Comparison of full-sky polarization and radiance observations to radiative transfer simulations which employ AERONET products

Visible-band and near infrared polarization and radiance images measured with a ground-based full-sky polarimeter are compared against a successive orders of scattering (SOS) radiative transfer model for 2009 summer cloud-free days in Bozeman, Montana, USA. The polarimeter measures radiance and polarization in 10-nm bands centered at 450 nm, 490 nm, 530 nm, 630 nm, and 700 nm. AERONET products are used to represent aerosols in the SOS model, while MISR satellite BRF products are used for the surface reflectance. While model results generally agree well with observation, the simulated degree of polarization is typically higher than observed data. Potential sources of this difference may include cloud contamination and/or underestimation of the AERONET-retrieved aerosol real refractive index. Problems with the retrieved parameters are not unexpected given the low aerosol optical depth range (0.025 to 0.17 at 500 nm) during the study and the corresponding difficulties that these conditions pose to the AERONET inversion algorithm.

Diurnal discrepancies in spectral solar UV radiation measurements

Unexpected diurnal discrepancies between high-quality spectroradiometers were observed during the 2000 Nordic Ozone Group Intercomparison campaign. The spectral ratios of the irradiances showed a diurnal variation of approximately 2-9%. This cannot be explained by the nonideal angular response of the instruments' input optics in one plane (cosine effect). Instead, by using a radiative transfer model, we show that differences in the angular response in four azimuth planes have the potential to bias the measured data by up to 4.4% (azimuth effect). Other relevant factors are also discussed and quantified and are shown to be significant when diurnal changes in radiation are explained by environmental factors, or when measured data are compared with model or satellite data. Again, intercomparison campaigns have the potential to reveal errors that would otherwise remain undetected.

Modified Calibration Procedures for a Yankee Environmental System UVB-1 Biometer Based on Spectral Measurements with a Brewer Spectrophotometer

The calibration of the erythemal irradiance measured by a Yankee Environmental System (YES) UVB-1 biometer is presented using two methods of calibration with a wide range of experimental solar zenith angles (SZAs) and ozone values. The calibration is performed through simultaneous spectral measurements by a calibrated double-monochromator Brewer MK-III spectrophotometer at "El Arenosillo" station, located in southwestern Spain. Because the range of spectral measurements of the Brewer spectrophotometer is 290-363 nm, a previously validated radiative transfer model was used to account for the erythemal contribution between 363 and 400 nm. Both methods are recommended by the World Meteorological Organization and we present and discuss here a wide range of results and features given by modified procedures applied to these two general methods. As is well established, the calibration factor for this type of radiometric system is dependent on atmospheric conditions, the most important of which are the ozone content and the SZA. Although the first method is insensitive to these two factors, we analyze this behavior in terms of the range used for the SZA and the use of two different mathematical approaches for its determination. The second method shows the dependence on SZA and ozone content and, thus, a polynomial as a function of SZA or a matrix including SZA and ozone content were determined as general calibration factors for the UV radiometric system. We must note that the angular responses of the YES radiometer and Brewer spectroradiometer have not been considered, because of the difficulty in correcting them. The results show in detail the advantages and drawbacks (and the corresponding associated error) given by the different approaches used for the determination of these calibration coefficients.

Analysis of direct solar ultraviolet irradiance measurements in the French Alps. Retrieval of turbidity and ozone column amount

Direct ultraviolet spectral solar irradiance is regularly obtained by the difference between global and diffuse irradiances at the French Alpine station of Briançon; the data of years 2001 and 2002 are analyzed in this paper. Comparison with modeled values is used for cloud screening, and an average UV-A aerosol optical depth is used as an index of turbidity; it is found to be around 0.05 for the clear winter days and around 0.2 in summer. Langley plots are used to verify the instrument calibration; they confirm the expected uncertainty smaller than 5%. The ozone total column amount is estimated with an uncertainty between -3 and Dobson units; comparisons with TOMS (Total Ozone Mapping Spectrometer) overpass values shows agreement within the expected uncertainties of both instruments.

