Long-range saharan dust observations made in south Florida during the summers of 2014 and 2015

Abstract:

Annual-mean aerosol loading of the southern Florida atmosphere is dominated by Saharan dust, transported across over a 3000-km span Atlantic. A depolarization micropulse lidar and new sun photometers are providing new information on aerosol vertical structure, the mixing of the dust with the environment, and the capability of long-range trajectories to project the dust vertical structure forward. The lidar data are now being integrated into the NASA MPLNET framework, raising the potential of an Atlantic basin network of uniform measurements. The summer of 2015 experienced high levels of dust mass deposition relative to a long-term time series dating back to 1974, while the summer of 2014 was more typical. The new measurements will be reviewed.