Search

Marine Heat Waves (MHWs) are events of prolonged anomalously warm water, in portions of the oceans, which may have severe impacts on the local marine ecosystems. In a climate change scenario, with increasing temperatures and more frequent atmospheric extreme events, the frequency and intensity of the MHWs are expected to increase. However, in a warming ocean, the choice of the long-term baseline used to compute SST anomalies becomes a critical issue, since it can significantly affect the frequency and intensity of the events. It may be argued that this climate change signal should be removed, in some way, to allow for a correct detection of MHWs.Here, we critically address the problem of how to characterize and define MHWs in the present warming climate scenario by evaluating the impact of different SST climatic baselines, and the effects of removing climate trends from the original SST time series. We focus on the Mediterranean Sea, a hot spot region for climate change, where a strong mean SST increasing trend (about 0.045 °C/year) has been observed in the last 40 years. Specifically, we use the Mediterranean SSTs, a satellite-based daily gap-free (level-4) SST provided in near real time at 1 km grid resolution and distributed through the Copernicus Marine Service (https://doi.org/10.48670/moi-00172 ).We then examine the strong Mediterranean MHW of 2022, which started in May and is not yet extinguished at the time of this writing (December 2022). The MHW extended its presence through the summer and autumn seasons, with a sequence of intense events that interested between 30% to 60% of the Mediterranean area. The intensity of the 2022 MHW was comparable to that of the famous 2003 event, but the durations of the two MHWs have been quite different: in 2003 the areal threshold of 30% was exceeded from May to August (4 months) while in 2022 that threshold was exceeded from May to December and continues in January 2023. The evolution of the 2022 MHW is also discussed in relation to the corresponding atmospheric events occurred over the western portion of Europe and of the Mediterranean Sea and complemented with in situ data acquired at the ENEA station for climate observation of Lampedusa.This work is funded in the framework of project “Detection and threats of marine heat waves -CAREHeat” of the European Space Agency - ESA – OCEAN HEALTH program.

The impact of the aerosol optical properties on the ultraviolet index (UVI) in the urban area of Rome is investigated in this study. In particular, the influence of aerosol optical depth (AOD) and single scattering albedo (SSA), estimated at the wavelength of 340 nm, and of the Ångström exponent, calculated in the range 340–500 nm, over a period of 11 years (2010–2020) in the months from March to September are analyzed. The UVI is monitored by a Brewer spectrophotometer, whereas measurements of the direct Sun and diffuse sky irradiances are performed by a co-located PREDE-POM sun–sky radiometer of the ESR/SKYNET network; the aerosol optical properties are obtained by the Skyrad MRIv2 retrieval. A novel method, based on physical principles and easily adaptable to other contexts, is developed to extrapolate the aerosol properties to the UV range during periods when only visible to near-infrared measurements are available. The retrievals from the sun–sky radiometer are consistent with the chemical characterization of urban PM10 (particulate matter 10 mm or less in diameter) samples collected during an intensive field campaign held in summer 2011 at the same site (URBan Sustainability Related to Observed and Monitored Aerosol – URBS ROMA). The PM macro components identified during the campaign are grouped in order to evaluate the contribution of the main macro sources (soil, sea, secondary inorganic, organics, and traffic) whose relative role is indeed expected to strongly affect the aerosol absorption capability. The surface forcing efficiency, calculated as the change in the UV index for a unit AOD variation, shows that AOD is the primary parameter affecting the surface irradiance under clear-sky conditions in Rome. SSA and the Ångström exponent are also identified as secondary influencing factors, i.e., the surface forcing efficiency is found to be greater for smaller zenith angles and for larger and more absorbent particles in the UV range (such as, e.g., mineral dust).

The Arctic region is showing the most intense warming of the globe, because of different regional feedback mechanisms. Both observed and projected warming rates reach a maximum in the autumn and winter seasons (Bintanja and Krikken, 2016), when the Arctic surface energy budget is dominated by longwave radiation. Indeed, due to the seasonal variation of the of shortwave radiation, the longwave radiation plays a key role in the Arctic, where the annual total Downward Longwave Irradiance (DLI) is usually more than twice as large as the annual downward shortwave irradiance. Nevertheless, surface longwave irradiance measurements in the Arctic are particularly scarce, and satellite retrievals of surface radiation budget based on satellite data are notoriously problematic at high latitudes.High resolution observations of DLI, surface temperature, water vapour surface partial pressure and column amount, zenith sky IR radiance and vertical temperature profile derived by a microwave radiometer are routinely carried out at the Thule High Arctic Atmospheric Observatory (THAAO, 76.5 N, 68.8 W), in North Eastern Greenland (https://ofcsg2dvf1.dwd.de/fmlurlsvc/?fewReq=:B:JVs5MjYzOSV1PjEtMyVqZz4zMjkzMiVwamRtYnd2cWY+MTVnMjJiYmU6ZztgZ2dlYDBiNWVnO2U1NjtiNmE6OjtgNTcwNGBnMSV3PjI1NjEzOjI2NTslcmpnPjE3OkJJUDtOMzI1NDM3LjE3OkJJUDtNMzI1NDM3JXFgc3c+UHdmZWJtLVRiYGhmcUNndGctZ2YlYD43OiVrZ28+Mw==&url=https%3a%2f%2fwww.thuleatmos-it.it%2f ). In the frame of the CLouds And Radiation in the Arctic and Antarctica (CLARA2) project, a celiometer has been installed in November 2019 with the aim of strengthening the cloud observational capability at the Observatory already including, among the other instruments, upward- and downward-looking pyranometers and pyrgeometers operating at THAAO since July 2016.Preliminary statistical results for cloud base altitude, cloud depth, liquid water path (LWP), temperature profiles and presence/intensity of temperature inversion at THAAO will be shown. Analysis on the relationship between LWP and IR downward irradiance and radiance in cloudy and clear sky is also presented.ReferencesBintanja, R., Krikken, F. Magnitude and pattern of Arctic warming governed by the seasonality of radiative forcing. Sci Rep 6, 38287 (2016). https://ofcsg2dvf1.dwd.de/fmlurlsvc/?fewReq=:B:JVs5MjYzOSV1PjEtMyVqZz4zMjkzMiVwamRtYnd2cWY+MjRnOzY0ZjQ3Ojc1ZTAwNDM2NWAxYjE1NTVmNzo3N2YwYDAyNDRnMyV3PjI1NjEzOjI2NTslcmpnPjE3OkJJUDtOMzI1NDM3LjE3OkJJUDtNMzI1NDM3JXFgc3c+UHdmZWJtLVRiYGhmcUNndGctZ2YlYD42MSVrZ28+Mw==&url=https%3a%2f%2fdoi.org%2f10.1038%2fsrep38287

