OBSERVATION OF DUST LOADINGS FROM SPACE-BORNE MEASUREMENTS (2005–2016)

Abstract. Dust particles of different size and origins, form major part of air pollution in the atmosphere. The qualitative and quantitative estimates of dust from ground-based measurements provide accurate information at regional scales. However, data from space-borne instruments provide continuous spatial information at a variety of different spatial scales. In this paper, we attempt to study signals of dust as observed from CALIOP (Cloud Aerosol Lidar with Orthogonal Polarization) sensor on-board CALIPSO satellite. Utilization of these freely available datasets can effectively contribute to the capacity building in the domain of aerosol science. This analysis is supplemented by absorbing aerosol levels as seen by OMI (Ozone Monitoring Instrument) sensor on-board AURA satellite. This study was conducted over the Middle-East and North Africa during JJA (June, July and August) season. For this study, we have used Level-3 AOD (Aerosol Optical Depth) due to dust from CALIOP at spatial resolution of 2° × 5° and Level-3 Absorbing Aerosol Optical Depth (AAOD) data from OMI at spatial resolution of 1° × 1°.The time frame for the study was 2005 to 2016.