Intercomparison of biomass burning aerosol optical properties from in situ and remote-sensing instruments in ORACLES-2016

• Published in: Atmospheric chemistry and physics Vol. 19; no. 14; pp. 9181 - 9208
• Main Authors: Pistone, Kristina, Redemann, Jens, Doherty, Sarah, Zuidema, Paquita, Burton, Sharon, Cairns, Brian, Cochrane, Sabrina, Ferrare, Richard, Flynn, Connor, Freitag, Steffen, Howell, Steven G, Kacenelenbogen, MeloÃ, LeBlanc, Samuel, Liu, Xu, Schmidt, K. Sebastian, Sedlacek III, Arthur J, Segal-Rozenhaimer, Michal, Shinozuka, Yohei, Stamnes, Snorre, van Diedenhoven, Bastiaan, Van Harten, Gerard, Xu, Feng
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Katlenburg-Lindau Copernicus GmbH 18-07-2019; European Geosciences Union; Copernicus Publications
• Subjects: Absorption; Aerosol absorption; Aerosol effects; Aerosol optical depth; Aerosol optical properties; Aerosol properties; Aerosol-cloud interactions; Aerosols; Albedo; Anthropogenic factors; Biomass; Biomass burning; Burning; Case studies; Cloud properties; Clouds; Clouds (Meteorology); Decks; Deployment; In situ measurement; INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CHEMISTRY; Instruments; Instruments (Equipment); Intercomparison; Measurement; Measurement techniques; Measuring instruments; Oceans; Optical analysis; Optical properties; Optical thickness; Plumes; Radiation; Radiation (Physics); Radiative forcing; Remote sensing; Scattering; Smoke; Smoke plumes; Stratocumulus clouds; Troposphere; Uncertainty
• ISSN: 1680-7324; 1680-7316; 1680-7324
• DOI: 10.5194/acp-19-9181-2019

The total effect of aerosols, both directly and on cloud properties, remains the biggest source of uncertainty in anthropogenic radiative forcing on the climate. Correct characterization of intensive aerosol optical properties, particularly in conditions where absorbing aerosol is present, is a crucial factor in quantifying these effects. The southeast Atlantic Ocean (SEA), with seasonal biomass burning smoke plumes overlying and mixing with a persistent stratocumulus cloud deck, offers an excellent natural laboratory to make the observations necessary to understand the complexities of aerosol-cloud-radiation interactions. The first field deployment of the NASA ORACLES (ObseRvations of Aerosols above CLouds and their intEractionS) campaign was conducted in September of 2016 out of Walvis Bay, Namibia.