This paper presents the results on simultaneous high time resolution measurements of biogenic aerosol (methane sulfonic acid-MSA, non-sea salt sulfate nssSO42-) with its gaseous precursor dimethylsulfide (DMS) performed at the Italian coastal base Mario Zucchelli Station (MZS) in Terra Nova Bay (MZS) during two summer campaigns (2018–2019 and 2019–2020). The study provides information on marine biological activity in the nearby polynya in the Ross Sea and on the influence of biogenic and atmospheric processes on biogenic aerosol formation. Data on atmospheric DMS concentration are scarce especially in Antarctica. The DMS-maximum at MZS occurs in December, one month earlier than at other Antarctic stations. The maximum of DMS concentration is connected with the phytoplanktonic senescent phase following the bloom of Phaeocystis antarctica that occurs in the polynya when sea ice opens up. The second plankton bloom occurs in January and, despite the high Dimethylsulfopropionate (DMSP) concentration in sea water, atmospheric DMS remains low probably due to its fast biological turnover in sea water in this period. The intensity and timing of the DMS evolution during the two years suggests that only the portion of the polynya close to the sampling site produces a discernible effect on the measured DMS. The closeness to the DMS source area, and the occurrence of air masses containing DMS and freshly formed oxidation products allow to study the kinetic of biogenic aerosol formation and the reliable derivation of the branch ratio between MSA and nssSO42- from DMS oxidation that is estimated to be 0.84 ± 0.06. Conversely, for aged airmasses with low DMS content, an enrichment of nssSO42- with respect to MSA, due to the presence of background concentration of nssSO42- from volcanic origin (Erebus) or from long range transport, takes place. Therefore, the aged air mass presents an MSA / nssSO42- ratio lower than in newly formed biogenic aerosol. By considering the sum of MSA and biogenic nssSO42-, we estimate that the mean contribution of biogenic particulate matter to PM10 is 17 %, with a maximum of 56 %. The high contribution of biogenic aerosol to the total PM10 mass in summer in this area highlights the dominant role of the polynya on biogenic aerosol formation. Finally, due to the regional and year-to year variability of DMS and related biogenic aerosol formation, we stress the need of long-term measurements of atmospheric DMS and biogenic aerosol along the Antarctic coast and in the Southern Ocean.

In this study the short- and long-term variability of the surface spectral solar ultraviolet (UV) irradiance are investigated over Italy using high quality ground based measurements from three sites located at quite different environmental conditions, and covering the full latitudinal extent of the Italian territory: Aosta (45.7° N, 7.4°  E, 570 m a.s.l.), Rome (41.9° N, 12.5° E, 75 m a.s.l.), and Lampedusa (35.5° N, 12.6° E, 50 m a.s.l.). The variability of the irradiances at 307.5 nm, 324 nm, and of the ratio between the 307.5 nm and the 324 nm irradiances were investigated with respect to the corresponding variability in total ozone and the geopotential height at 250 hPa (GPH). The study was performed for two periods: 2006–2020 for all stations, and 1996–2020 only for Rome. A statistically significant correlation between the GPH and total ozone monthly anomalies was found for all stations and all seasons of the year. A corresponding statistically significant correlation was also found in most cases between the GPH and the 307.5 nm irradiance monthly anomalies. The correlation between GPH anomalies at different sites was statistically significant, possibly explaining the strong and significant correlation between the total ozone monthly anomalies at the three sites. A statistically significant decrease of total ozone, of ~0.1 %/year was found for Rome for the period 1996–2020, which however did not induce increasing trends in irradiance at 307.5 nm (neither increasing trends in the ratio between the 307.5 nm and the 324 nm irradiances) at SZA = 67°. Further analyses revealed positive trends in the ratio and the 307.5 nm irradiance at smaller solar zenith angles (SZA), which can be attributed to the fact that total ozone decrease is driven by a decrease in the lower stratosphere while upper stratospheric ozone increases, and the effect of changes of upper stratospheric ozone becoming disproportionately larger for increasing SZA. It was also showed that long-term changes in total ozone follow changes in GPH, which is an additional indication that negative trends in total ozone are mainly driven by changes in lower stratospheric ozone. An anti-correlation between the GPH long-term changes and total ozone was also evident for all stations in 2006–2020. Positive trends in UV irradiance for this latter period which were possibly driven by changes in clouds and/or aerosols were found for Rome and Aosta. This study clearly points out the significance of dynamical processes which take place in the troposphere for the variability of total ozone and surface solar UV irradiance.

Measurements of downwelling shortwave (SW) and longwave (LW) irradiance were carried out on an oceanographic buoy close to the island of Lampedusa (Italy), in the central Mediterranean Sea. Irradiance measurements on the buoy were acquired at high time resolution together with the radiometer pitch and roll angles. The measurements carried out during 2016 have been compared with ground-based observations made at the Lampedusa Atmospheric Observatory, about 15 km northeast of the buoy. The radiometers were compared before and after deployment on the buoy and are traceable to the World Radiometric Reference scale. The SW measurements were corrected for the thermal offset. A small bias (measurements over the sea are smaller than on land) of about −2 W m−2 is found in the daily mean SW, and a moderate bias of +6.2 W m−2 (irradiance over the sea is larger than on land) is found in the LW. Similar biases are found when instantaneous measurements obtained with horizontal radiometers, clean domes, and cloud-free conditions are selected, suggesting that impacts of the moving platform and poor dome cleaning are minor at this site. The effect of the mean tilt angle was also investigated. Deviations in the hourly mean SW irradiance are on the order of 20% for a mean offset of 4° with respect to the solar zenith angle; the effect of tilt angle on LW irradiance appears to be negligible. Radiative transfer calculations show that the observed biases may be ascribed to the differences in the instrument altitude (through radiation absorption, scattering, and emission by the atmospheric constituents in the lowest atmospheric layers) and in the SW surface albedo.

Air–sea heat fluxes are essential climate variables, required for understanding air–sea interactions, local, regional and global climate, the hydrological cycle and atmospheric and oceanic circulation. In situ measurements of fluxes over the ocean are sparse and model reanalysis and satellite data can provide estimates at different scales. The accuracy of such estimates is therefore essential to obtain a reliable description of the occurring phenomena and changes. In this work, air–sea radiative fluxes derived from the SEVIRI sensor onboard the MSG satellite and from ERA5 reanalysis have been compared to direct high quality measurements performed over a complete annual cycle at the ENEA oceanographic observatory, near the island of Lampedusa in the Central Mediterranean Sea. Our analysis reveals that satellite derived products overestimate in situ direct observations of the downwelling short-wave (bias of 6.1 W/m2) and longwave (bias of 6.6 W/m2) irradiances. ERA5 reanalysis data show a negligible positive bias (+1.0 W/m2) for the shortwave irradiance and a large negative bias (−17 W/m2) for the longwave irradiance with respect to in situ observations. ERA5 meteorological variables, which are needed to calculate the air–sea heat flux using bulk formulae, have been compared with in situ measurements made at the oceanographic observatory. The two meteorological datasets show a very good agreement, with some underestimate of the wind speed by ERA5 for high wind conditions. We investigated the impact of different determinations of heat fluxes on the near surface sea temperature (1 m depth), as determined by calculations with a one-dimensional numerical model, the General Ocean Turbulence Model (GOTM). The sensitivity of the model to the different forcing was measured in terms of differences with respect to in situ temperature measurements made during the period under investigation. All simulations reproduced the true seasonal cycle and all high frequency variabilities. The best results on the overall seasonal cycle were obtained when using meteorological variables in the bulk formulae formulations used by the model itself. The derived overall annual net heat flux values were between +1.6 and 40.4 W/m2, depending on the used dataset. The large variability obtained with different datasets suggests that current determinations of the heat flux components and, in particular, of the longwave irradiance, need to be improved. The ENEA oceanographic observatory provides a complete, long-term, high resolution time series of high quality in situ observations. In the future, more similar sites worldwide will be needed for model and satellite validations and to improve the determination of the air–sea exchange and the understanding of related processes.

