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Title: Analysis of the atmospheric aerosol size distribution information retrievable from near-limb angular radiance measurements taken on Mauna Loa, Hawaii

Abstract

Angular radiance measurements of the near-limb solar aureole were analyzed for information regarding the light-scattering aerosol particles in the atmospheric column above Mauna Loa, Hawaii. The Mauna Loa Observatory, located at 19/sup 0/ 33' N latitude, 155/sup 0/ 35' W longitude, and 3460 metres elevation, is in unpolluted air above the easterly trade wind inversion and has been designated as a site for the Geophysical Monitoring for Climatic Change (GMCC) program. Circumsolar radiance and polarization measurements have been collected on Mauna Loa since 1963 by the High Altitude Observatory (HAO), National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) as part of a program for the daily observation of the solar corona. Strip charts containing radiance measurements made from January 1976 through June 1978 were made available for this study. By the use of Mie scattering theory, generalized to treat the sun as a finite diameter light source with limb-darkening, a theoretical scattering matrix was calculated for observation angles between 17' and 300' measured from the center of the solar disk, and aerosol size parameters (2..pi..r/lambda) between 10 and 300. An information content criterion is presented, based on the expected relative norm of the measurement errors and on the eigenvalues of the radiancemore » covariance matrix of the scattering matrix. The observed aureole radiance gradients and two test gradients were inverted to obtain aerosol size distributions using a constrained linear inversion algorithm.« less

Authors:
Publication Date:
Research Org.:
Lawrence Livermore National Lab., CA (USA)
OSTI Identifier:
5843499
Report Number(s):
UCRL-53233
ON: DE82005999
DOE Contract Number:  
W-7405-ENG-48
Resource Type:
Technical Report
Resource Relation:
Other Information: Thesis
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English
Subject:
54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES; AEROSOLS; PARTICLE SIZE; EARTH ATMOSPHERE; DISTRIBUTION; HAWAII; RADIANT FLUX DENSITY; SCATTERING; SUN; COLLOIDS; DISPERSIONS; FLUX DENSITY; MAIN SEQUENCE STARS; NORTH AMERICA; SIZE; SOLS; STARS; USA; WESTERN REGION; 500200* - Environment, Atmospheric- Chemicals Monitoring & Transport- (-1989)

Citation Formats

Grant, K E. Analysis of the atmospheric aerosol size distribution information retrievable from near-limb angular radiance measurements taken on Mauna Loa, Hawaii. United States: N. p., 1981. Web.
Grant, K E. Analysis of the atmospheric aerosol size distribution information retrievable from near-limb angular radiance measurements taken on Mauna Loa, Hawaii. United States.
Grant, K E. 1981. "Analysis of the atmospheric aerosol size distribution information retrievable from near-limb angular radiance measurements taken on Mauna Loa, Hawaii". United States.
@article{osti_5843499,
title = {Analysis of the atmospheric aerosol size distribution information retrievable from near-limb angular radiance measurements taken on Mauna Loa, Hawaii},
author = {Grant, K E},
abstractNote = {Angular radiance measurements of the near-limb solar aureole were analyzed for information regarding the light-scattering aerosol particles in the atmospheric column above Mauna Loa, Hawaii. The Mauna Loa Observatory, located at 19/sup 0/ 33' N latitude, 155/sup 0/ 35' W longitude, and 3460 metres elevation, is in unpolluted air above the easterly trade wind inversion and has been designated as a site for the Geophysical Monitoring for Climatic Change (GMCC) program. Circumsolar radiance and polarization measurements have been collected on Mauna Loa since 1963 by the High Altitude Observatory (HAO), National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) as part of a program for the daily observation of the solar corona. Strip charts containing radiance measurements made from January 1976 through June 1978 were made available for this study. By the use of Mie scattering theory, generalized to treat the sun as a finite diameter light source with limb-darkening, a theoretical scattering matrix was calculated for observation angles between 17' and 300' measured from the center of the solar disk, and aerosol size parameters (2..pi..r/lambda) between 10 and 300. An information content criterion is presented, based on the expected relative norm of the measurement errors and on the eigenvalues of the radiance covariance matrix of the scattering matrix. The observed aureole radiance gradients and two test gradients were inverted to obtain aerosol size distributions using a constrained linear inversion algorithm.},
doi = {},
url = {https://www.osti.gov/biblio/5843499}, journal = {},
number = ,
volume = ,
place = {United States},
year = {Tue Dec 01 00:00:00 EST 1981},
month = {Tue Dec 01 00:00:00 EST 1981}
}

Technical Report:
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