Major optical depth perturbations to the stratosphere from volcanic eruptions: Stellar extinction period, 1961–1978

Abstract

A revised chronology of stratospheric aerosol extinction due to volcanic eruptions has been assembled for the period 1961–1978, which immediately precedes the era of dedicated satellite measurements. On the whole, the most accurate data consist of published observations of stellar extinction, supplemented in part by other kinds of observational data. The period covered encompasses the important eruptions of Agung (1963) and Fuego (1974), whose dust veils are discussed with respect to their transport, decay, and total mass. The effective (area‐weighted mean) radii of the aerosols for both eruptions are found to be 0.3–0.4 μm. It is confirmed that, among known tropical eruptions, Agung's dust was unique for a low‐latitude eruption in remaining almost entirely confined to the hemisphere of its production. A new table of homogeneous visual optical depth perturbations, listed by year and by hemisphere, is provided for the whole period 1881–1978, including the pyrheliometric period before 1961 that was investigated previously.