Extended and intense wildfires occurred in Northern Canada and, unexpectedly, on the Greenlandic West coast during summer 2017. The thick smoke plume emitted into the atmosphere was transported to the high Arctic, producing one of the largest impacts ever observed in the region. Evidence of Canadian and Greenlandic wildfires was recorded at the Thule High Arctic Atmospheric Observatory (THAAO, 76.5°N, 68.8°W, www.thuleatmos-it.it) by a suite of instruments managed by ENEA, INGV, Univ. of Florence, and NCAR. Ground-based observations of the radiation budget have allowed quantification of the surface radiative forcing at THAAO. Excess biomass burning chemical tracers such as CO, HCN, H2CO, C2H6, and NH3 were measured in the air column above Thule starting from August 19 until August 23. The aerosol optical depth (AOD) reached a peak value of about 0.9 on August 21, while an enhancement of wildfire compounds was detected in PM10. The measured shortwave radiative forcing was -36.7 W/m2 at 78° solar zenith angle (SZA) for AOD=0.626.MODTRAN6.0 radiative transfer model (Berk et al., 2014) was used to estimate the aerosol radiative effect and the heating rate profiles at 78° SZA. Measured temperature profiles, integrated water vapour, surface albedo, spectral AOD and aerosol extinction profiles from CALIOP onboard CALIPSO were used as model input. The peak aerosol heating rate (+0.5 K/day) was reached within the aerosol layer between 8 and 12 km, while the maximum radiative effect (-45.4 W/m2) is found at 3 km, below the largest aerosol layer.The regional impact of the event that occurred on August 21 was investigated using a combination of atmospheric radiative transfer modelling with measurements of AOD and ground surface albedo from MODIS. The aerosol properties used in the radiative transfer model were constrained by in situ measurements from THAAO. Albedo data over the ocean have been obtained from Jin et al. (2004). Backward trajectories produced through HYSPLIT simulations (Stein et al., 2015) were also employed to trace biomass burning plumes.The radiative forcing efficiency (RFE) over land and ocean was derived, finding values spanning from -3 W/m2 to -132 W/m2, depending on surface albedo and solar zenith angle. The fire plume covered a vast portion of the Arctic, with large values of the daily shortwave RF (< -50 W/m2) lasting for a few days. This large amount of aerosol is expected to influence cloud properties in the Arctic, producing significant indirect radiative effects.

The EPL-RADIO (Etna Plume Lab - Radioactive Aerosols and other source parameters for better atmospheric Dispersion and Impact estimatiOns) and EPL-REFLECT (near-source estimations of Radiative EFfects of voLcanic aErosols for Climate and air quality sTudies) projects, funded by the EC Horizon2020 ENVRIplus and EUROVOLC Transnational Access to European Observatories programmes, aim to advance the understanding of Mount Etna as a persistent source of atmospheric aerosols and its impact on the radiative budget at proximal to regional spatial scales. Research was tackled by carrying out three campaigns in the summers of 2016, 2017 and 2019 to observe the volcanic plume produced by passive degassing, proximally and distally from the summit craters, using a wide array of remote sensing and in situ instruments. Diverse data are collected to explore the link of inner degassing mechanisms to the characterisation of near-source aerosol physicochemical properties and subsequent impacts on the atmosphere, environment and regional climate system.The results of the three campaigns have shown that the volcanic plume emitted by Mount Etna often mixes with aerosols of different origins generating a complex layered pattern. Frequent mineral dust transport events were observed by both LiDAR observations located at Serra La Nave (~7 km south-west from summit craters) and at a medium-term radiometric station, equipped with a Multi-Filter Rotating Shadowband Radiometer (MFRSR), and other instruments located at Milo (~10 km eastwards from the craters). LiDAR observations also allowed to study the coexistence of volcanic aerosols and biomass burning particles from local to more distal smoke plumes transports (like for the well-documented large fires from continental southern Italy in July 2017). In situ filter and optical particles counter measurements confirmed the presence of dust at Milo. The interaction/mixing among volcanic, wildfire, and dust aerosols occurs in an overall dynamical regime which appears to be dominated by sea breeze, which is strengthened by the presence of the dark volcanic lava flanks. Photolysis process also possibly play a role in determining the daily evolution of the aerosol plume.The sources of these different aerosol types are studied in detail using Lagrangian trajectories and meteorological data. Off-line radiative transfer calculations, using EPL-RADIO/REFLECT observations as input data, are used to estimate the relative radiative impact of the different aerosol types with respect to the background passive-degassing aerosols coming from Mount Etna.

The radiative effects of clouds and their microphysical structure in Polar regions are still object of large uncertainty, that contribute to determine the large inaccuracies of climate model in the representation of clouds and their effects.In the frame of the CLouds And Radiation in the Arctic and Antarctica (CLARA2) project, a celiometer has been installed in November 2019 at the Thule High Arctic Atmospheric Observatory, THAAO, an international infrastructure located in proximity of Thule Air Base (76.5°N, 68.8°W), Greenland (http://www.thuleatmos-it.it/) with the aim of strengthening the cloud observational capability at the Observatory already including, among the other instruments, a microwave profiler and upward- and downward-looking pyranometers and pyrgeometers operating since July 2016.CLARA2 should have contributed to the YOPP 2020 Arctic Special Observing Period (SOP) in February-March with intensive measurements of the atmospheric vertical structure by means of a microwave profiler, a celiometer and daily radiosoundings, but the arrival of the COVID19 prevented the involved researchers to carry out the field campaign at THAAO. Nonetheless the automatic measurements were collected regularly also during the 2020 SOP.The temporal evolution of the cloud’s presence and characteristics during the two months SOP will be presented and discussed in terms of meteorological conditions, broadband surface radiation fluxes, cloud’s geometrical characteristics, phase and liquid water path.

A widE-Ranging investigation of the first COVID-19 LOCkdown effects on the atmospheric composition in five Italian Urban Sites (AER–LOCUS) has been carried out and is presented in this study. The analysis uses particle and gas concentrations from surface in situ sampling, column aerosol and gas properties from photometer/spectrometers, and satellite NO2 determinations at five sites distributed over the whole Italian territory: Aosta, Milan, Bologna, Rome, and Taranto. These data are related to meteorological conditions to identify the numerous events of long-range transport and separate local from remote influences. Four different types of long-range transport over Italy are identified during the lockdown period, affecting PM10, PM2.5, and NO2 concentrations, and aerosol optical depths: fires plumes from Eastern Europe and Montenegro, dust from the Caspian area and from the Sahara, and pollution from the Po Valley. Once the long-range transport events are identified and excluded, the variation of gas and particle concentrations occurring during the containment period is calculated with respect to the period 2015–2019. A general decrease of PM10 (ranging from a maximum of −52% in Aosta to a minimum of −4% in Taranto), PM2.5 (from −46% in Aosta and Milan to −0.6% in Bologna), BC (from −77% in Aosta to −25% in Milan), NO2 (from −72% in Rome to −4% in Taranto), and benzene (about −50%) concentration is found. A positive variation of PM2.5 is conversely found during March in the southern sites due to some stagnation events, and a strong increase of benzene (up to +104%) in the industrial area of Taranto. Ozone is found to increase by an average of about 30% in all sites. The removal of the long-range transport contributions affects the variations with respect to the reference period reducing the concentrations by up to 22% for PM10 and 29% for PM2.5 in the northern sites, and 18% for PM10 and 16% for PM2.5 in the southern sites. For NO2 the reduction due to the removal is up to 14% in Milan and 6% in the southern sites, while for the aerosol optical depth it is up to 70% in Aosta and 50% in Rome.

