Articles | Volume 19, issue 5
https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-19-1801-2026
© Author(s) 2026. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-19-1801-2026
© Author(s) 2026. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Research article
| 
12 Mar 2026
Research article |
| 12 Mar 2026
| 12 Mar 2026
Enhanced characterization of SO2 plume height and column density using the second UV spectral band of TROPOMI
Lorenzo Fabris
CORRESPONDING AUTHOR
UV–VIS observations, Royal Belgian Institute for Space Aeronomy (BIRA-IASB), Brussels, Belgium
Spectroscopy, Quantum Chemistry and Atmospheric Remote Sensing (SQUARES), Brussels Laboratory of the Universe (BLU-ULB), Université Libre de Bruxelles (ULB), Brussels, Belgium
Nicolas Theys
UV–VIS observations, Royal Belgian Institute for Space Aeronomy (BIRA-IASB), Brussels, Belgium
Lieven Clarisse
Spectroscopy, Quantum Chemistry and Atmospheric Remote Sensing (SQUARES), Brussels Laboratory of the Universe (BLU-ULB), Université Libre de Bruxelles (ULB), Brussels, Belgium
Bruno Franco
Spectroscopy, Quantum Chemistry and Atmospheric Remote Sensing (SQUARES), Brussels Laboratory of the Universe (BLU-ULB), Université Libre de Bruxelles (ULB), Brussels, Belgium
Jonas Vlietinck
UV–VIS observations, Royal Belgian Institute for Space Aeronomy (BIRA-IASB), Brussels, Belgium
Huan Yu
UV–VIS observations, Royal Belgian Institute for Space Aeronomy (BIRA-IASB), Brussels, Belgium
Hugues Brenot
UV–VIS observations, Royal Belgian Institute for Space Aeronomy (BIRA-IASB), Brussels, Belgium
Thomas Danckaert
UV–VIS observations, Royal Belgian Institute for Space Aeronomy (BIRA-IASB), Brussels, Belgium
Pascal Hedelt
Institut für Methodik der Fernerkundung (IMF), Deutsches Zentrum für Luft und Raumfahrt (DLR), Oberpfaffenhofen, Germany
Michel Van Roozendael
UV–VIS observations, Royal Belgian Institute for Space Aeronomy (BIRA-IASB), Brussels, Belgium
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Jan-Lukas Tirpitz, Santo Fedele Colosimo, Nathaniel Brockway, Robert Spurr, Matt Christi, Samuel Hall, Kirk Ullmann, Johnathan Hair, Taylor Shingler, Rodney Weber, Jack Dibb, Richard Moore, Elizabeth Wiggins, Vijay Natraj, Nicolas Theys, and Jochen Stutz
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 25, 1989–2015, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-25-1989-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-25-1989-2025, 2025
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Yutao Chen, Ronald J. van der A, Jieying Ding, Henk Eskes, Jason E. Williams, Nicolas Theys, Athanasios Tsikerdekis, and Pieternel F. Levelt
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 25, 1851–1868, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-25-1851-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-25-1851-2025, 2025
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Pascal Hedelt, Jens Reichardt, Felix Lauermann, Benjamin Weiß, Nicolas Theys, Alberto Redondas, Africa Barreto, Omaira Garcia, and Diego Loyola
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 25, 1253–1272, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-25-1253-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-25-1253-2025, 2025
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The 2021 volcanic eruption of Tajogaite on La Palma is investigated using ground-based and satellite measurements. In addition, the atmospheric transport of the volcanic cloud towards Europe is studied in detail. The amount of SO2 released during the eruption and the height of the volcanic plume are in excellent agreement among the different measurements. Furthermore, volcanic aerosol microphysical properties could be retrieved using a new retrieval approach based on lidar measurements.
Eunjo S. Ha, Rokjin J. Park, Hyeong-Ahn Kwon, Gitaek T. Lee, Sieun D. Lee, Seunga Shin, Dong-Won Lee, Hyunkee Hong, Christophe Lerot, Isabelle De Smedt, Thomas Danckaert, Francois Hendrick, and Hitoshi Irie
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 17, 6369–6384, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-17-6369-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-17-6369-2024, 2024
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In this study, we evaluated the GEMS glyoxal products by comparing them with TROPOMI and MAX-DOAS measurements. GEMS and TROPOMI VCDs present similar spatial distributions. Monthly variations in GEMS VCDs and TROPOMI and MAX-DOAS VCDs differ in northeastern Asia, which we attributed to a polluted reference spectrum and high NO2 concentrations. GEMS glyoxal products with unparalleled temporal resolution would enrich our understanding of VOC emissions and diurnal variation.
Athina Argyrouli, Diego Loyola, Fabian Romahn, Ronny Lutz, Víctor Molina García, Pascal Hedelt, Klaus-Peter Heue, and Richard Siddans
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 17, 6345–6367, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-17-6345-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-17-6345-2024, 2024
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This paper describes a new treatment of the spatial misregistration of cloud properties for Sentinel-5 Precursor, when the footprints of different spectral bands are not perfectly aligned. The methodology exploits synergies between spectrometers and imagers, like TROPOMI and VIIRS. The largest improvements have been identified for heterogeneous scenes at cloud edges. This approach is generic and can also be applied to future Sentinel-4 and Sentinel-5 instruments.
Kezia Lange, Andreas Richter, Tim Bösch, Bianca Zilker, Miriam Latsch, Lisa K. Behrens, Chisom M. Okafor, Hartmut Bösch, John P. Burrows, Alexis Merlaud, Gaia Pinardi, Caroline Fayt, Martina M. Friedrich, Ermioni Dimitropoulou, Michel Van Roozendael, Steffen Ziegler, Simona Ripperger-Lukosiunaite, Leon Kuhn, Bianca Lauster, Thomas Wagner, Hyunkee Hong, Donghee Kim, Lim-Seok Chang, Kangho Bae, Chang-Keun Song, Jong-Uk Park, and Hanlim Lee
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 17, 6315–6344, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-17-6315-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-17-6315-2024, 2024
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Instruments for air quality observations on geostationary satellites provide multiple observations per day and allow for the analysis of the diurnal variation of important air pollutants such as nitrogen dioxide (NO2) over large areas. The South Korean instrument GEMS, launched in February 2020, is the first instrument in geostationary orbit and covers a large part of Asia. Our investigations show the observed diurnal evolution of NO2 at different measurement sites.
Sora Seo, Pieter Valks, Ronny Lutz, Klaus-Peter Heue, Pascal Hedelt, Víctor Molina García, Diego Loyola, Hanlim Lee, and Jhoon Kim
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 17, 6163–6191, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-17-6163-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-17-6163-2024, 2024
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In this study, we developed an advanced retrieval algorithm for tropospheric NO2 columns from geostationary satellite spectrometers and applied it to GEMS measurements. The DLR GEMS NO2 retrieval algorithm follows the heritage from previous and existing algorithms, but improved approaches are applied to reflect the specific features of geostationary satellites. The DLR GEMS NO2 retrievals demonstrate a good capability for monitoring diurnal variability with a high spatial resolution.
