Abstract
We conceptualize aerosol radiative transfer processes arising from the hypothetical coupling of a global aerosol transport model and a global numerical weather prediction model by applying the US Naval Research Laboratory Navy Aerosol Analysis and Prediction System (NAAPS) and the Navy Global Environmental Model (NAVGEM) meteorological and surface reflectance fields. A unique experimental design during the 2013 NASA Studies of Emissions and Atmospheric Composition, Clouds and Climate Coupling by Regional Surveys (SEAC4RS) field mission allowed for collocated airborne sampling by the high spectral resolution Lidar (HSRL), the Airborne Multi-angle SpectroPolarimetric Imager (AirMSPI), up/down shortwave (SW) and infrared (IR) broadband radiometers, as well as NASA A-Train support from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS), to attempt direct aerosol forcing closure. The results demonstrate the sensitivity of modeled fields to aerosol radiative fluxes and heating rates, specifically in the SW, as induced in this event from transported smoke and regional urban aerosols. Limitations are identified with respect to aerosol attribution, vertical distribution, and the choice of optical and surface polarimetric properties, which are discussed within the context of their influence on numerical weather prediction output that is particularly important as the community propels forward towards inline aerosol modeling within global forecast systems.
Highlights
Over the last two decades much progress has been achieved in terms of characterizing aerosol properties, identifying their spatiotemporal extent, and determining their role in the planetary radiative balance (Ramanathan et al, 2001)
Model simulations were compared with in situ validation data collected during the NASA 2013 Studies of Emissions and Atmospheric Composition, Clouds and Climate Coupling by Regional Surveys (SEAC4RS) experiment, including airborne high spectral resolution lidar (HSRL), an Airborne Multi-angle SpectroPolarimetric Imager (AirMSPI), simultaneous up/down SW and IR irradiance measurements, as well as NASA Moderate Resolution Infrared Spectroradiometer (MODIS) surface reflectance characterization (Multi-Angle Implementation of Atmospheric Correction for Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS); MAIAC) over Wyoming in the US upper central plains on 19 August 2013
Our goal is a first-order characterization of model fidelities in depicting significant aerosol forcing features in the event that Navy Aerosol Analysis and Prediction System (NAAPS) and Navy Global Environmental Model (NAVGEM) were operated in a coupled configuration, using in situ measurements to demonstrate potential column radiative closure as a verification reference
Summary
Over the last two decades much progress has been achieved in terms of characterizing aerosol properties, identifying their spatiotemporal extent, and determining their role in the planetary radiative balance (Ramanathan et al, 2001). As a result of that endeavor, the scientific community has been able to recognize that aerosols have a “direct effect” on climate by modifying the planet’s radiative budget and redistributing heat in the atmosphere, and an “indirect effect” by modifying cloud development, precipitation, and optical properties (IPCC, 2014). Significant uncertainty still remains when it comes to understanding the atmosphere’s response to different aerosol physical properties, on day-to-day scales that impact weather (Mulcahy et al, 2014; Toll et al, 2016; Zhang et al, 2016). Increased aerosol scattering and absorption of incoming shortwave (SW) and outgoing longwave radiation (OLR) fields modify the atmospheric heating profile and can affect both large-scale and regional circula-
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