Measurements of atmospheric aerosols and assessment of atmospheric affects on satellite remote sensing

The characteristics of the atmospheric aerosols can be determined with different techniques. The new aureolemeter Finetec model Pom-01 and the related software are described. Combined experiments on the aerosol properties of the western Mediterranean Sea were carried out in May and June 1994, in Southern Sardinia. The optical properties of the aerosols, such as the size distribution, the optical thickness, and the single scattering phase function, are presented. The aerosols detected in this region clearly present a trimodal volume spectrum, which consists of the typical maritime mode, i.e., background plus sea salt, and possibly coarse particles of anthropogenic origin. An attempt is made to develop an algorithm for the retrieval of the aerosol optical thickness from the AVHRR-2 data.