Theodore K. Koenig, François Hendrick, Douglas Kinnison, Christopher F. Lee, Michel Van Roozendael, and Rainer Volkamer
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 17, 5911–5934, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-17-5911-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-17-5911-2024, 2024
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Atmospheric bromine destroys ozone, impacts oxidation capacity, and oxidizes mercury into its toxic form. We constrain bromine by remote sensing of BrO from a mountaintop. Previous measurements retrieved two to three pieces of information vertically; we apply new methods to get five and a half vertically and two more in time. We compare with aircraft measurements to validate the methods and look at variations in BrO over the Pacific.
Monica Crippa, Diego Guizzardi, Federico Pagani, Marcello Schiavina, Michele Melchiorri, Enrico Pisoni, Francesco Graziosi, Marilena Muntean, Joachim Maes, Lewis Dijkstra, Martin Van Damme, Lieven Clarisse, and Pierre Coheur
Earth Syst. Sci. Data, 16, 2811–2830, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-16-2811-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-16-2811-2024, 2024
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Knowing where emissions occur is essential for planning effective emission reduction measures and atmospheric modelling. Disaggregating national emissions over high-resolution grids requires spatial proxies that contain information on the location of different emission sources. This work incorporates state-of-the-art spatial information to improve the spatial representation of global emissions with the Emissions Database for Global Atmospheric Research (EDGAR).
Jean-Paul Vernier, Thomas J. Aubry, Claudia Timmreck, Anja Schmidt, Lieven Clarisse, Fred Prata, Nicolas Theys, Andrew T. Prata, Graham Mann, Hyundeok Choi, Simon Carn, Richard Rigby, Susan C. Loughlin, and John A. Stevenson
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 24, 5765–5782, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-5765-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-5765-2024, 2024
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The 2019 Raikoke eruption (Kamchatka, Russia) generated one of the largest emissions of particles and gases into the stratosphere since the 1991 Mt. Pinatubo eruption. The Volcano Response (VolRes) initiative, an international effort, provided a platform for the community to share information about this eruption and assess its climate impact. The eruption led to a minor global surface cooling of 0.02 °C in 2020 which is negligible relative to warming induced by human greenhouse gas emissions.
Bruno Franco, Lieven Clarisse, Nicolas Theys, Juliette Hadji-Lazaro, Cathy Clerbaux, and Pierre Coheur
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 24, 4973–5007, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-4973-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-4973-2024, 2024
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Using IASI global infrared measurements, we retrieve nitrous acid (HONO) in fire plumes from space. We detect large enhancements of pyrogenic HONO worldwide, especially from intense wildfires at Northern Hemisphere mid- and high latitudes. Predominance of IASI nighttime over daytime measurements sheds light on HONO's extended lifetime and secondary formation during long-range transport in smoke plumes. Our findings deepen the understanding of atmospheric HONO, crucial for air quality assessment.
Gitaek T. Lee, Rokjin J. Park, Hyeong-Ahn Kwon, Eunjo S. Ha, Sieun D. Lee, Seunga Shin, Myoung-Hwan Ahn, Mina Kang, Yong-Sang Choi, Gyuyeon Kim, Dong-Won Lee, Deok-Rae Kim, Hyunkee Hong, Bavo Langerock, Corinne Vigouroux, Christophe Lerot, Francois Hendrick, Gaia Pinardi, Isabelle De Smedt, Michel Van Roozendael, Pucai Wang, Heesung Chong, Yeseul Cho, and Jhoon Kim
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 24, 4733–4749, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-4733-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-4733-2024, 2024
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This study evaluates the Geostationary Environment Monitoring Spectrometer (GEMS) HCHO product by comparing its vertical column densities (VCDs) with those of TROPOMI and ground-based observations. Based on some sensitivity tests, obtaining radiance references under clear-sky conditions significantly improves HCHO retrieval quality. GEMS HCHO VCDs captured seasonal and diurnal variations well during the first year of observation, showing consistency with TROPOMI and ground-based observations.
Glenn-Michael Oomen, Jean-François Müller, Trissevgeni Stavrakou, Isabelle De Smedt, Thomas Blumenstock, Rigel Kivi, Maria Makarova, Mathias Palm, Amelie Röhling, Yao Té, Corinne Vigouroux, Martina M. Friedrich, Udo Frieß, François Hendrick, Alexis Merlaud, Ankie Piters, Andreas Richter, Michel Van Roozendael, and Thomas Wagner
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 24, 449–474, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-449-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-449-2024, 2024
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Natural emissions from vegetation have a profound impact on air quality for their role in the formation of harmful tropospheric ozone and organic aerosols, yet these emissions are highly uncertain. In this study, we quantify emissions of organic gases over Europe using high-quality satellite measurements of formaldehyde. These satellite observations suggest that emissions from vegetation are much higher than predicted by models, especially in southern Europe.
Andrea Pazmiño, Florence Goutail, Sophie Godin-Beekmann, Alain Hauchecorne, Jean-Pierre Pommereau, Martyn P. Chipperfield, Wuhu Feng, Franck Lefèvre, Audrey Lecouffe, Michel Van Roozendael, Nis Jepsen, Georg Hansen, Rigel Kivi, Kimberly Strong, and Kaley A. Walker
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 23, 15655–15670, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-23-15655-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-23-15655-2023, 2023
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The vortex-averaged ozone loss over the last 3 decades is evaluated for both polar regions using the passive ozone tracer of the chemical transport model TOMCAT/SLIMCAT and total ozone observations from the SAOZ network and MSR2 reanalysis. Three metrics were developed to compute ozone trends since 2000. The study confirms the ozone recovery in the Antarctic and shows a potential sign of quantitative detection of ozone recovery in the Arctic that needs to be robustly confirmed in the future.
Camille Viatte, Nadir Guendouz, Clarisse Dufaux, Arjan Hensen, Daan Swart, Martin Van Damme, Lieven Clarisse, Pierre Coheur, and Cathy Clerbaux
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 23, 15253–15267, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-23-15253-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-23-15253-2023, 2023
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Ammonia (NH3) is an important air pollutant which, as a precursor of fine particulate matter, raises public health concerns. Models have difficulty predicting events of pollution associated with NH3 since ground-based observations of this gas are still relatively sparse and difficult to implement. We present the first relatively long (2.5 years) and continuous record of hourly NH3 concentrations in Paris to determine its temporal variabilities at different scales to unravel emission sources.
