Workshop Location
University of Puerto Rico Mayagüez Campus
Chemistry Department
Science on Wheels Educational Center
Mayagüez Puerto Rico 00680
Photo Gallery
View photos of the workshop.
Presentations
Download Ed Celarier's Presentions
Download Olga Kalashnikova's Presentation
- NASA Satellite Observations: Aerosol Characterization (ZIP: 21.73 MB) This download includes the presentation PPT and four movies.
Download the LIDAR at ARECIBO Presentation (ZIP)
PBL Presentations and Rubric
These items are generously shared by Gloria Faus.
AIM/SOFIE PBL (PPT)
by Gloria Faus and Dr. Scott Bailey
The following link shows the animation modeling the effect of aerosols on climate:
http://alfredo.trandafi.com/files/PBL_AerosolVsAlbedo.swf
To see the entire presentation about PBLs, the student solutions and the PBL rubric for evaluating presentations, download this ZIP file.
Entire PBL Powerpoint, student PBL solution, and rubric (ZIP)
PBL Overview (PPT)
Please note that one link inside this PPT will not work unless you download the ZIP file above.
Agenda
Download the workshop agenda in PDF format.
View and print the workshop agenda below:
Workshop Abstract
How NASA satellite observations help scientists to determine aerosol effects on Earth’s radiative balance.
Olga Kalashnikova
JPL/California Institute of Technology
Atmospheric aerosol particles have significant effects on the climate and the environment, and despite notable advances in scientific research, remain the dominant factor in the uncertainty of radiative forcing. In particular, wind-blown dust radiative effects remain poorly quantified in both magnitude and sign. Observational evidence suggests that mineral dust significantly modify the radiative balance regionally, with differences as large as 60 W/m2 during events. Unlike other aerosol types, mineral aerosols can interact with the long wave or planetary radiation, causing significant perturbations in the long wave radiation and atmospheric heating rates. Dust particles transported over the ocean affect marine biochemistry by depositing iron in the ocean, play a role in neutralizing acid rain, affect the life cycle of coral reefs, and influence sea surface temperatures that affect hurricane formation and intensity. In addition, any changes in atmospheric dust aerosol loading, would cause a change in the radiation balance and consequentially, surface temperatures.
An important current issue in understanding the dust climate effects is the quantification of its spatial and temporal variability on scales of tens to thousands of kilometers. Current estimates of uncertainty in dust deposition vary by order of magnitude in some regions due to high spatial and temporal variability of the field itself, and limited availability of ground-based observations.
The latest NASA satellite data from instruments operating in the UV, visible and near-infrared, and thermal infrared make it possible to obtain a great deal of additional information about dust emission and intercontinental transport. For example, the AIRS brightness temperature difference mask can be used to map dust plume locations and transport. MODIS routinely reports aerosol products, while MISR’s instantaneous observations capture dust plumes during several stages of their evolution. As these plumes cross the ocean, MISR’s multi-angle retrieval compliments MODIS’s nadir-only observations in glint areas, and through sampling of side-scattered light makes it possible to distinguish dust from spherical aerosol components. The MISR Research Retrieval algorithm produces aerosol properties on selected spatial areas of arbitrary size, and can be used for detailed dust case studies. CALIOP lidar (on CALIPSO) data provide dust plume vertical distribution information, help validate the AIRS dust mask, and, through its design, compliments MODISAqua in regions that would have otherwise been masked by sun glint. OMI near-UV aerosol retrievals are accurate for arid environments when the effect of cloud contamination is not significant and therefore contribute to dust source mapping and emission studies over land.
We will present an extensive overview of current NASA satellite missions, specifically designed for aerosol observations, and will demonstrate how next-generation satellite data contribute to scientific understanding of dust climate effects.