The aerosol properties of Mount Etna’s passive degassing plume and its short-term processes and radiative impact were studied in detail during the EPL-RADIO/REFLECT campaigns (summer 2016, 17 and 19), using a synergistic combination of remote-sensing and in situ observations, and radiative transfer modelling. Summit observations show extremely high particulate matter concentrations, with no evidence of secondary sulphate aerosols (SA) formation. Marked indications of secondary SA formation, i.e. by the conversion of volcanic SO2 emissions, are found at larger spatial scales (

The Mediterranean basin is considered a global hot-spot region for climate change and air-quality. CO2 is the single most-important anthropogenic greenhouse gas (GHG) in the atmosphere, accounting approximatively for ∼63% of the anthropogenic radiative forcing by long-lived GHG. According to Le Quérée et al. (2018), the increasing of the atmospheric CO2 mixing ratios in the global atmosphere is driven by fossil fuel and cement production.In order to reduce GHG emissions and taking into account the needs for economy and society development, schemes of regulation and emission trading have been adopted at international, national, and city levels. The implementation of these regulation, to achieve the goal successfully, needs scientific evidence and information provided on consistent datasets. In the last year, efforts are dedicated to set up harmonized reference networks at difference scales (WMO/GAW, AGAGE, ICOS).In this work, we analysed a set of continuous long-term measurements of CO2 carried out at 4 atmospheric observatories in Italy belonging to the WMO/GAW network and spanning from the Alpine region to central Mediterranean Sea: Plateau Rosa (western Italian Alps, 3480 m a.s.l.), Mt. Cimone (northern Apennines, 2165 m a.s.l.), Capo Granitola (southern Sicily coastline) and Lampedusa Island. Mt. Cimone is also a “class-2” ICOS station, while Plateau Rosa and Lampedusa are in the labelling process. Starting time of GHG observations range from 1979 for Mt. Cimone to 2015 for Capo Granitola. Due to their different locations and ecosystems, they provide useful hints to investigate CO2 variability on different latitudinal and altitudinal ranges in the Mediterranean basin and to study of natural and anthropogenic-related processes able to affect the observed variability.The study addresses primarily differences in daily and seasonal cycles at the different sites, and implemented a procedure to identify background conditions called BaDSfit (Background Data Selection for Italian stations; Trisolino et al., submitted). This methodology was originally used at Plateau Rosa station (Apadula, 2019) and it is based on the Mauna Loa data selection method (Tans and Thoning, 2008). BaDSfit consist of three steps and an optimization of the procedure was carried out with a sensitivity study. Marked differences among the daily cycles at the various sites exist. The effect of the data selection on the seasonal and diurnal cycle and long-term evolution is investigated. The BaDSfit lead to a more coherent diurnal and seasonal evolution of the different datasets, is able to identify background condition and allows the separation of local/regional scale from large scale phenomena in the CO2 time series.

Atmospheric fluxes of dissolved organic matter (DOM) were studied for the first time at the Island of Lampedusa, a remote site in the Central Mediterranean Sea (Med Sea), close to the Sahara desert, between 19 March 2015 and 1 April 2017. The main goals of this work are: to quantify total atmospheric deposition of DOM in this area and to evaluate the impact of dust deposition on DOM dynamics in the surface waters of the Mediterranean Sea. Our data show high variability in DOM deposition rates without a clear seasonality and allow to estimate a dissolved organic carbon (DOC) input from the atmosphere of 120.7 mmol DOC m−2 yr−1. Over the entire time-series, the average dissolved organic phosphorous (DOP) and dissolved organic nitrogen (DON) contributions to the total dissolved pools were 40 % and 26 %, respectively. The data on atmospheric elemental ratios also show that each deposition event is characterized by a specific elemental ratio, suggesting a high variability in DOM composition and the presence of multiple sources. This study indicates that the organic substances transported by Saharan dust at Lampedusa site mainly have natural origin, especially from sea spray and that Saharan dust can be an important carrier of organic substances, even if the load of DOC associated with dust is highly variable. Our estimates suggest that atmospheric input has an impact to the Med Sea larger than to the global ocean and that DOC fluxes from the atmosphere to the Med Sea can be up to 6-fold larger than river input. Longer time series, combined with a modelling effort, are therefore mandatory in order to investigate the response of DOM dynamics in the Med Sea to the change in aerosol deposition pattern due to the effect of climate change.

A new method for time series analysis allowing the description of background evolution and outliers was developed. This approach was tested on CO2 weekly measurements made at Mauna Loa, Hawaii, and Lampedusa, Italy, for a period (1992–2014) longer than the 11-year solar cycle. After the time series was detrended, the Generalised Lomb-Scargle periodogram was computed for frequency domain analysis. All frequencies corresponding to values in the spectrum higher than a threshold were filtered out, and the time series was reduced to residuals. Residuals were analysed principally focusing on persistency, inspected via detrended fluctuation analysis. The analysis allows to highlight similarities and differences between the two stations. Annual and semi-annual periods are present in both the time series, with significantly larger amplitudes at Lampedusa than at Mauna Loa, where however they explain about 83% of the variability, compared to about 62% at Lampedusa. Remarkably, a different Hurst exponent was found, with a value corresponding to pink noise for Mauna Loa, and a smaller value (about 0.80) for Lampedusa. This is attributed to the different characteristics of the two stations.

Atmospheric fluxes of dissolved organic matter (DOM) were studied for the first time on the island of Lampedusa, a remote site in the central Mediterranean Sea (Med Sea), between 19 March 2015 and 1 April 2017. The main goals of this study were to quantify total atmospheric deposition of DOM in this area and to evaluate the impact of Saharan dust deposition on DOM dynamics in the surface waters of the Mediterranean Sea. Our data show high variability in DOM deposition rates without a clear seasonality and a dissolved organic carbon (DOC) input from the atmosphere of 120.7 mmol DOC m−2 yr−1. Over the entire time series, the average dissolved organic phosphorus (DOP) and dissolved organic nitrogen (DON) contributions to the total dissolved pools were 40 % and 26 %, respectively. The data on atmospheric elemental ratios also show that each deposition event is characterized by a specific elemental ratio, suggesting a high variability in DOM composition and the presence of multiple sources. This study indicates that the organic substances transported by Saharan dust on Lampedusa mainly come from a natural sea spray and that Saharan dust can be an important carrier of organic substances even though the load of DOC associated with dust is highly variable. Our estimates suggest that atmospheric input has a larger impact on the Med Sea than on the global ocean. Further, DOC fluxes from the atmosphere to the Med Sea can be up to 6 times larger than total river input. Longer time series combined with modeling would greatly improve our understanding of the response of DOM dynamics in the Med Sea to the change in aerosol deposition pattern due to the effect of climate change.