Vitali E. Fioletov, Chris A. McLinden, Debora Griffin, Nickolay A. Krotkov, Can Li, Joanna Joiner, Nicolas Theys, and Simon Carn
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 16, 5575–5592, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-5575-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-5575-2023, 2023
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Snow-covered terrain, with its high reflectance in the UV, typically enhances satellite sensitivity to boundary layer pollution. However, a significant fraction of high-quality cloud-free measurements over snow is currently excluded from analyses. In this study, we investigated how satellite SO2 measurements over snow-covered surfaces can be used to improve estimations of annual SO2 emissions.
Rodriguez Yombo Phaka, Alexis Merlaud, Gaia Pinardi, Martina M. Friedrich, Michel Van Roozendael, Jean-François Müller, Trissevgeni Stavrakou, Isabelle De Smedt, François Hendrick, Ermioni Dimitropoulou, Richard Bopili Mbotia Lepiba, Edmond Phuku Phuati, Buenimio Lomami Djibi, Lars Jacobs, Caroline Fayt, Jean-Pierre Mbungu Tsumbu, and Emmanuel Mahieu
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 16, 5029–5050, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-5029-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-5029-2023, 2023
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We present air quality measurements in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo, performed with a newly developed instrument which was installed on a roof of the University of Kinshasa in November 2019. The instrument records spectra of the scattered sunlight, from which we derive the abundances of nitrogen dioxide and formaldehyde, two important pollutants. We compare our ground-based measurements with those of the TROPOspheric Monitoring Instrument (TROPOMI).
Lieven Clarisse, Bruno Franco, Martin Van Damme, Tommaso Di Gioacchino, Juliette Hadji-Lazaro, Simon Whitburn, Lara Noppen, Daniel Hurtmans, Cathy Clerbaux, and Pierre Coheur
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 16, 5009–5028, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-5009-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-5009-2023, 2023
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Ammonia is an important atmospheric pollutant. This article presents version 4 of the algorithm which retrieves ammonia abundances from the infrared measurements of the satellite sounder IASI. A measurement operator is introduced that can emulate the measurements (so-called averaging kernels) and measurement uncertainty is better characterized. Several other changes to the product itself are also documented, most of which improve the temporal consistency of the 2007–2022 IASI NH3 dataset.
Rui Wang, Da Pan, Xuehui Guo, Kang Sun, Lieven Clarisse, Martin Van Damme, Pierre-François Coheur, Cathy Clerbaux, Melissa Puchalski, and Mark A. Zondlo
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 23, 13217–13234, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-23-13217-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-23-13217-2023, 2023
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Ammonia (NH3) is a key precursor for fine particulate matter (PM2.5) and a primary form of reactive nitrogen, yet it has sparse ground measurements. We perform the first comprehensive comparison between ground observations and satellite retrievals in the US, demonstrating that satellite NH3 data can help fill spatial gaps in the current ground monitoring networks. Trend analyses using both datasets highlight increasing NH3 trends across the US, including the NH3 hotspots and urban areas.
Rimal Abeed, Camille Viatte, William C. Porter, Nikolaos Evangeliou, Cathy Clerbaux, Lieven Clarisse, Martin Van Damme, Pierre-François Coheur, and Sarah Safieddine
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 23, 12505–12523, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-23-12505-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-23-12505-2023, 2023
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Ammonia emissions from agricultural activities will inevitably increase with the rise in population. We use a variety of datasets (satellite, reanalysis, and model simulation) to calculate the first regional map of ammonia emission potential during the start of the growing season in Europe. We then apply our developed method using a climate model to show the effect of the temperature increase on future ammonia columns under two possible climate scenarios.
Money Ossohou, Jonathan Edward Hickman, Lieven Clarisse, Pierre-François Coheur, Martin Van Damme, Marcellin Adon, Véronique Yoboué, Eric Gardrat, Maria Dias Alvès, and Corinne Galy-Lacaux
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 23, 9473–9494, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-23-9473-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-23-9473-2023, 2023
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The updated analyses of ground-based concentrations and satellite total vertical columns of atmospheric ammonia help us to better understand 21st century ammonia dynamics in sub-Saharan Africa. We conclude that the drivers of trends are agriculture in the dry savanna of Katibougou, Mali; air temperature and agriculture in the wet savanna of Djougou, Benin, and Lamto, Côte d'Ivoire; and leaf area index, air temperature, residential, and agriculture in forests of Bomassa, Republic of Congo.
Zhao-Cheng Zeng, Lu Lee, Chengli Qi, Lieven Clarisse, and Martin Van Damme
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 16, 3693–3713, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-3693-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-3693-2023, 2023
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This study presents an NH3 retrieval algorithm based on the optimal estimation method for the Geostationary Interferometric Infrared Sounder (GIIRS) on board China’s FengYun-4B satellite (FY-4B/GIIRS). Retrieval results demonstrate the capability of FY-4B/GIIRS in capturing the diurnal NH3 changes in East Asia. This operational geostationary observation by FY-4B/GIIRS represents an important advancement over the twice-per-day observations provided by current low-Earth-orbit (LEO) instruments.
Ka Lok Chan, Pieter Valks, Klaus-Peter Heue, Ronny Lutz, Pascal Hedelt, Diego Loyola, Gaia Pinardi, Michel Van Roozendael, François Hendrick, Thomas Wagner, Vinod Kumar, Alkis Bais, Ankie Piters, Hitoshi Irie, Hisahiro Takashima, Yugo Kanaya, Yongjoo Choi, Kihong Park, Jihyo Chong, Alexander Cede, Udo Frieß, Andreas Richter, Jianzhong Ma, Nuria Benavent, Robert Holla, Oleg Postylyakov, Claudia Rivera Cárdenas, and Mark Wenig
Earth Syst. Sci. Data, 15, 1831–1870, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-15-1831-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-15-1831-2023, 2023
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This paper presents the theoretical basis as well as verification and validation of the Global Ozone Monitoring Experiment-2 (GOME-2) daily and monthly level-3 products.
Adrien Vu Van, Anne Boynard, Pascal Prunet, Dominique Jolivet, Olivier Lezeaux, Patrice Henry, Claude Camy-Peyret, Lieven Clarisse, Bruno Franco, Pierre-François Coheur, and Cathy Clerbaux
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 16, 2107–2127, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-2107-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-2107-2023, 2023
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With its near-real-time observations and good horizontal coverage, the Infrared Atmospheric Sounding Interferometer (IASI) instrument can contribute to the monitoring systems for a systematic and continuous detection of exceptional atmospheric events such as fires, anthropogenic pollution episodes, volcanic eruptions, or industrial releases. In this paper, a new approach is described for the detection and characterization of unexpected events in terms of trace gases using IASI radiance spectra.
