Quantification of the dust optical depth across spatiotemporal scales with the MIDAS global dataset (2003–2017)

Abstract 0.1 ∘ × 0.1 ∘ 0.032 ± 0.003 – approximately a quarter (23.4 % ± 2.4 %) of the global aerosol optical depth (AOD) – with about 1 order of magnitude more DOD in the Northern Hemisphere (0.056 ± 0.004; 31.8 % ± 2.7 %) than in the Southern Hemisphere (0.008 ± 0.001; 8.2 % ± 1.1 %) and about 3.5 times more DOD over land (0.070 ± 0.005) than over ocean (0.019 ± 0.002). The Northern Hemisphere monthly DOD is highly correlated with the corresponding monthly AOD (R 2 = 0.94) and contributes 20 % to 48 % of it, both indicating a dominant dust contribution. In contrast, the contribution of dust to the monthly AOD does not exceed 17 % in the Southern Hemisphere, although the uncertainty in this region is larger. Among the major dust sources of the planet, the maximum DODs (∼ 1.2) are recorded in the Bodélé Depression of the northern Lake Chad Basin, whereas moderate-to-high intensities are encountered in the Western Sahara (boreal summer), along the eastern parts of the Middle East (boreal summer) and in the Taklamakan Desert (spring). Over oceans, major long-range dust transport is observed primarily along the tropical Atlantic (intensified during boreal summer) and secondarily in the North Pacific (intensified during boreal spring). Our calculated global and regional averages and associated uncertainties are consistent with some but not all recent observation-based studies. Our work provides a simple yet flexible method to estimate consistent uncertainties across spatiotemporal scales, which will enhance the use of the MIDAS dataset in a variety of future studies.

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• Location: Deutsche Nationalbibliothek Frankfurt am Main
• Extent: Online-Ressource
• Language: Englisch

References and Relationships

• Bibliographic citation: Quantification of the dust optical depth across spatiotemporal scales with the MIDAS global dataset (2003–2017) ; volume:22 ; number:5 ; year:2022 ; pages:3553-3578 ; extent:26 ; Atmospheric chemistry and physics ; 22, Heft 5 (2022), 3553-3578 (gesamt 26)

Contributors, Places and Time

• Creator: Gkikas, Antonis ; Proestakis, Emmanouil ; Amiridis, Vassilis ; Kazadzis, Stelios ; Di Tomaso, Enza ; Marinou, Eleni ; Hatzianastassiou, Nikos ; Kok, Jasper ; Pérez García-Pando, Carlos

Further information

• DOI: 10.5194/acp-22-3553-2022
• URN: urn:nbn:de:101:1-2022032404345667330317
• Rights: Open Access; Der Zugriff auf das Objekt ist unbeschränkt möglich.