3 Dimensional Climatology of African DustAaron Adams

Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science (RSMAS), University of Miami; aadams@rsmas.miami.edu

Objective

Satellite Data

Future Work

Methodology

Meridional Transport

Summer Dust Winter Dust

Horizontal Transport

Acknowledgements

To create 3 dimensional aerosol profiles of Saharan dust as a preliminary step and template for model validation and indirect effect analysis.

CALIPSO level 2 Vertical Feature Mask (VFM) V3 Validated Stage One data are used: 4 years of boreal summer, fall, winter, and spring; 2006-2011. ECMWF ERA-Interim wind reanalysis and TRMM 3B42 precipitation data are used.

3D seasonal averages:• Number concentrations are

tallied at each 1°x1° grid point from VFM data• Smoothed zonally using 13°

running average• Smoothed meridionally using 3°

running average• Values less than 15% are not

plotted in seasonal averages.

• Validate VFM using MPLNet and AERONET data from Barbados and other sites

• Simulate results with global climate model (GFDL)

Winter Polluted Dust

3D Frequency of Occurrence

This study was supported by NASA through Grant NNX07ADI49G. These data were obtained from the NASA Langley Research Center Atmospheric Science Data Center.

Dust seasonal cycle integrated 30S-30N

US/Atlantic Caribbean South America

US/Atlantic Caribbean South America

Boreal summer (top) and winter (bottom) cross-section of dust (blue) and polluted dust (shading) with ECMWF wind reanalysis vectors and TRMM precipitation (below).

Boreal summer (top) and winter (bottom) horizontal aerosol frequency of occurrence cross-sections with ECMWF reanalysis wind vectors at 1, 2, 3, and 4.2 km. Shade represents polluted dust and blue contours dust. All values are plotted for polluted dust. Contours are plotted in 10% intervals with the exception of the first contour at 5%. 30% contour is dashed for reference. Red dashed line is estimated ITCZ from TRMM precipitation.

Summer Polluted Dust