Viktoria F. Sofieva, Monika Szelag, Johanna Tamminen, Carlo Arosio, Alexei Rozanov, Mark Weber, Doug Degenstein, Adam Bourassa, Daniel Zawada, Michael Kiefer, Alexandra Laeng, Kaley A. Walker, Patrick Sheese, Daan Hubert, Michel van Roozendael, Christian Retscher, Robert Damadeo, and Jerry D. Lumpe
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 16, 1881–1899, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-1881-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-1881-2023, 2023
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The paper presents the updated SAGE-CCI-OMPS+ climate data record of monthly zonal mean ozone profiles. This dataset covers the stratosphere and combines measurements by nine limb and occultation satellite instruments (SAGE II, OSIRIS, MIPAS, SCIAMACHY, GOMOS, ACE-FTS, OMPS-LP, POAM III, and SAGE III/ISS). The update includes new versions of MIPAS, ACE-FTS, and OSIRIS datasets and introduces data from additional sensors (POAM III and SAGE III/ISS) and retrieval processors (OMPS-LP).
Thomas Wagner, Simon Warnach, Steffen Beirle, Nicole Bobrowski, Adrian Jost, Janis Puķīte, and Nicolas Theys
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 16, 1609–1662, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-1609-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-1609-2023, 2023
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We investigate 3D effects of volcanic plumes on the retrieval results of satellite and ground-based UV–Vis observations. With its small ground pixels of 3.5 x 5.5 km², the TROPOMI instrument can detect much smaller volcanic plumes than previous instruments. At the same time, 3D effects become important. The effect of horizontal photon paths especially can lead to a strong underestimation of the derived plume contents of up to > 50 %, which can be further increased for strong absorbers like SO2.
Kezia Lange, Andreas Richter, Anja Schönhardt, Andreas C. Meier, Tim Bösch, André Seyler, Kai Krause, Lisa K. Behrens, Folkard Wittrock, Alexis Merlaud, Frederik Tack, Caroline Fayt, Martina M. Friedrich, Ermioni Dimitropoulou, Michel Van Roozendael, Vinod Kumar, Sebastian Donner, Steffen Dörner, Bianca Lauster, Maria Razi, Christian Borger, Katharina Uhlmannsiek, Thomas Wagner, Thomas Ruhtz, Henk Eskes, Birger Bohn, Daniel Santana Diaz, Nader Abuhassan, Dirk Schüttemeyer, and John P. Burrows
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 16, 1357–1389, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-1357-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-16-1357-2023, 2023
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We present airborne imaging DOAS and ground-based stationary and car DOAS measurements conducted during the S5P-VAL-DE-Ruhr campaign in the Rhine-Ruhr region. The measurements are used to validate spaceborne NO2 data products from the Sentinel-5 Precursor TROPOspheric Monitoring Instrument (TROPOMI). Auxiliary data of the TROPOMI NO2 retrieval, such as spatially higher resolved a priori NO2 vertical profiles, surface reflectivity, and cloud treatment are investigated to evaluate their impact.
Maureen Beaudor, Nicolas Vuichard, Juliette Lathière, Nikolaos Evangeliou, Martin Van Damme, Lieven Clarisse, and Didier Hauglustaine
Geosci. Model Dev., 16, 1053–1081, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-16-1053-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-16-1053-2023, 2023
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Ammonia mainly comes from the agricultural sector, and its volatilization relies on environmental variables. Our approach aims at benefiting from an Earth system model framework to estimate it. By doing so, we represent a consistent spatial distribution of the emissions' response to environmental changes.
We greatly improved the seasonal cycle of emissions compared with previous work. In addition, our model includes natural soil emissions (that are rarely represented in modeling approaches).
Vitali E. Fioletov, Chris A. McLinden, Debora Griffin, Ihab Abboud, Nickolay Krotkov, Peter J. T. Leonard, Can Li, Joanna Joiner, Nicolas Theys, and Simon Carn
Earth Syst. Sci. Data, 15, 75–93, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-15-75-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-15-75-2023, 2023
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Sulfur dioxide (SO2) measurements from three satellite instruments were used to update and extend the previously developed global catalogue of large SO2 emission sources. This version 2 of the global catalogue covers the period of 2005–2021 and includes a total of 759 continuously emitting point sources. The catalogue data show an approximate 50 % decline in global SO2 emissions between 2005 and 2021, although emissions were relatively stable during the last 3 years.
Simon Whitburn, Lieven Clarisse, Marc Crapeau, Thomas August, Tim Hultberg, Pierre François Coheur, and Cathy Clerbaux
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 15, 6653–6668, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-6653-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-6653-2022, 2022
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With more than 15 years of measurements, the IASI radiance dataset is becoming a reference climate data record. Its exploitation for satellite applications requires an accurate and unbiased detection of cloud scenes. Here, we present a new cloud detection algorithm for IASI that is both sensitive and consistent over time. It is based on the use of a neural network, relying on IASI radiance information only and taking as a reference the last version of the operational IASI L2 cloud product.
Beatriz Herrera, Alejandro Bezanilla, Thomas Blumenstock, Enrico Dammers, Frank Hase, Lieven Clarisse, Adolfo Magaldi, Claudia Rivera, Wolfgang Stremme, Kimberly Strong, Camille Viatte, Martin Van Damme, and Michel Grutter
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 22, 14119–14132, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-14119-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-14119-2022, 2022
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This work investigates atmospheric ammonia (NH3), a key trace gas with consequences for the environment and human health, in Mexico City. The results from the ground-based and satellite instruments show the variability and spatial distribution of NH3 over this region. NH3 in Mexico City has been increasing for the past 10 years and most of its sources are urban. This work contributes to a better understanding of NH3 sources and variability in urban and remote areas.
Miriam Latsch, Andreas Richter, Henk Eskes, Maarten Sneep, Ping Wang, Pepijn Veefkind, Ronny Lutz, Diego Loyola, Athina Argyrouli, Pieter Valks, Thomas Wagner, Holger Sihler, Michel van Roozendael, Nicolas Theys, Huan Yu, Richard Siddans, and John P. Burrows
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 15, 6257–6283, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-6257-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-6257-2022, 2022
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The article investigates different S5P TROPOMI cloud retrieval algorithms for tropospheric trace gas retrievals. The cloud products show differences primarily over snow and ice and for scenes under sun glint. Some issues regarding across-track dependence are found for the cloud fractions as well as for the cloud heights.
Huan Yu, Claudia Emde, Arve Kylling, Ben Veihelmann, Bernhard Mayer, Kerstin Stebel, and Michel Van Roozendael
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 15, 5743–5768, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-5743-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-5743-2022, 2022
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In this study, we have investigated the impact of 3D clouds on the tropospheric NO2 retrieval from UV–visible sensors. We applied standard NO2 retrieval methods including cloud corrections to synthetic data generated by the 3D radiative transfer model. A sensitivity study was done for synthetic data, and dependencies on various parameters were investigated. Possible mitigation strategies were investigated and compared based on 3D simulations and observed data.
