Spatiotemporal characteristics of TOMS-based dust aerosol optical depth in northern China during 1978–2005

Abstract

Using the Total Ozone Mapping Spectrometer (TOMS) data from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) earth satellites, the Aerosol Optical Depth (AOD) as indicated by AOD Index (AI) for the period 1978–2005 is analyzed for northern China. The spatial distribution of annual mean AI has the largest values in the desert regions of northwestern China, such as southern Xinjiang Taklimakan Basin, western Gansu and Qinghai’s Qaidam Basin. Large values are found in western Inner Mongolia, the Jogger Basin, and north of the Loess Plateau, as well as in the North China and Northeast China Plains. In Northern China, the AI of spring and summer is larger than in other seasons. The large AI values in spring register the most extensive coverage, but the AI values in regions affected by the Asian monsoon experience a significant decrease during the summer season. The lowest AI values generally occur in autumn in North and Northeast China, but they appear in winter in the northwestern arid region. Overall, the analysis results using TOMS AI data well reflect the spatiotemporal characteristics of dust aerosol as reported previously based on the dust weather observation data, with greater consistency seen in northwestern arid and semi-arid regions. It is also realized that the TOMS AI data are potentially useful for estimating atmospheric mineral aerosol deposition flux in northern China in order to better understand the formation and evolution of China loess in the Quaternary.