Lidar Observations in South America. Part I - Mesosphere and Stratosphere

South America covers a large area of the globe and plays a fundamental function in its climate change, geographical features, and natural resources. However, it still is a developing area, and natural resource management and energy production are far from a sustainable framework, impacting the air quality of the area and needs much improvement in monitoring. There are significant activities regarding laser remote sensing of the atmosphere at different levels for different purposes. Among these activities, we can mention the mesospheric probing of sodium measurements and stratospheric monitoring of ozone, and the study of wind and gravity waves. Some of these activities are long-lasting and count on the support from the Latin American Lidar Network (LALINET). We intend to pinpoint the most significant scientific achievements and show the potential of carrying out remote sensing activities in the continent and show its correlations with other earth science connections and synergies. In Part I of this chapter, we will present an overview and significant results of lidar observations in the mesosphere and stratosphere. Part II will be dedicated to tropospheric observations

Lidar Observations in South America. Part II - Troposphere

In Part II of this chapter, we intend to show the significant advances and results concerning aerosols’ tropospheric monitoring in South America. The tropospheric lidar monitoring is also supported by the Latin American Lidar Network (LALINET). It is concerned about aerosols originating from urban pollution, biomass burning, desert dust, sea spray, and other primary sources. Cloud studies and their impact on radiative transfer using tropospheric lidar measurements are also presented

ESTUDO DA VARIABILIDADE DA COLUNA DE ÁGUA PRECIPITÁVEL (PWC) NO SEMIÁRIDO BRASILEIRO PARA CALIBRAÇÃO DE FOTÔMETRO SOLAR

A água está presente na atmosfera na forma de vapor, indo desde o nível do solo até a estratosfera. Como principal componente do ciclo hidrológico, a variação em sua quantidade sobre uma região provoca alterações nas condições climáticas, afetando assim as condições de vida e econômicas da população local. O fotômetro solar permite monitorar a variação dessa coluna de vapor de água, ou coluna de água precipitável (PWC) utilizando a radiação solar na banda de 940 nm, que sofre uma forte absorção ao atravessar a atmosfera. Para a calibração do fotômetro solar desenvolvido nesse trabalho, foi investigado um sítio na região semiárida do estado do Rio Grande do Norte, próximo à cidade de Caicó. Foi aplicado o Método de Langley Modificado (MLM) que é uma variação do Método de Langley. Essa metodologia permite calibrar fotômetro solar em campo aberto, que sob a condição de estabilidade óptica da atmosfera, permite obter-se constantes de calibração com melhores índices de incerteza que em laboratório. Os resultados, durante o período estudado, mostraram que não ocorreu a esperada estabilidade óptica da atmosfera para permitir a calibração do equipamento

Evaluation of atmospheric aerosols in the metropolitan area of São Paulo simulated by the regional EURAD-IM model on high-resolution

We present a high-resolution air quality study over São Paulo, Brazil with the EURopean Air Pollution Dispersion - Inverse Model (EURAD-IM) used for the first time over South America simulating detailed features of aerosols. Modeled data are evaluated with observational surface data and a Lidar. Two case studies in 2016 with distinct meteorological conditions and pollution plume features show transport (i) from central South America, associated to biomass burning activities, (ii) from the rural part of the state of São Paulo, (iii) between the metropolitan areas of Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo (MASP) either through the Paraíba Valley or via the ocean, connecting Brazil's two largest cities, (iv) from the port-city Santos to MASP and also from MASP to the city Campinas, and vice versa. A Pearson coefficient of 0.7 was found for PM10 at MASP CENTER and EURAD-IM simulations vary within the observational standard deviation, with a Mean Percentual Error (MPE) of 10%. The model's vertical distributions of aerosol layers agree with the Lidar profiles that show either characteristics of long-range transported biomass burning plumes, or of local pollution. The distinct transport patterns that agree with satellite Aerosol Optical Death and fire spot images as well as with the ground-based observations within the standard deviations, allows us exploring patterns of air pollution in a detailed manner and to understand the complex interactions between local to long-range transport sources