Statistical Characteristics of Aerosol Extinction Coefficient Profile in East Asia from CALIPSO

Abstract

Aerosol extinction coefficient profile (ECP) is important in radiative transfer modeling, however, knowledge of ECP in some area has not been clearly recognized. To get a full understanding of statistical characteristics of ECP in three Asian regions: the Mongolian Plateau, the North China Plain and the Yellow Sea, CALIPSO aerosol product in 2012 is processed by conventional statistical methods. Orbit averaged ECP turns out to be mainly exponential and Gaussian patterns. Curve fitting shows that the two ECP patterns account for more than 50 percent of all the samples, especially in the Yellow Sea where the frequency of occurrence even reaches over 80 percent. Parameters determining fitting curves are provided consequently. To be specific, Gaussian pattern is the main ECP distribution in the Mongolian Plateau and the Yellow Sea, and exponential pattern predominates in the North China Plain. Besides, aerosol scale height reaches its maximum in summer and in the Mongolian Plateau. Meanwhile, the uplifting and deposition of dust during transportation are potentially explanations to the occurrence of Gaussian ECP. The results have certain representativeness, and contribute to reducing uncertainties of aerosol model in relevant researches.