A significantly stronger impact in mortality and morbidity by COVID-19 has been observed in the northern Italian regions compared to the southern ones. The reasons of this geographical pattern might involve several concurrent factors. The main objective of this work is to investigate whether any correlations exist between the spatial distribution of COVID-19 cases and deaths in the different Italian regions and the amount of solar ultraviolet (UV) radiation at the Earth's surface. To this purpose, in this environmental ecological study a mixed-effect exponential regression was built to explain the incidence of COVID-19 based on the environmental conditions, and demographic and pathophysiologic factors. Observations and estimates of the cumulative solar UV exposure have been included to quantify the amount of radiation available e.g., for pre-vitamin D3 synthesis or SARS-CoV-2 inactivation by the sunlight. The analysis shows a significant correlation (p-value, Graphical abstract Unlabelled Image, Highlights • Clinical impact of COVID-19 was much stronger in northern than in southern Italy. • Vitamin D UV estimated from the space correlate to ground-based measurements. • Clinical outcomes correlate with environmental, demographic and pathophysiologic factors. • Among these factors, UV exposure explains up to 83% of the variance of the cases. • The results are consistent with the favorable role of vitamin D on the immune system.

Ship traffic, population, infrastructure development, and mining activities are expected to increase in the Arctic due to its rising temperatures. This is expected to produce a major impact on aerosol composition. Metals contained in atmospheric particles are powerful markers and can be extremely helpful to gain insights on the different aerosol sources. This work aims at studying the sources of metals in the Arctic aerosol sampled at the Thule High Arctic Atmospheric Observatory (THAAO; Greenland, 76.5°N 68.8°W). Due to the particular composition of Greenlandic soils and to properties of other sources, it was possible to find several signatures of natural and anthropogenic aerosols transported from local and long-range regions. Arctic haze (AH) at Thule builds up on long-range transported aerosol mainly from Canada and Nord America. From a chemical standpoint, this aerosol is characterized by a high concentration of sulfate, Pb, As and Cd and by a La/Ce ratio larger than 1. The Ti/Al and Fe/Al ratios in the AH aerosol are lower (Ti/Al = 0.04 w/w; Fe/Al = 0.79 w/w) than for local aerosol (Ti/Al = 0.07 w/w; Fe/Al = 0.89 w/w). Conversely, aerosol arising from coastal areas of South-West Greenland is characterized by a high concentration of V, Ni, and Cr. These metals, generally considered anthropogenic, arise here mainly from natural crustal sources. In some summer samples, however, the V/Ni ratio becomes larger than 3. In particular, cases displaying this characteristic ratio, as also shown by backward trajectories, are associated with sporadic transport to Thule of ship aerosol from ships passing through Baffin Bay and arriving to Thule during summer. Although further measurements are necessary to confirm the discussed results, the analysis carried out in this work on a large number of metals sampled in coastal Greenland aerosol is unprecedented.

New calculations of the relative optical air mass function are made over the 0°–87° range of apparent solar zenith angle θ, for various vertical profiles of background aerosol, diamond dust and thin cirrus cloud particle extinction coefficient in the Arctic and Antarctic atmospheres. The calculations were carried out by following the Tomasi and Petkov (2014) procedure, in which the above-mentioned vertical profiles derived from lidar observations were used as weighting functions. Different sets of lidar measurements were examined, recorded using: (i) the Koldewey-Aerosol-Raman Lidar (KARL) system (AWI, Germany) at Ny-Ålesund (Spitsbergen, Svalbard) in January, April, July and October 2013, (ii) the Cloud-Aerosol Lidar and Infrared Pathfinder Satellite Observations (CALIPSO) satellite-based sensor over Barrow (Alaska), Eureka (Nunavut, Canada) and Sodankylä (northern Finland), and Neumayer III, Mario Zucchelli and Mirny coastal stations in Antarctica in the local summer months of the last two years, (iii) the National Institute of Optics (INO), National Council of Research (CNR) Antarctic lidar at Dome C on the Antarctic Plateau for a typical “diamond dust” case, and (iv) the KARL lidar at Ny-Ålesund and the University of Rome/National Agency for New Technologies, Energy and Sustainable Economic Development (ENEA) lidar at Thule (northwestern Greenland) for some cirrus cloud layers in the middle and upper troposphere. The relative optical air mass calculations are compared with those obtained by Tomasi and Petkov (2014) to define the seasonal changes produced by aerosol particles, diamond dust and cirrus clouds. The results indicate that the corresponding air mass functions generally decrease as angle θ increases with rates that are proportional to the increase in the pure aerosol, diamond dust and cirrus cloud particle optical thickness.

Detailed atmospheric and aerosol properties, and radiation measurements were carried out in summer 2013 during the Aerosol Direct Radiative Impact on the regional climate in the MEDiterranean region (ADRIMED) campaign in the framework of the Chemistry-Aerosol Mediterranean Experiment (ChArMEx) experiment. This study focusses on the characterization of infrared (IR) optical properties and direct radiative effects of mineral dust, based on three vertical profiles of atmospheric and aerosol properties and IR broadband and narrowband radiation from airborne measurements, made in conjunction with radiosonde and ground-based observations at Lampedusa, in the central Mediterranean. Satellite IR spectra from IASI are also included in the analysis. The atmospheric and aerosol properties are used as input to a radiative transfer model, and various IR radiation parameters (upward and downward irradiance, nadir and zenith brightness temperature at different altitudes) are calculated and compared with observations. The model calculations are made for different sets of dust size distribution and refractive indices, derived from observations and from the literature. The main results of the analysis are that the IR dust radiative forcing is non negligible, and strongly depends on size distribution (SD) and refractive index (RI). When calculations are made using the in situ measured size distribution, it is possible to identify the refractive index that produces the best match with observed IR irradiances and brightness temperatures (BTs). The most appropriate refractive indices correspond to those determined from independent measurements of mineral dust aerosols from the source regions (Tunisia, Algeria, Morocco) of dust transported over Lampedusa, suggesting that differences in the source properties should be taken into account. With the in situ size distribution and the most appropriate refractive index the estimated dust IR radiative forcing efficiency is +23.7 W m-2 at the surface, -7.9 W m-2 within the atmosphere, and +15.8 W m-2 at the top of the atmosphere. The use of column integrated dust SD from AERONET may also produce a good agreement with measured irradiances and BTs, but with significantly different values of the RI. This implies large differences, up to a factor of 2.5 at surface, in the estimated dust radiative forcing, and in the IR heating rate. This study shows that spectrally resolved measurements of brightness temperatures are important to better constrain the dust IR optical properties, and to obtain a reliable estimate of its radiative effects. Efforts should be directed at obtaining an improved description of the dust size distribution, its vertical distribution, and at including regionally-resolved optical properties.

