Abstract
Abstract. The spatial structure and the progression speed of the first ash layer from the Icelandic Eyjafjallajökull volcano which reached Germany on 16/17 April is investigated from remote sensing data and numerical simulations. The ceilometer network of the German Meteorological Service was able to follow the progression of the ash layer over the whole of Germany. This first ash layer turned out to be a rather shallow layer of only several hundreds of metres thickness which was oriented slantwise in the middle troposphere and which was brought downward by large-scale sinking motion over Southern Germany and the Alps. Special Raman lidar measurements, trajectory analyses and in-situ observations from mountain observatories helped to confirm the volcanic origin of the detected aerosol layer. Ultralight aircraft measurements permitted the detection of the arrival of a second major flush of volcanic material in Southern Germany. Numerical simulations with the Eulerian meso-scale model MCCM were able to reproduce the temporal and spatial structure of the ash layer. Comparisons of the model results with the ceilometer network data on 17 April and with the ultralight aircraft data on 19 April were satisfying. This is the first example of a model validation study from this ceilometer network data.
Highlights
The emission of geogenic material and smoke and their dispersion in the atmosphere have always affected human societies
Before we present the results from the remote sensing network and the numerical simulations, we have to verify the volcanic origin of the observed aerosol cloud
This study has shown that the first ash cloud arriving over Germany on 16/17 April 2010 was a quite shallow polluted layer which was only several hundreds of metres deep and which was oriented slantwise in the troposphere
Summary
The emission of geogenic material and smoke and their dispersion in the atmosphere have always affected human societies. Except from the luckily rare occasions of meteorite impacts (see, e.g., Pollack et al, 1983), the most prominent types of these events are the advection of material from wind erosion such as desert dust (Shao, 2008), from large fires (Damoah et al, 2004), and from volcanic ash plumes (Woods et al, 1995) over populated areas. A prominent event of a tropospheric advection of volcanic ash over Europe was after the eruption of the Icelandic volcano Laki in Iceland which commenced on 8 June 1783 and lasted until 8 February 1784. The analysis will concentrate on the propagation of the first southward-moving ash cloud which arrived over Germany on 16 and 17 April 2010 It will report on its detection by a ground-based remote sensing network and address the identification of the volcanic origin of the detected aerosol cloud. 16 April: pulsating eruptive plume reaches above 8 km, with overall height of 5 km
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
