Validation, Stability, and Consistency of MODIS Collection 6.1 and VIIRS Version 1 Deep Blue Aerosol Data Over Land

Thumbnail Image

Files

JGRAtmospheres2019SayerValidationStabilityandConsistencyofMODISCollection61andVIIRSVersion1Deep.pdf (12.08 MB)
additionalfiles.zip (92.76 MB)

Links to Files

https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1029/2018JD029598

Permanent Link

https://doi.org/10.1029/2018JD029598
 http://hdl.handle.net/11603/33378

Collections

UMBC GESTAR II

Author/Creator

Author/Creator ORCID

https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9149-1789

Date

2019-03-04

Type of Work

journal articles
Text

Department

Program

Citation of Original Publication

Sayer, Andrew M., N. Christina Hsu, Jaehwa Lee, Woogyung V. Kim, and Steven T. Dutcher. “Validation, Stability, and Consistency of MODIS Collection 6.1 and VIIRS Version 1 Deep Blue Aerosol Data Over Land.” Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres 124, no. 8 (2019): 4658–88. https://doi.org/10.1029/2018JD029598.

Rights

This work was written as part of one of the author's official duties as an Employee of the United States Government and is therefore a work of the United States Government. In accordance with 17 U.S.C. 105, no copyright protection is available for such works under U.S. Law.
Public Domain

Subjects

aerosols
Deep Blue
MODIS
validation
VIIRS

Abstract

The Deep Blue (DB) algorithm has been used to retrieve aerosol optical depth (AOD) and Ångström exponent (AE) over land from multiple satellite instruments, including the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometers (MODIS) aboard the Terra and Aqua platforms and the Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS). This study first validates the latest MODIS (Collection 6.1) and VIIRS (Version 1) DB data products against Aerosol Robotic Network observations. On global average, the typical level of uncertainty in AOD is slightly better than ±(0.05 + 20%) relative to Aerosol Robotic Network. AE is quantitatively more uncertain but qualitatively shows skill at distinguishing between fine-mode and coarse-mode dominated aerosol columns. Results are also compared with the previous MODIS Collection 6. The stability of the three DB data sets ranges from 0.005–0.01 AOD per decade. Second, spatial and temporal patterns in AOD and AE are compared between the three data sets. It is found that they all show similar patterns of spatial coverage, which is predominantly linked to cloud cover, snow, and polar night. Regional time series of AOD also show highly consistent seasonal and interannual variations and are strongly correlated, although have offsets in some regions due to a combination of algorithmic and sensor-related differences.