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Remote Sensing of Cloud and Aerosol Effects on Solar Radiation

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A special issue of Remote Sensing (ISSN 2072-4292). This special issue belongs to the section "Atmospheric Remote Sensing".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 June 2021) | Viewed by 9775

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Prof. Dr. Maria João Costa

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Guest Editor

Institute of Earth Sciences (ICT), Institute of Research and Advanced Training, University of Évora, 7000-671 Évora, Portugal
Interests: aerosol and cloud physics; solar radiation; atmospheric radiative transfer; atmospheric remote sensing
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Prof. Dr. Michaël Sicard

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Guest Editor

CommSensLab, Dept. of Signal Theory and Communications, Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya, 08034 Barcelona, Spain
Interests: optical remote sensing; remote sensing; lidar; optics; aerosols; mineral dust; pollen; aerosol-cloud interactions; radiative forcing; shortwave; longwave; satellite sensors; transport modeling
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Clouds and aerosols constitute the main modulators of solar radiation in the atmosphere through scattering and absorption processes. Since the first assessment of the impact of clouds and aerosols on climate (in the early nineties), these atmospheric constituents continue to contribute with great uncertainty to the estimates and interpretations of the Earth's energy balance. Specifically, aerosols through their interactions with radiation and with clouds dominate the uncertainty associated with the total anthropogenic radiative effects (radiative forcing). On the one hand, a better understanding of climate change requires an assessment of the radiative effects of clouds and aerosols and a reduction in the degree of uncertainty associated with them. On the other hand, the quantification and understanding of these processes may benefit other research fields as well, like solar energy harnessing. For these reasons, it is considered very pertinent and timely to bring together contributions on this topic in the context of a Special Issue.

This Special Issue welcomes contributions dealing with all aspects of the effects of clouds, aerosols, or aerosol-cloud interactions on solar radiation (at all atmospheric levels; broadband or in a special spectral band of interest from the UV to the near IR), focusing on passive and or active remote sensing from satellite, airborne or ground-based instrumentation. Combination of remote sensing with in situ data and modelling approaches are also encouraged

Prof. Dr. Maria João Costa
Prof. Michaël Sicard
Guest Editors

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Keywords

Remote sensing
Radiative forcing
Aerosols
Clouds
Aerosol-cloud interactions
Solar radiation

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20 pages, 5467 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Global Spatial and Temporal Variation of the Combined Effect of Aerosol and Water Vapour on Solar Radiation

by María Ángeles Obregón, Antonio Serrano, Maria João Costa and Ana Maria Silva

Remote Sens. 2021, 13(4), 708; https://doi.org/10.3390/rs13040708 - 15 Feb 2021

Cited by 10 | Viewed by 3532

Abstract

This study aims to calculate the combined and individual effects of the optical thickness of aerosols (AOT) and precipitable water vapour (PWV) on the solar radiation reaching the Earth’s surface at a global scale and to analyse its spatial and temporal variation. For that purpose, a novel but validated methodology is applied to CERES SYN1deg products for the period 2000–2019. Spatial distributions of AOT and PWV effects, both individually and combined, show a close link with the spatial distributions of AOT and PWV. The spatially averaged combined effect results in a −13.9% reduction in irradiance, while the average AOT effect is −2.3%, and the PWV effect is −12.1%. The temporal analysis focuses on detecting trends in the anomalies. The results show overall positive trends for AOT and PWV. Consequently, significant negative overall trends are found for the effects. However, significant positive trends for the individual AOT and the combined AOT-PWV effects are found in specific regions, such as the eastern United States, Europe or Asia, indicating successful emission control policies in these areas. This study contributes to a better understanding of the individual and combined effects of aerosols and water vapour on solar radiation at a global scale. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Remote Sensing of Cloud and Aerosol Effects on Solar Radiation)

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14 pages, 4461 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Solar Radiation Climatology in Camagüey, Cuba (1981–2016)

by Juan Carlos Antuña-Sánchez, René Estevan, Roberto Román, Juan Carlos Antuña-Marrero, Victoria E. Cachorro, Albeth Rodríguez Vega and Ángel M. de Frutos