Camille Viatte, Rimal Abeed, Shoma Yamanouchi, William C. Porter, Sarah Safieddine, Martin Van Damme, Lieven Clarisse, Beatriz Herrera, Michel Grutter, Pierre-Francois Coheur, Kimberly Strong, and Cathy Clerbaux
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 22, 12907–12922, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-12907-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-12907-2022, 2022
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Large cities can experience high levels of fine particulate matter (PM2.5) pollution linked to ammonia (NH3) mainly emitted from agricultural activities. Using a combination of PM2.5 and NH3 measurements from in situ instruments, satellite infrared spectrometers, and atmospheric model simulations, we have demonstrated the role of NH3 and meteorological conditions on pollution events occurring over Paris, Toronto, and Mexico City.
John T. Sullivan, Arnoud Apituley, Nora Mettig, Karin Kreher, K. Emma Knowland, Marc Allaart, Ankie Piters, Michel Van Roozendael, Pepijn Veefkind, Jerry R. Ziemke, Natalya Kramarova, Mark Weber, Alexei Rozanov, Laurence Twigg, Grant Sumnicht, and Thomas J. McGee
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 22, 11137–11153, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-11137-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-11137-2022, 2022
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A TROPOspheric Monitoring Instrument (TROPOMI) validation campaign (TROLIX-19) was held in the Netherlands in September 2019. The research presented here focuses on using ozone lidars from NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center to better evaluate the characterization of ozone throughout TROLIX-19 as compared to balloon-borne, space-borne and ground-based passive measurements, as well as a global coupled chemistry meteorology model.
Catherine Wespes, Gaetane Ronsmans, Lieven Clarisse, Susan Solomon, Daniel Hurtmans, Cathy Clerbaux, and Pierre-François Coheur
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 22, 10993–11007, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-10993-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-10993-2022, 2022
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The first 10-year data record (2008–2017) of HNO3 total columns measured by the IASI-A/MetOp infrared sounder is exploited to monitor the relationship between the temperature decrease and the HNO3 loss observed each year in the Antarctic stratosphere during the polar night. We verify the recurrence of specific regimes in the cycle of IASI HNO3 and identify the day and the 50 hPa temperature (
drop temperature) corresponding to the onset of denitrification in Antarctic winter for each year.
Nicolas Theys, Christophe Lerot, Hugues Brenot, Jeroen van Gent, Isabelle De Smedt, Lieven Clarisse, Mike Burton, Matthew Varnam, Catherine Hayer, Benjamin Esse, and Michel Van Roozendael
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 15, 4801–4817, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-4801-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-4801-2022, 2022
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Sulfur dioxide plume height after a volcanic eruption is an important piece of information for many different scientific studies and applications. Satellite UV retrievals are useful in this respect, but available algorithms have shown so far limited sensitivity to SO2 height. Here we present a new technique to improve the retrieval of SO2 plume height for SO2 columns as low as 5 DU. We demonstrate the algorithm using TROPOMI measurements and compare with other height estimates.
Pieternel F. Levelt, Deborah C. Stein Zweers, Ilse Aben, Maite Bauwens, Tobias Borsdorff, Isabelle De Smedt, Henk J. Eskes, Christophe Lerot, Diego G. Loyola, Fabian Romahn, Trissevgeni Stavrakou, Nicolas Theys, Michel Van Roozendael, J. Pepijn Veefkind, and Tijl Verhoelst
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 22, 10319–10351, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-10319-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-10319-2022, 2022
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Using the COVID-19 lockdown periods as an example, we show how Sentinel-5P/TROPOMI trace gas data (NO2, SO2, CO, HCHO and CHOCHO) can be used to understand impacts on air quality for regions and cities around the globe. We also provide information for both experienced and inexperienced users about how we created the data using state-of-the-art algorithms, where to get the data, methods taking meteorological and seasonal variability into consideration, and insights for future studies.
Zhenqi Luo, Yuzhong Zhang, Wei Chen, Martin Van Damme, Pierre-François Coheur, and Lieven Clarisse
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 22, 10375–10388, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-10375-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-10375-2022, 2022
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We quantify global ammonia (NH3) emissions over the period from 2008 to 2018 using an improved fast top-down method that incorporates Infrared Atmospheric
Sounding Interferometer (IASI) satellite observations and GEOS-Chem atmospheric chemical simulations. The top-down analysis finds a global total NH3 emission that is 30 % higher than the bottom-up estimate, largely reconciling a large discrepancy of more than a factor of 2 found in previous top-down studies using the same satellite data.
Ermioni Dimitropoulou, François Hendrick, Martina Michaela Friedrich, Frederik Tack, Gaia Pinardi, Alexis Merlaud, Caroline Fayt, Christian Hermans, Frans Fierens, and Michel Van Roozendael
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 15, 4503–4529, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-4503-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-4503-2022, 2022
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A total of 2 years of dual-scan ground-based MAX-DOAS measurements of tropospheric NO2 and aerosols in Uccle (Belgium) have been used to develop a new optimal-estimation-based inversion approach to retrieve horizontal profiles of surface NO2 concentration and aerosol extinction profiles. We show that the combination of an appropriate sampling of TROPOMI pixels by ground-based measurements and an adequate a priori NO2 profile shape in TROPOMI retrievals improves the agreement between datasets.
Arve Kylling, Claudia Emde, Huan Yu, Michel van Roozendael, Kerstin Stebel, Ben Veihelmann, and Bernhard Mayer
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 15, 3481–3495, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-3481-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-3481-2022, 2022
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Atmospheric trace gases such as nitrogen dioxide (NO2) may be measured by satellite instruments sensitive to solar ultraviolet–visible radiation reflected from Earth and its atmosphere. For a single pixel, clouds in neighbouring pixels may affect the radiation and hence the retrieved trace gas amount. We found that for a solar zenith angle less than about 40° this cloud-related NO2 bias is typically below 10 %, while for larger solar zenith angles the NO2 bias is on the order of tens of percent.
Gaia Pinardi, Michel Van Roozendael, François Hendrick, Andreas Richter, Pieter Valks, Ramina Alwarda, Kristof Bognar, Udo Frieß, José Granville, Myojeong Gu, Paul Johnston, Cristina Prados-Roman, Richard Querel, Kimberly Strong, Thomas Wagner, Folkard Wittrock, and Margarita Yela Gonzalez
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 15, 3439–3463, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-3439-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-3439-2022, 2022
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We report on the GOME-2A and GOME-2B OClO dataset (2007 to 2016, from the EUMETSAT's AC SAF) validation using data from nine NDACC zenith-scattered-light DOAS (ZSL-DOAS) instruments distributed in both the Arctic and Antarctic. Specific sensitivity tests are performed on the ground-based data to estimate the impact of the different OClO DOAS analysis settings and their typical errors. Good agreement is found for both the inter-annual variability and the overall OClO seasonal behavior.
