Remote Sensing of Aerosol Optical Depth in a global surface network

Atmospheric aerosols provide, through their direct and indirect effects, a predominantly negative or cooling contribution to the global radiation budget. Their integral optical activity is summarized in the aerosol optical depth (AOD) that can be derived from measurements of transmitted sunlight. In the early nineties, the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) deemed the quality of their long-time AOD observations insufficient for climate studies. A World Optical depth Research and Calibration Center (WORCC) was established at Davos in 1996 and given the task by WMO to develop stable instrumentation and improved methods of calibration and observation of AOD. These new developments should be demonstrated in a global pilot network. The present thesis gives an account of the research and development work performed during implementation of these tasks. After introducing the role of aerosols in climate change and the difficulties in their characterization, a personal review of the history of turbidity or AOD measurements is given. Algorithms for AOD, methods of calibration, and the construction of a Precision Filter Radiometer (PFR) are discussed. The world-wide AOD network of PFR instruments is presented. First results of AOD measurements at network stations are given as time series and climatological values.

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