International audience; The emission of gases and aerosols due to volcanic activity may impact significantly atmospheric composition, cloud occurrence and properties, and the regional and global climate. While the effects of strong explosive (stratospheric) eruptions are relatively well known, limited information on the impacts of small to moderate volcanic activities, including passive degassing, is available. In this paper, the downwind impact of Mount Etna's sulfur emissions on the central Mediterranean is investigated on a statistical basis over the period 2000–2013 using: (a) daily sulfur dioxide emission rates measured near crater at Mount Etna with ground-based ultraviolet spectrophotometers, (b) Lagrangian trajectories and simulated plume dispersion obtained with the FLEXPART (FLEXible PARTicle dispersion) model, and (c) long-term observations of column SO2 concentration and aerosol Ångström exponent α at Lampedusa (35.5° N, 12.6° E). This statistical analysis has allowed, for the first time, the characterization of decadal impact of Mount Etna's sulfur emissions on the sulfur dioxide and the aerosol microphysical/optical properties in the central Mediterranean. On average, statistically significant higher SO2 concentrations and smaller aerosol sizes are present when air masses from Mount Etna overpass Lampedusa. Despite being upwind of Lampedusa for only 5% of the time, Mount Etna is potentially responsible for up to 40% and 20% of the SO2 and α extreme values (exceedances of a fixed threshold), respectively, at this location. The most important factor determining this perturbation is the prevailing dynamics, while the magnitude of the SO2 emission rates from Mount Etna appears to be likely important only for relatively strong emissions. The observed perturbations to the aerosol size distribution are expected to produce a direct regional radiative effect in this area.

The UV Index was established more than 20 years ago as a tool for sun protection and health care. Shortly after its introduction, UV Index monitoring started in several countries either by newly acquired instruments or by converting measurements from existing instruments into the UV Index. The number of stations and networks has increased over the years. Currently, 160 stations in 25 European countries deliver online values to the public via the Internet. In this paper an overview of these UV Index monitoring sites in Europe is given. The overview includes instruments as well as quality assurance and quality control procedures. Furthermore, some examples are given about how UV Index values are presented to the public. Through these efforts, 57% of the European population is supplied with high quality information, enabling them to adapt behaviour. Although health care, including skin cancer prevention, is cost-effective, a proportion of the European population still doesn't have access to UV Index information.

Particulate matter with aerodynamic diameters lower than 10 µm, (PM10) aerosol samples were collected during summer 2013 within the framework of the Chemistry and Aerosol Mediterranean Experiment (ChArMEx) at two sites located north (Capo Granitola) and south (Lampedusa Island), respectively, of the main Mediterranean shipping route in the Straight of Sicily. The PM10 samples were collected with 12 h time resolutions at both sites. Selected metals, main anions, cations and elemental and organic carbon were determined. The evolution of soluble V and Ni concentrations (typical markers of heavy fuel oil combustion) was related to meteorology and ship traffic intensity in the Straight of Sicily, using a high-resolution regional model for calculation of back trajectories. Elevated concentration of V and Ni at Capo Granitola and Lampedusa are found to correspond with air masses from the Straight of Sicily and coincidences between trajectories and positions of large ships; the vertical structure of the planetary boundary layer also appears to play a role, with high V values associated with strong inversions and a stable boundary layer. The V concentration was generally lower at Lampedusa than at Capo Granitola V, where it reached a peak value of 40 ng m−3. Concentrations of rare earth elements (REEs), La and Ce in particular, were used to identify possible contributions from refineries, whose emissions are also characterized by elevated V and Ni amounts; refinery emissions are expected to display high La ∕ Ce and La ∕ V ratios due to the use of La in the fluid catalytic converter systems. In general, low La ∕ Ce and La ∕ V ratios were observed in the PM samples. The combination of the analyses based on chemical markers, air mass trajectories and ship routes allows us to unambiguously identify the large role of the ship source in the Straight of Sicily. Based on the sampled aerosols, ratios of the main aerosol species arising from ship emission with respect to V were estimated with the aim of deriving a lower limit for the total ship contribution to PM10. The estimated minimum ship emission contributions to PM10 were 2.0 µg m−3 at Lampedusa and 3.0 µg m−3 at Capo Granitola, corresponding with 11 and 8.6 % of PM10, respectively.

Observed changes at the global scale. An increase of the annual mean global temperature and changes of other climate parameters have been observed in the last century. The global temperature and the atmospheric concentration of greenhouse gases are changing at a very fast pace compared to those found in palaeoclimate records. Changes in the Mediterranean. Variations of some climate change indicators can be much larger at the local than at the global scale, and the Mediterranean has been indicated among the regions most sensitive to climate change, also due to the increasing anthropogenic pressure. Model projections for the Mediterranean foresee further warming, droughts, and long-lasting modifications.Regional climate changes impact health and ecosystems, creating new risks, determined not only by weather events, but also by changing exposures and vulnerabilities. These issues, and in particular those regarding occupational safety, have not been sufficiently addressed to date.

Measurements of broadband downward longwave (LW) irradiance are carried out at Lampedusa, Italy, in the Mediterranean, jointly with solar irradiance, since 2004 using shaded and unshaded Eppley Precision Infrared Radiometers (PIRs) and Kipp & Zonen CGR4 pyrgeometers. The calibrations of the different pyrgeometers are traceable to the Physikalisch-Meteorologisches Observatorium Davos World Radiation Center (PMOD/WRC). Nighttime measurements from intercalibrated pyrgeometers agree within ±2 W m−2. The performance of the pyrgeometers when operated unshaded has been analyzed by comparison with shaded instruments. For the PIR, the nonhomogeneous dome temperature in cloud-free conditions produces differences in LW irradiance within ±4 W m−2, depending on the time of the day and the season. The effect of the LW fraction of solar radiation reaching the sensor and a possible shortwave leakage of the dome interference filter produces differences between shaded and unshaded pyrgeometers during daytime. In cloud-free conditions, the unshaded PIR overestimates the LW irradiance measured by a shaded PIR by up to 10 W m−2, and by up to 12 W m−2 compared to a shaded CGR4. Conversely, the unshaded CGR4 LW irradiances agree with those of a shaded PIR within the measurements’ uncertainties. An empirical formula to correct the solar effect of the PIR has been derived. Applying this correction, the average LW irradiance overestimate for cloud-free conditions decreases from 3.8 ± 1.8 to 0.0 ± 1.3 W m−2 in spring, and from 3.2 ± 1.7 to 0.0 ± 1.3 W m−2 in summer. Thus, LW irradiance from an unshaded PIR can be derived within about ±2 W m−2 of a shaded PIR.

The seasonal evolution of the tropospheric aerosol vertical distribution and of its optical properties is investigated using lidar and multi-filter rotating shadow-band radiometer (MFRSR) measurements collected throughout the period 2006–2009 in the urban environment of Rome. The evolution of the aerosol distribution is studied also in relation to long range transport of dust. Hybrid Single-Particle Lagrangian Integrated Trajectory model backward trajectories are used to identify possible aerosol sources in remote regions. Aerosol optical depth at 500 nm, τ, and Angstrom exponent, α, are derived from MFRSR measurements. The Angstrom exponent generally displays relatively high values, indicating the predominance of fine particle over the entire column. The average optical depth at 500 nm and Angstrom exponent over the whole period are 0.18 ± 0.09 and 1.12 ± 0.39, respectively. Cases affected by Saharan dust (class 1) are separated from those not influenced by dust (class 0) by using backward trajectories. The average values of τ and α are 0.17 ± 0.08 and 1.17 ± 0.36 for class 0, respectively, and 0.22 ± 0.09 and 0.95 ± 0.46 for class 1. About 214 days of lidar measurements are selected for the analysis. The aerosol vertical distribution is influenced by dust events that induce a marked seasonal behaviour. Desert dust generally reaches higher altitudes than other aerosol types; the maxima altitudes are observed during Spring and Summer, when the monthly average altitude exceeds 5 km. The annual average occurrence of desert dust is 27%, with maxima in Spring and in the first part of Summer. The decrease in the dust event frequency observed in winter months is mainly linked to the seasonal behaviour of the synoptic circulation in the Mediterranean. According to the back-trajectories aerosols are primarily observed below 3 km altitude throughout the year when classified as not affected by desert dust. The extinction coefficient vertical profiles for the two classes show largest differences during Spring and Summer. The extinction for non-dust profiles decreases monotonically with altitude throughout the year, except in Summer. Conversely, the aerosol extinction coefficient shows a relative minimum at the lowest sounded altitude, always except in winter, for class 1 cases. A winter maximum of the aerosol is evidently present in winter in the lower troposphere. Using the MFRSR optical depth and the lidar profiles, the lidar ratio was derived. The overall average lidar ratio is 58 sr.