Melanie Coldewey-Egbers, Diego G. Loyola, Christophe Lerot, and Michel Van Roozendael
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 22, 6861–6878, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-6861-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-6861-2022, 2022
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Monitoring the long-term evolution of ozone and the evaluation of trends is essential to assess the efficacy of the Montreal Protocol and its amendments. The first signs of recovery as a consequence of decreasing amounts of ozone-depleting substances have been reported, but the impact needs to be investigated in more detail. In the Southern Hemisphere significant positive trends were found, but in the Northern Hemisphere the expected increase is still not yet visible.
Maria-Elissavet Koukouli, Konstantinos Michailidis, Pascal Hedelt, Isabelle A. Taylor, Antje Inness, Lieven Clarisse, Dimitris Balis, Dmitry Efremenko, Diego Loyola, Roy G. Grainger, and Christian Retscher
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 22, 5665–5683, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-5665-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-5665-2022, 2022
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Volcanic eruptions eject large amounts of ash and trace gases into the atmosphere. The use of space-borne instruments enables the global monitoring of volcanic SO2 emissions in an economical and risk-free manner. The main aim of this paper is to present its extensive verification, accomplished within the ESA S5P+I: SO2LH project, over major recent volcanic eruptions, against collocated space-borne measurements, as well as assess its impact on the forecasts provided by CAMS.
Andrea Pozzer, Simon F. Reifenberg, Vinod Kumar, Bruno Franco, Matthias Kohl, Domenico Taraborrelli, Sergey Gromov, Sebastian Ehrhart, Patrick Jöckel, Rolf Sander, Veronica Fall, Simon Rosanka, Vlassis Karydis, Dimitris Akritidis, Tamara Emmerichs, Monica Crippa, Diego Guizzardi, Johannes W. Kaiser, Lieven Clarisse, Astrid Kiendler-Scharr, Holger Tost, and Alexandra Tsimpidi
Geosci. Model Dev., 15, 2673–2710, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-15-2673-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-15-2673-2022, 2022
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A newly developed setup of the chemistry general circulation model EMAC (ECHAM5/MESSy for Atmospheric Chemistry) is evaluated here. A comprehensive organic degradation mechanism is used and coupled with a volatility base model.
The results show that the model reproduces most of the tracers and aerosols satisfactorily but shows discrepancies for oxygenated organic gases. It is also shown that this model configuration can be used for further research in atmospheric chemistry.
Hisahiro Takashima, Yugo Kanaya, Saki Kato, Martina M. Friedrich, Michel Van Roozendael, Fumikazu Taketani, Takuma Miyakawa, Yuichi Komazaki, Carlos A. Cuevas, Alfonso Saiz-Lopez, and Takashi Sekiya
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 22, 4005–4018, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-4005-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-4005-2022, 2022
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We have undertaken atmospheric iodine monoxide (IO) observations in the global marine boundary layer with a wide latitudinal coverage and sea surface temperature (SST) range. We conclude that atmospheric iodine is abundant over the Western Pacific warm pool, appearing as an iodine fountain, where ozone (O3) minima occur. Our study also found negative correlations between IO and O3 concentrations over IO maxima, which requires reconsideration of the initiation process of halogen activation.
Marie Bouillon, Sarah Safieddine, Simon Whitburn, Lieven Clarisse, Filipe Aires, Victor Pellet, Olivier Lezeaux, Noëlle A. Scott, Marie Doutriaux-Boucher, and Cathy Clerbaux
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 15, 1779–1793, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-1779-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-1779-2022, 2022
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The IASI instruments have been observing Earth since 2007. We use a neural network to retrieve atmospheric temperatures. This new temperature data record is validated against other datasets and shows good agreement. We use this new dataset to compute trends over the 2008–2020 period. We found a warming of the troposphere, more important at the poles. In the stratosphere, we found that temperatures decrease everywhere except at the South Pole. The cooling is more pronounced at the South pole.
Claudia Emde, Huan Yu, Arve Kylling, Michel van Roozendael, Kerstin Stebel, Ben Veihelmann, and Bernhard Mayer
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 15, 1587–1608, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-1587-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-1587-2022, 2022
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Retrievals of trace gas concentrations from satellite observations can be affected by clouds in the vicinity, either by shadowing or by scattering of radiation from clouds in the clear region. We used a Monte Carlo radiative transfer model to generate synthetic satellite observations, which we used to test retrieval algorithms and to quantify the error of retrieved NO2 vertical column density due to cloud scattering.
Dimitris Karagkiozidis, Martina Michaela Friedrich, Steffen Beirle, Alkiviadis Bais, François Hendrick, Kalliopi Artemis Voudouri, Ilias Fountoulakis, Angelos Karanikolas, Paraskevi Tzoumaka, Michel Van Roozendael, Dimitris Balis, and Thomas Wagner
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 15, 1269–1301, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-1269-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-15-1269-2022, 2022
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In this study we focus on the retrieval of aerosol, NO2, and HCHO vertical profiles from multi-axis differential optical absorption spectroscopy (MAX-DOAS) observations for the first time over Thessaloniki, Greece. We use two independent inversion algorithms for the profile retrievals. We evaluate their performance, we intercompare their results, and we validate their products with ancillary data, measured by other co-located reference instruments.
Antje Inness, Melanie Ades, Dimitris Balis, Dmitry Efremenko, Johannes Flemming, Pascal Hedelt, Maria-Elissavet Koukouli, Diego Loyola, and Roberto Ribas
Geosci. Model Dev., 15, 971–994, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-15-971-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/gmd-15-971-2022, 2022
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This paper describes the way that the Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service (CAMS) produces forecasts of volcanic SO2. These forecasts are provided routinely every day. They are created by blending SO2 data from satellite instruments (TROPOMI and GOME-2) with the CAMS model. We show that the quality of the CAMS SO2 forecasts can be improved if additional information about the height of volcanic plumes is provided in the satellite data.
Christophe Lerot, François Hendrick, Michel Van Roozendael, Leonardo M. A. Alvarado, Andreas Richter, Isabelle De Smedt, Nicolas Theys, Jonas Vlietinck, Huan Yu, Jeroen Van Gent, Trissevgeni Stavrakou, Jean-François Müller, Pieter Valks, Diego Loyola, Hitoshi Irie, Vinod Kumar, Thomas Wagner, Stefan F. Schreier, Vinayak Sinha, Ting Wang, Pucai Wang, and Christian Retscher
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 14, 7775–7807, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-7775-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-7775-2021, 2021
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Global measurements of glyoxal tropospheric columns from the satellite instrument TROPOMI are presented. Such measurements can contribute to the estimation of atmospheric emissions of volatile organic compounds. This new glyoxal product has been fully characterized with a comprehensive error budget, with comparison with other satellite data sets as well as with validation based on independent ground-based remote sensing glyoxal observations.
