pollution outbreaks during ACE 2 : Optical particle properties inferred from multiwavelength lidar and star-Sun photometry

Abstract

[1] On the basis of multiwavelength backscatter and 532-nm extinction profiling with lidar at Sagres (37degreesN, 9degreesW), southern Portugal, and optical depth observations with a star photometer at the lidar site and a Sun photometer atop a nearby mountain, several European pollution outbreaks were characterized during the Second Aerosol Characterization Experiment (ACE 2) in the summer of 1997. A sophisticated analysis scheme applied to the lidar-photometer data set is described. The observations are mainly presented in terms of profiles of the 532-nm extinction-to-backscatter ratio (lidar ratio) and of Angstrom exponents calculated for the wavelength ranges 400-532 nm and 532-800 nm. The lidar ratio indicates the aerosol type (marine, soil, pollution) whereas the Angstrom exponents are sensitive to changes in the particle size distribution (accumulation mode, coarse mode). Results of an extensive correlation analysis considering all determined optical parameters, relative humidity, and measurement height are discussed. Finally, the spectrally resolved optical depth and the column Angstrom exponents for the lofted outbreak plumes determined from the lidar profiles are compared with respective values derived from the star and Sun photometer measurements.