Retrieval of the ultraviolet effective snow albedo during 1998 winter campaign in the French Alps

A measurement campaign was carried out in February 1998 at Briançon Station, French Alps (44.9 degrees N, 6.65 degrees E, 1,310 m above sea level) in order to determine the UV effective snow albedo that was retrieved for both erythemal and UV-A irradiances from measurements and modeling enhancement factors. The results are presented for 15 cloudless days with very variable snow cover and a small snowfall in the middle of the campaign. Erythemal irradiance enhancement due to the surface albedo was found to decrease from approximately +15% to +5% with a jump to +22% after the snowfall, whereas UV-A irradiance enhancement decreased from 7% to 5% and increased to 15% after the snowfall. Thesevalues fit to effective surface albedos of 0.4, 0.1, and 0.5 for erythemal, and to effective albedos of 0.25, 0.1, and 0.4 for UV-A irradiances, respectively. An unexpected difference between the effective albedos retrieved in the two wavelength regions can be explained by the difference of the environment contribution.

An improved algorithm for satellite-derived UV radiations

The improved algorithm surface irradiance derived from a range of satellite-based sensors (SIDES) is presented in this article. It calculates various types of surface UV intensities, such as biologically weighted or unweighted UV spectra, integrated doses or irradiance at specific wavelengths, using data from satellite instruments. These surface UV data are mainly useful for environmental impact or process studies where high accuracy or a high temporal resolution is required. In contrast to several previous studies, SIDES has been validated with spectral measurements. By this method an averaging of positive or negative deviations over the complete wavelength range is avoided. This is especially important for UV wavelengths around 300 nm where biological effectiveness is highest. The results of SIDES deviate less than 7% from ground-based observations for wavelengths between 295 and 400 nm. In contrast, the corresponding deviations of the joint research center algorithm escalate for shorter wavelengths, reaching 35% at 295 nm. This large deviation is due to an inaccurate interpolation procedure that has been detected by spectral analysis. Thus, spectral validation is demonstrated to be an appropriate tool to detect weaknesses in such an algorithm and provides information essential for improvement.

Method for correcting the wavelength misalignment in measured ultraviolet spectra

A new method for correcting the wavelength misalignment in measured UV spectra is presented. It is based on a comparison between measured irradiances and irradiances computed from a radiative transfer code for a set of given atmospheric and solar conditions (250 < Dobson units < 450, 30 degrees < solar zenith angle < 75 degrees ). Results of tests run with spectra recorded on a clear-sky day by two spectroradiometers in a French UV spectral network station are analyzed. Applying the method once reduces shift to less than 0.05 nm. The smoothing included in the method enables detection of aberrant irradiance values and then completion of an initial quality control of measured spectra. A technique for assessing the instruments' slit function is also presented. The key algorithms needed to build a computer code based on this method are given.

Spectral radiative-transfer modeling with minimized computation time by use of a neural-network technique

A new approach based on a neural-network technique for reduction in the computation time of radiative-transfer models is presented. This approach gives high spectral resolution without significant loss of accuracy. A rigorous radiative-transfer model is used to calculate radiation values at a few selected wavelengths, and a neural-network algorithm replenishes them to a complete spectrum with radiation values at a high spectral resolution. This method is used for the UV and visible spectral ranges. The results document the ability of a neural network to learn this specific task. More than 20,000 UV-index values for all kinds of atmosphere are calculated by both the rigorous radiative-transfer model alone and the model in combination with the neural-network algorithm. The agreement between both approaches is generally of the order of ?1%; the computation time is reduced by a factor of more than 20. The new algorithm can be used for all kinds of high-quality radiative-transfer model to speed up computation time.

Influence of the environment reflectance on the ultraviolet zenith radiance for cloudless sky

A three-dimensional Monte Carlo code is used to compute the ultraviolet zenith sky radiance; the code is validated by comparison with a successive-orders-of-scattering code. The amplifications of global irradiance, diffuse irradiance, and zenith radiance that are due to multiple reflectances between a snow-covered ground surface and the atmosphere are compared. For an inhomogeneous Lambertian surface, the contribution of the site environment is analyzed; it depends slightly on the atmospheric turbidity and on the surface reflectance distribution. However, in most cases one can expect approximately 12-15% of the reflected photon contribution to come from within 1 km about the observation site, 25-30% come from areas from 1 to 5 km from the site, 43-47% from 5 to 30 km, and still 10-15% reflected at larger distances. An average contribution function is proposed and used to compute an effective reflectance, which permits retrieval of the sky radiance within 2-4% with a one-dimensional model.