Song Liu, Pieter Valks, Gaia Pinardi, Jian Xu, Ka Lok Chan, Athina Argyrouli, Ronny Lutz, Steffen Beirle, Ehsan Khorsandi, Frank Baier, Vincent Huijnen, Alkiviadis Bais, Sebastian Donner, Steffen Dörner, Myrto Gratsea, François Hendrick, Dimitris Karagkiozidis, Kezia Lange, Ankie J. M. Piters, Julia Remmers, Andreas Richter, Michel Van Roozendael, Thomas Wagner, Mark Wenig, and Diego G. Loyola
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 14, 7297–7327, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-7297-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-7297-2021, 2021
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In this work, an improved tropospheric NO2 retrieval algorithm from TROPOMI measurements over Europe is presented. The stratospheric estimation is implemented with correction for the dependency of the stratospheric NO2 on the viewing geometry. The AMF calculation is implemented using improved surface albedo, a priori NO2 profiles, and cloud correction. The improved tropospheric NO2 data show good correlations with ground-based MAX-DOAS measurements.
Nicolas Theys, Vitali Fioletov, Can Li, Isabelle De Smedt, Christophe Lerot, Chris McLinden, Nickolay Krotkov, Debora Griffin, Lieven Clarisse, Pascal Hedelt, Diego Loyola, Thomas Wagner, Vinod Kumar, Antje Innes, Roberto Ribas, François Hendrick, Jonas Vlietinck, Hugues Brenot, and Michel Van Roozendael
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 21, 16727–16744, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-16727-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-16727-2021, 2021
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We present a new algorithm to retrieve sulfur dioxide from space UV measurements. We apply the technique to high-resolution TROPOMI measurements and demonstrate the high sensitivity of the approach to weak SO2 emissions worldwide with an unprecedented limit of detection of 8 kt yr−1. This result has broad implications for atmospheric science studies dealing with improving emission inventories and identifying and quantifying missing sources, in the context of air quality and climate.
Jonathan E. Hickman, Niels Andela, Enrico Dammers, Lieven Clarisse, Pierre-François Coheur, Martin Van Damme, Courtney A. Di Vittorio, Money Ossohou, Corinne Galy-Lacaux, Kostas Tsigaridis, and Susanne E. Bauer
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 21, 16277–16291, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-16277-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-16277-2021, 2021
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Ammonia (NH3) gas emitted from soils and biomass burning contributes to particulate air pollution. We used satellite observations of the atmosphere over Africa to show that declines in NH3 concentrations over South Sudan's Sudd wetland in 2008–2017 are related to variation in wetland extent. We also find NH3 concentrations increased in West Africa as a result of biomass burning and increased in the Lake Victoria region, likely due to agricultural expansion and intensification.
Hugues Brenot, Nicolas Theys, Lieven Clarisse, Jeroen van Gent, Daniel R. Hurtmans, Sophie Vandenbussche, Nikolaos Papagiannopoulos, Lucia Mona, Timo Virtanen, Andreas Uppstu, Mikhail Sofiev, Luca Bugliaro, Margarita Vázquez-Navarro, Pascal Hedelt, Michelle Maree Parks, Sara Barsotti, Mauro Coltelli, William Moreland, Simona Scollo, Giuseppe Salerno, Delia Arnold-Arias, Marcus Hirtl, Tuomas Peltonen, Juhani Lahtinen, Klaus Sievers, Florian Lipok, Rolf Rüfenacht, Alexander Haefele, Maxime Hervo, Saskia Wagenaar, Wim Som de Cerff, Jos de Laat, Arnoud Apituley, Piet Stammes, Quentin Laffineur, Andy Delcloo, Robertson Lennart, Carl-Herbert Rokitansky, Arturo Vargas, Markus Kerschbaum, Christian Resch, Raimund Zopp, Matthieu Plu, Vincent-Henri Peuch, Michel Van Roozendael, and Gerhard Wotawa
Nat. Hazards Earth Syst. Sci., 21, 3367–3405, https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-21-3367-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-21-3367-2021, 2021
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The purpose of the EUNADICS-AV (European Natural Airborne Disaster Information and Coordination System for Aviation) prototype early warning system (EWS) is to develop the combined use of harmonised data products from satellite, ground-based and in situ instruments to produce alerts of airborne hazards (volcanic, dust, smoke and radionuclide clouds), satisfying the requirement of aviation air traffic management (ATM) stakeholders (https://cordis.europa.eu/project/id/723986).
Isabelle De Smedt, Gaia Pinardi, Corinne Vigouroux, Steven Compernolle, Alkis Bais, Nuria Benavent, Folkert Boersma, Ka-Lok Chan, Sebastian Donner, Kai-Uwe Eichmann, Pascal Hedelt, François Hendrick, Hitoshi Irie, Vinod Kumar, Jean-Christopher Lambert, Bavo Langerock, Christophe Lerot, Cheng Liu, Diego Loyola, Ankie Piters, Andreas Richter, Claudia Rivera Cárdenas, Fabian Romahn, Robert George Ryan, Vinayak Sinha, Nicolas Theys, Jonas Vlietinck, Thomas Wagner, Ting Wang, Huan Yu, and Michel Van Roozendael
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 21, 12561–12593, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-12561-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-12561-2021, 2021
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This paper assess the performances of the TROPOMI formaldehyde observations compared to its predecessor OMI at different spatial and temporal scales. We also use a global network of MAX-DOAS instruments to validate both satellite datasets for a large range of HCHO columns. The precision obtained with daily TROPOMI observations is comparable to monthly OMI observations. We present clear detection of weak HCHO column enhancements related to shipping emissions in the Indian Ocean.
Claire Lamotte, Jonathan Guth, Virginie Marécal, Martin Cussac, Paul David Hamer, Nicolas Theys, and Philipp Schneider
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 21, 11379–11404, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-11379-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-11379-2021, 2021
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Improvements are made in a global chemical transfer model by considering a new volcanic SO2 emissions inventory, with more volcanoes referenced and more information on the altitude of injection. Better constraining volcanic emissions with this inventory improves the global, but mostly local, tropospheric sulfur composition. The tropospheric sulfur budget shows a nonlinearity to the volcanic contribution, especially to the sulfate aerosol burden and sulfur wet deposition.
Simon Rosanka, Bruno Franco, Lieven Clarisse, Pierre-François Coheur, Andrea Pozzer, Andreas Wahner, and Domenico Taraborrelli
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 21, 11257–11288, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-11257-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-11257-2021, 2021
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The strong El Niño in 2015 led to a particular dry season in Indonesia and favoured severe peatland fires. The smouldering conditions of these fires and the high carbon content of peat resulted in high volatile organic compound (VOC) emissions. By using a comprehensive atmospheric model, we show that these emissions have a significant impact on the tropospheric composition and oxidation capacity. These emissions are transported into to the lower stratosphere, resulting in a depletion of ozone.