Measurements of UV spectra, total ozone, cloud cover, and cloud optical thickness, obtained at Lampedusa (central Mediterranean), are used to investigate the influence of clouds on the spectral UV irradiance, through the cloud modification factor (CMF), and on five biological processes. The CMF decreases with cloud optical thickness (COT), from about 0.5 for COT∼15 to 0.25 for COT∼45, and decreases with increasing wavelength above 315–320-nm. Observations display an increase in the CMF from 295 to 320-nm, which is related to enhanced absorption by tropospheric ozone due to the long photon path lengths under cloudy conditions. The use of a wavelength independent CMF instead of the experimentally determined spectral curves produces an overestimation of the biological effects of UV irradiance. The overestimation may be as large as 30% for the DNA damage, 20% for vitamin D synthesis, 12% for plant damage, and 8–10% for phytoplankton inhibition and erythema.

Measurements of spectral actinic flux were performed at the ENEA Station for Climate Observations on the island of Lampedusa, in the central Mediterranean, during several periods in 2003, 2004, 2006 and 2008 with a METCON diode array spectrometer. The ozone photolysis frequency, J(O 1 D), was calculated from the spectral actinic fluxes. Actinic fluxes determinations were complemented with measurements of total ozone and aerosol optical depth, made with a Brewer spectrophotometer and a multi-filter rotating shadowband radiometer, respectively. As expected, J(O 1 D) shows a strong dependency on total ozone. The behaviour of J(O 1 D) was examined at fixed values of total ozone and solar zenith angle; a significant dependency on the aerosol optical depth emerges. The dependency on the aerosol optical depth at 416 nm appears to be linear, and weakly dependent on the total ozone value. The photolysis frequency amplification factor for aerosol is between 0.09 and 0.17 at 30°, and between 0.12 and 0.22 at 60° solar zenith angle, depending on total ozone. Day-to-day changes in AOD produce larger effects on J(O 1 D) than day-to-day changes in total ozone in summer, and comparable effects in spring. Ozone changes are dominant in autumn and winter. To our knowledge, this is the first attempt to characterize the influence of aerosol optical depth on J(O 1 D) from a relatively large dataset.

In this paper we combine SO2 and ash plume dispersion modelling with satellite and surface remote sensing observations to study the regional influence of a relatively weak volcanic eruption from Mount Etna on the optical and micro-physical properties of Mediterranean aerosols. We analyse the Mount Etna eruption episode of 25–27 October 2013. The evolution of the plume along the trajectory is investigated by means of the FLEXible PARTicle Lagrangian dispersion (FLEXPART) model. The satellite data set includes true colour images, retrieved values of volcanic SO2 and ash, estimates of SO2 and ash emission rates derived from MODIS (MODerate resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer) observations and estimates of cloud top pressure from SEVIRI (Spinning Enhanced Visible and InfraRed Imager). Surface remote sensing measurements of aerosol and SO2 made at the ENEA Station for Climate Observations (35.52° N, 12.63° E; 50 m a.s.l.) on the island of Lampedusa are used in the analysis. The combination of these different data sets suggests that SO2 and ash, despite the initial injection at about 7.0 km altitude, reached altitudes around 10–12 km and influenced the column average aerosol particle size distribution at a distance of more than 350 km downwind. This study indicates that even a relatively weak volcanic eruption may produce an observable effect on the aerosol properties at the regional scale. The impact of secondary sulfate particles on the aerosol size distribution at Lampedusa is discussed and estimates of the clear-sky direct aerosol radiative forcing are derived. Daily shortwave radiative forcing efficiencies, i.e. radiative forcing per unit AOD (aerosol optical depth), are calculated with the LibRadtran model. They are estimated between −39 and −48 W m−2 AOD−1 at the top of the atmosphere and between −66 and −49 W m−2 AOD−1 at the surface, with the variability in the estimates mainly depending on the aerosol single scattering albedo. These results suggest that sulfate particles played a large role in the transported plume composition and radiative forcing, while the contribution by ash particles was small in the volcanic plume arriving at Lampedusa during this event.

The vertical profile of Saharan dust in the atmosphere is generally characterized by a large aerosol concentration in the mid troposphere, differently from the climatological distribution of other types of particles, that show a peak at the surface and a rapid decrease with height. Saharan dust is also characterized by particles of relatively large size of irregular shape, and variable values of the single scattering albedo (the ratio between radiation scattering and extinction). The dust's peculiar vertical distribution is expected to produce an effect on the calculation of the direct aerosol radiative forcing at the surface and at the top of the atmosphere. This effect is investigated by comparing estimates of aerosol direct visible radiative forcing at the surface and at the top of the atmosphere for dust vertical profiles measured in the Mediterranean, and for the climatological profile. The radiative forcing is estimated by means of an accurate radiative transfer model, and for the ocean surface. The sensitivity of the results on the solar zenith angle, aerosol optical depth, and aerosol absorption is also investigated. The aerosol radiative forcing at the surface shows a very small dependency on the aerosol vertical profile. At the top of the atmosphere, the radiative forcing is weakly dependent on the vertical profile (up to 10% variation on the daily average forcing) for low absorbing particles; conversely, it shows a strong dependency (the daily radiative forcing may vary up to 100%) for absorbing particles. The top of the atmosphere visible radiative forcing efficiency produced by dust having single scattering albedo

The planetary boundary layer structure in the coastal areas, and particularly in complex orography regions such as the Mediterranean, is extremely intricate. In this study, we show the evolution of the planetary boundary layer based on in situ airborne measurements and ground-based remote sensing observations carried out during the MORE (Marine Ozone and Radiation Experiment) campaign in June 2010. The campaign was held in a rural coastal Mediterranean region in Southern Italy. The study focuses on the observations made on 17 June. Vertical profiles of meteorological parameters and aerosol size distribution were measured during two flights: in the morning and in the afternoon. Airborne observations were combined with ground-based LIDAR, SODAR, microwave and visible radiometer measurements, allowing a detailed description of the atmospheric vertical structure. The analysis was complemented with data from a regional atmospheric model run with horizontal resolutions of 12, 4 and 1 km, respectively; back-trajectories were calculated at these spatial resolutions. The observations show the simultaneous occurrence of dust transport, descent of mid-tropospheric air and sea breeze circulation on 17 June. Local pollution effects on the aerosol distribution, and a possible event of new particles formation were also observed. A large variability in the thermodynamical structure and aerosol distribution in the flight region, extending by approximately 30 km along the coast, was found. Within this complex, environment-relevant differences in the back-trajectories calculated at different spatial resolutions are found, suggesting that the description of several dynamical processes, and in particular the sea breeze circulation, requires high-resolution meteorological analyses. The study also shows that the integration of different observational techniques is needed to describe these complex conditions; in particular, the availability of flights and their timing with respect to the occurring phenomena are crucial. Keywords: aerosol number concentration, airborne measurements, coastal areas, in situ vertical profile, mid-tropospheric air intrusion, high-resolution back-trajectory, ultrafine particles, boundary layer (Published: 12 October 2015) Citation: Tellus B 2015, 67, 27721, http://dx.doi.org/10.3402/tellusb.v67.27721

