Atmospheric aerosol acts to reduce the background concentration of natural cluster ions, and to attenuate optical propagation. Hence, the presence of aerosol has two consequences, the reduction of the air’s electrical conductivity and the visual range. Ion-aerosol theory and Koschmieder’s visibility theory are combined here to derive the related non-linear variation of the atmospheric electric ...

The Antarctic plateau provides the best terrestrial sites for infrared and sub millimetre astronomy In this paper we examine the relative importance of temperature aerosol content and precipitable water vapour to determine which parameters have the greatest in uence on atmospheric transmission and sky brightness We use the atmospheric modelling program MODTRAN to model the observed sky spectrum...

Given the complex interaction between aerosol, cloud, and atmospheric properties, it is difficult to extract their individual effects to observed rainfall amount. This research uses principle component analysis (PCA) that combines Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) aerosol and cloud products, NCEP Reanalysis atmospheric products, and rainrate estimates from the Tropical Rainf...

In this perspectives article, we reflect upon the existence of chirality in atmospheric aerosol particles. We then show that organic particles collected at a field site in the central Amazon Basin under pristine background conditions during the wet and dry seasons consist of chiral secondary organic material. We show how the chiral response from the aerosol particles can be imaged directly with...

Aerosols play a significant yet complex and central role in the Earth’s radiation budget, and knowledge of long-term changes in the atmospheric turbidity induced by aerosols is therefore fundamental for a better understanding of climate change. However, there is little available information on changes in aerosol concentration in the atmosphere, especially prior to the 1980s. The present paper r...

10 Light scattering and absorption properties of atmospheric aerosols are of vital importance in 11 evaluating their types, sources and radiative forcing. This is of particular interest over the 12 Gangetic-Himalayan (GH) region due to uplift of aerosol from the plains to the Himalayan range 13 causing serious effects on atmospheric heating, glaciology and monsoon circulation. In this 14 respec...

Understanding airborne survival and decay of microorganisms is important for a range of public health and biodefense applications, including epidemiological and risk analysis modeling. Techniques for experimental aerosol generation, retention in the aerosol phase, and sampling require careful consideration and understanding so that they are representative of the conditions the bioaerosol would ...

We used a spectral radiative transfer model to compute the direct radiative effect (DRE) of natural plus anthropogenic aerosols in the solar near-infrared (IR), between 0.85–10μm, namely, their effect on the outgoing nearIR radiation at the top of atmosphere (TOA, 1FTOA), on the atmospheric absorption of near-IR radiation (1Fatmab) and on the surface downward and absorbed near-IR radiation (1Fs...

Atmospheric aerosol deposition is an important source of nutrients and trace metals to the open ocean that can enhance ocean productivity and carbon sequestration and thus influence atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations and climate. Using aerosol samples from different back trajectories in incubation experiments with natural communities, we demonstrate that the response of phytoplankton gro...