Investigation of biomass burning and aerosol loading and transport in South America utilizing geostationary satellites. Annual report, January-December 1995

Technical Report · Fri Dec 01 04:00:00 EST 1995

OSTI ID:218153

Menzel, P; Prins, E

This study attempts to assess the extent of burning and associated aerosol transport regimes in South America and the South Atlantic using geostationary satellite observations, in order to explore the possible roles of biomass burning in climate change and more directly in atmospheric chemistry and radiative transfer processes. Modeling and analysis efforts have suggested that the direct and indirect radiative effects of aerosols from biomass burning may play a major role in the radiative balance of the earth and are an important factor in climate change calculations. One of the most active regions of biomass burning is located in South America, associated with deforestation in the selva (forest), grassland management, and other agricultural practices. As part of the NASA Aerosol Interdisciplinary Program, the authors are utilizing GOES-7 (1988) and GOES-8 (1995) visible and multispectral infrared data (4, 11, and 12 microns) to document daily biomass burning activity in South America and to distinguish smoke/aerosols from other multi-level clouds and low-level moisture. This study catalogues the areal extent and transport of smoke/aerosols throughout the region and over the Atlantic Ocean for the 1988 (July-September) and 1995 (June-October) biomass burning seasons. The smoke/haze cover estimates are compared to the locations of fires to determine the source and verify the haze is actually associated with biomass burning activities. The temporal resolution of the GOES data (half-hourly in South America) makes it possible to determine the prevailing circulation and transport of aerosols by considering a series of visible and infrared images and tracking the motion of smoke, haze and adjacent clouds. The study area extends from 40 to 70 deg W and 0 to 40 deg S with aerosol coverage extending over the Atlantic Ocean when necessary. Fire activity is estimated with the GOES Automated Biomass Burning Algorithm (ABBA).

• Research Organization: Wisconsin Univ., Madison, WI (United States). Space Science and Engineering Center
• OSTI ID: 218153
• Report Number(s): N--96-21262; NASA-CR--200120; NAS--1.26:200120; NIPS--96-07893; CNN: NAGW-3804
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
AEROSOLS
ATMOSPHERIC CHEMISTRY
BIOMASS
CLIMATIC CHANGE
COMBUSTION
FIRES
GOES SATELLITES
PROGRESS REPORT
REMOTE SENSING
SOUTH AMERICA