Correlation of aerosol mass near the ground with aerosol optical depth during two seasons in Munich

Relations of the aerosol optical depth (AOD) with aerosol mass concentration near the ground, particulate matter (PM), have been studied on the basis of measurements. The objective is with respect to possible remote sensing methods to get information on the spatial and temporal variation of aerosols which is important for human health effects. Worldwide the AOD of the atmospheric column is routinely monitored by sun-photometers and accessible from satellite measurements also. It is implied here that the AOD is caused mainly by attenuation processes within the mixing layer because this layer includes nearly all atmospheric aerosols. Thus the mixing layer height (MLH) is required together with the AOD, measured by ground-based sun-photometers (around 560 nm), to get information about aerosols near the ground. MLH is determined here from surface-based remote sensing. Investigations were performed during two measurement campaigns in and near Munich in May and November/December 2003 on the basis of daily mean values. Using AOD and MLH measurements the aerosol extinction coefficient of the mixing layer has been calculated. This quantity was correlated with the measured PM10, PM2.5 and PM1 mass concentrations near the ground by performing a linear regression and thus providing a mass extinction efficiency giving squares of the correlation coefficients (R2) between 0.48 (PM1 during summer campaign) and 0.90 (PM2.5 during winter campaign). These correlations suggest that the derived mass extinction efficiencies represent a statistically significant relation between the aerosol extinction coefficients and the surface-based PM mass concentrations mainly during winter conditions.