Detailed knowledge of sea-salt aerosol (SSA) space-time variations is essential for a deeper understanding of the process of SSA loading in the atmospheric boundary layer. In order to reproduce variability of SSA concentrations over the Mediterranean Sea, the regional DREAM-Salt model has been running daily at Tel-Aviv University since February 2006 (http://wind.tau.ac.il/salt-ina/salt.html). The model performance in producing accurate SSA forecasts over the Mediterranean Sea was evaluated using a 5-year record (2006–2010) of daily SSA mass concentration measurements at the island of Lampedusa. Model-vs.-measurement comparisons showed a distinct dependence of model performance on wind direction. On average, for wind direction from 30° to 300°, the model performance was quite acceptable. It was characterized by a relatively high correlation of over 0.65 and a rather small mean bias. For north winds (0°–30°, and 300°–360°), some discrepancy between modeled and measured SSA concentrations was observed. This was characterized by the model underestimation of SSA measurements and a rather low correlation between model data and measurements. Probably, for north winds, SSA production in the surf zone, located in the vicinity of the monitoring site, contributed to observed SSA concentrations.

Results from the Ground-based and Airborne Measurements of Aerosol Radiative Forcing (GAMARF) campaign carried out at Lampedusa island in 2008 are presented. The campaign was focussed on measurements of longwave (LW) irradiance profiles up to 4 km, until now absent in the Mediterranean Sea, and to the estimation of shortwave (SW) and LW aerosol direct radiative forcings (ADRFs), using data collected by ground-based and airborne instrumentation and radiative transfer simulations. The SW and LW ADRFs have been calculated for a case of desert dust characterized by relatively large aerosol optical depth. © 2013 AIP Publishing LLC.

The Ground-based and Airborne Measurements of the Aerosol Radiative Forcing (GAMARF) campaign was carried out during spring 2008 in Lampedusa Island (Central Mediterranean). Several flights were performed by an instrumented ultralight in different atmospheric conditions. In situ measurements of aerosol size distribution vertical profiles were used together with ground-based measurements of aerosol optical depth and ÅAngström exponent to retrieve simultaneously profiles of the aerosol radiative properties and its effective refractive index. The retrieved backscattering and extinction profiles are in agreement with independent Lidar measurements, within the estimated uncertainties. This analysis suggests that in situ measurements of aerosol distribution can be used quantitatively for the determination of the aerosol optical and radiative properties. © 2013 AIP Publishing LLC.

A method to estimate the photosynthetically active radiation from multifilter shadowband radiometer (MFRSR) measurements was developed and tested from observations carried out on the island of Lampedusa in the central Mediterranean. Calibrated irradiances in the four MFRSR bands within the PAR spectral range were combined linearly to estimate PAR. The coefficients of the linear combination were derived with the least squared method for different sky conditions. The analysis shows that global PAR irradiance may be estimated with an overall uncertainty of 4%-6%. The applicability of the method was tested by using radiative transfer simulations of the diffuse irradiance spectrum for different aerosol and cloud conditions. The diffuse PAR irradiance can be estimated with an overall accuracy of less than 9%. The application of this method allows us to obtain continuous and long-term calibrated measurements of global and diffuse PAR; in addition, information on the spectral dependency of PAR can be derived from the signals in the four bands. © 2016 Optical Society of America.

[1] The 2009 Arctic sudden stratospheric warming (SSW) was the most intense event of this kind ever observed. Unique ground-based measurements of middle atmospheric profiles for temperature, O3, CO, and N2O obtained at Thule (76.5°N, 68.8°W), Greenland, in the period January to early March are used to show the evolution of the 2009 SSW in the region of its maximum intensity. The first sign of the SSW was detected at θ ∼ 2000 K on 19 January, when a rapid decrease in CO mixing ratio took place. The first evidence of a temperature increase was observed at the same level on 22 January, the earliest date on which lidar measurements reached above ∼50 km. The warming propagated from the upper to the lower stratosphere in 7 days and the record maximum temperature of 289 K was observed between 1300 and 1500 K potential temperature on 22 January. A strong vortex splitting was associated with the SSW. Stratospheric backward trajectories indicate that air masses arriving at Thule during the warming peak underwent a rapid compression and an intense adiabatic warming of up to 50 K. The rapid advection of air from the extratropics was also occasionally observed to produce elevated values of N2O mixing ratio. Starting in mid-February the temperature profile and the N2O mixing ratio returned to the prewarming values in the mid and upper stratosphere, indicating the reformation of the vortex at these levels. In late winter, vertical descent from starting altitudes of ∼60 km is estimated from CO profiles to be 0.25 ± 0.05 km/day.

[1] Aerosol optical properties and shortwave irradiance measurements at the island of Lampedusa (central Mediterranean) during 2004–2007 are combined with Clouds and the Earth's Radiant Energy System observations of the outgoing shortwave flux at the top of the atmosphere (TOA). The measurements are used to estimate the surface (FES), the top of the atmosphere (FETOA), and the atmospheric (FEATM) shortwave aerosol forcing efficiencies for solar zenith angle (θ) between 15° and 55° for desert dust (DD), urban/industrial-biomass burning aerosols (UI-BB), and mixed aerosols (MA). The forcing efficiency at the different atmospheric levels is derived by applying the direct method, that is, as the derivative of the shortwave net flux versus the aerosol optical depth at fixed θ. The diurnal average forcing efficiency at the surface/TOA at the equinox is (−68.9 ± 4.0)/(−45.5 ± 5.4) W m−2 for DD, (−59.0 ± 4.3)/(−19.2 ± 3.3) W m−2 for UI-BB, and (−94.9 ± 5.1)/(−36.2 ± 1.7) W m−2 for MA. The diurnal average atmospheric radiative forcing at the equinox is (+7.3 ± 2.5) W m−2 for DD, (+8.4 ± 1.9) W m−2 for UI-BB, and (+8.2 ± 1.9) W m−2 for MA, suggesting that the mean atmospheric forcing is almost independent of the aerosol type. The largest values of the atmospheric forcing may reach +35 W m−2 for DD, +23 W m−2 for UI-BB, and +34 W m−2 for MA. FETOA is calculated for MA and 25° ≤ θ ≤ 35° for three classes of single scattering albedo (0.7 ≤ ω < 0.8, 0.8 ≤ ω < 0.9, and 0.9 ≤ ω ≤ 1) at 415.6 and 868.7 nm: FETOA increases, in absolute value, for increasing ω. A 0.1 increment in ω determines an increase in FETOA by 10–20 W m−2.