Remote Sens. 2021, 13(2), 169; https://doi.org/10.3390/rs13020169 - 6 Jan 2021

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2193

Abstract

The transition to renewable energies is an unavoidable step to guarantee a peaceful and sustainable future for humankind. Although solar radiation is one of the main sources of renewable energy, there are broad regions of the planet where it has not been characterized appropriately to provide the necessary information for regional and local planning and design of the different solar powered systems. The Caribbean, and Cuba in particular, lacked until very recently at least one long-term series of surface solar radiation measurements. Here we present the first long-term records of solar radiation for this region. Solar radiation measurements manually conducted and recorded on paper were rescued, reprocessed and quality controlled to develop the solar radiation climatology at the Actinometrical Station of Camagüey, in Cuba (21.422

^{°}

N; 77.850

^{°}

W; 122 m a.s.l.) for the period 1981–2016. The diurnal cycle based on the average hourly values of the global, direct and diffuse horizontal variables for the entire period have been determined and analyzed showing the dependence on solar zenith angle (SZA) and clouds. The annual cycle of global solar component given by the mean monthly daily values presents two maxima, one in April and another one in July with values of 5.06 and 4.91 kWh m

^{- 2}

, respectively (18.23 and 17.67 MJ m

^{- 2}

per day for insolation), and the minimum in December (3.15 kWh m

^{- 2}

or 11.33 MJ m

^{- 2}

). The maxima are governed by the direct solar components and are modulated by cloudiness. Both, diurnal and annual cycles of the diffuse solar component show a smoothed bell shaped behavior. In general solar radiation at this station presents a strong influence of clouds, with little seasonal variation but with higher values during the rainy season. Daily global radiation annual averages showed its maximum value in the year 1983, with 17.45 MJ m

^{- 2}

explained by very low cloudiness this year, and the minimum value was reported in 2009 with a value of 12.43 MJ m

^{- 2}

that could not explained by the cloud coverage or the aerosols optical depths registered that year. The effects of the 1982 El Chichón and 1991 Mount Pinatubo volcanic eruptions on the solar radiation variables at Camagüey are also shown and discussed. The results achieved in this study shown the characteristics of solar radiation in this area and their potential for solar power applications. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Remote Sensing of Cloud and Aerosol Effects on Solar Radiation)

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13 pages, 5403 KiB

Open AccessTechnical Note

Investigating Wintertime Cloud Microphysical Properties and Their Relationship to Air Mass Advection at Ny-Ålesund, Svalbard Using the Synergy of a Cloud Radar–Ceilometer–Microwave Radiometer

by Yeonsoo Cho, Sang-Jong Park, Joo-Hong Kim, Huidong Yeo, Jihyun Nam, Sang-Yoon Jun, Baek-Min Kim and Sang-Woo Kim

Remote Sens. 2021, 13(13), 2529; https://doi.org/10.3390/rs13132529 - 28 Jun 2021

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 2757

Abstract

This study investigates the relationship of cloud properties and radiative effects with air mass origin during the winter (November–February, 2016–2020) at Ny-Ålesund, Svalbard, through a combination of cloud radar, ceilometer, and microwave radiometer measurements. The liquid cloud fraction (CF) was less than 2%, whereas the ice CF predominantly exceeded 10% below 6 km. The liquid water content (LWC) of mixed-phase clouds (LWC_mix), which predominantly exist in the boundary layer (CF_mix: 10–30%), was approximately four times higher than that of liquid clouds (LWC_liq). Warm air mass advection (warm_adv) cases were closely linked with strong southerly/southwesterly winds, whereas northerly winds brought cold and dry air masses (cold_adv) to the study area. Elevated values of LWC and ice water content (IWC) during warm_adv cases can be explained by the presence of mixed-phase clouds in the boundary layer and ice clouds in the middle troposphere. Consistently, the r_e of ice particles in warm_adv cases was approximately 5–10 μm larger than that in cold_adv cases at all altitudes. A high CF and cloud water content in warm_adv cases contributed to a 33% (69 W m⁻²) increase in downward longwave (LW) fluxes compared to cloud-free conditions. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Remote Sensing of Cloud and Aerosol Effects on Solar Radiation)

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