Johannes de Leeuw, Anja Schmidt, Claire S. Witham, Nicolas Theys, Isabelle A. Taylor, Roy G. Grainger, Richard J. Pope, Jim Haywood, Martin Osborne, and Nina I. Kristiansen
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 21, 10851–10879, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-10851-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-10851-2021, 2021
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Using the NAME dispersion model in combination with high-resolution SO2 satellite data from TROPOMI, we investigate the dispersion of volcanic SO2 from the 2019 Raikoke eruption. NAME accurately simulates the dispersion of SO2 during the first 2–3 weeks after the eruption and illustrates the potential of using high-resolution satellite data to identify potential limitations in dispersion models, which will ultimately help to improve efforts to forecast the dispersion of volcanic clouds.
Tamara Emmerichs, Bruno Franco, Catherine Wespes, Vinod Kumar, Andrea Pozzer, Simon Rosanka, and Domenico Taraborrelli
Atmos. Chem. Phys. Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-2021-584, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-2021-584, 2021
Revised manuscript not accepted
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Near-surface ozone is a harmful air pollutant and it is strongly affected by radical reactions and surface-atmosphere exchanges which in turn are modulated, directly and indirectly, by weather. Understanding the impact of weather on ozone, and air quality, is thus important also in view of weather extremes. The inclusion of additional ozone-weather links in the global model yields a 2-fold reduction of the ozone bias towards satellite observations.
Simon Rosanka, Rolf Sander, Bruno Franco, Catherine Wespes, Andreas Wahner, and Domenico Taraborrelli
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 21, 9909–9930, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-9909-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-9909-2021, 2021
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In-cloud destruction of ozone depends on hydroperoxyl radicals in cloud droplets, where they are produced by oxygenated volatile organic compound (OVOC) oxygenation. Only rudimentary representations of these processes, if any, are currently available in global atmospheric models. By using a comprehensive atmospheric model that includes a complex in-cloud OVOC oxidation scheme, we show that atmospheric oxidants are reduced and models ignoring this process will underpredict clouds as ozone sinks.
Nikita M. Fedkin, Can Li, Nickolay A. Krotkov, Pascal Hedelt, Diego G. Loyola, Russell R. Dickerson, and Robert Spurr
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 14, 3673–3691, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-3673-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-14-3673-2021, 2021
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This study presents a new volcanic sulfur dioxide (SO2) layer height retrieval algorithm for the Ozone Monitoring Instrument (OMI). We generated a large spectral dataset with a radiative transfer model and used it to train neural networks to predict SO2 height from OMI radiance data. The algorithm is fast and takes less than 10 min for a single orbit. Retrievals were tested on four eruption cases, and results had reasonable agreement (within 2 km) with other retrievals and previous studies.
Yunhua Chang, Yan-Lin Zhang, Sawaeng Kawichai, Qian Wang, Martin Van Damme, Lieven Clarisse, Tippawan Prapamontol, and Moritz F. Lehmann
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 21, 7187–7198, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-7187-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-7187-2021, 2021
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In this study, we integrated satellite constraints on atmospheric NH3 levels and fire intensity, discrete NH3 concentration measurement, and N isotopic analysis of NH3 in order to assess the regional-scale contribution of biomass burning to ambient atmospheric NH3 in the heartland of Southeast Asia. The combined approach provides a valuable cross-validation framework for source apportioning of NH3 in the lower atmosphere and will thus help to ameliorate predictions of biomass burning emissions.
Viktoria F. Sofieva, Monika Szeląg, Johanna Tamminen, Erkki Kyrölä, Doug Degenstein, Chris Roth, Daniel Zawada, Alexei Rozanov, Carlo Arosio, John P. Burrows, Mark Weber, Alexandra Laeng, Gabriele P. Stiller, Thomas von Clarmann, Lucien Froidevaux, Nathaniel Livesey, Michel van Roozendael, and Christian Retscher
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 21, 6707–6720, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-6707-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-6707-2021, 2021
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The MErged GRIdded Dataset of Ozone Profiles is a long-term (2001–2018) stratospheric ozone profile climate data record with resolved longitudinal structure that combines the data from six limb satellite instruments. The dataset can be used for various analyses, some of which are discussed in the paper. In particular, regionally and vertically resolved ozone trends are evaluated, including trends in the polar regions.
Karn Vohra, Eloise A. Marais, Shannen Suckra, Louisa Kramer, William J. Bloss, Ravi Sahu, Abhishek Gaur, Sachchida N. Tripathi, Martin Van Damme, Lieven Clarisse, and Pierre-F. Coheur
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 21, 6275–6296, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-6275-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-6275-2021, 2021
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We find satellite observations of atmospheric composition generally reproduce variability in surface air pollution, so we use their long record to estimate air quality trends in major UK and Indian cities. Our trend analysis shows that pollutants targeted with air quality policies have not declined in Delhi and Kanpur but have in London and Birmingham, with the exception of a recent and dramatic increase in reactive volatile organics in London. Unregulated ammonia has increased only in Delhi.
Pooja V. Pawar, Sachin D. Ghude, Chinmay Jena, Andrea Móring, Mark A. Sutton, Santosh Kulkarni, Deen Mani Lal, Divya Surendran, Martin Van Damme, Lieven Clarisse, Pierre-François Coheur, Xuejun Liu, Gaurav Govardhan, Wen Xu, Jize Jiang, and Tapan Kumar Adhya
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 21, 6389–6409, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-6389-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-6389-2021, 2021
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In this study, simulations of atmospheric ammonia (NH3) with MOZART-4 and HTAP-v2 are compared with satellite (IASI) and ground-based measurements to understand the spatial and temporal variability of NH3 over two emission hotspot regions of Asia, the IGP and the NCP. Our simulations indicate that the formation of ammonium aerosols is quicker over the NCP than the IGP, leading to smaller NH3 columns over the higher NH3-emitting NCP compared to the IGP region for comparable emissions.
Nikolaos Evangeliou, Yves Balkanski, Sabine Eckhardt, Anne Cozic, Martin Van Damme, Pierre-François Coheur, Lieven Clarisse, Mark W. Shephard, Karen E. Cady-Pereira, and Didier Hauglustaine
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 21, 4431–4451, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-4431-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-4431-2021, 2021
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Ammonia, a substance that has played a key role in sustaining life, has been increasing in the atmosphere, affecting climate and humans. Understanding the reasons for this increase is important for the beneficial use of ammonia. The evolution of satellite products gives us the opportunity to calculate ammonia emissions easier. We calculated global ammonia emissions over the last 10 years, incorporated them into a chemistry model and recorded notable improvement in reproducing observations.
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Short summary
In this study, we developed an improved algorithm to retrieve the sulfur dioxide plume height and column density from the spectral band 2 of the TROPOspheric Monitoring Instrument onboard the Sentinel-5 Precursor satellite. We tested its sensitivity to various conditions and applied it to real volcanic eruptions. Overall, our approach shows high precision, accuracy, and sensitivity, and the results are consistent with other satellite measurements.
In this study, we developed an improved algorithm to retrieve the sulfur dioxide plume height...
