Modeling of the mineral contribution of dust to PM10 directly from the measurements of VIIRS Aerosol Optical Thickness

Abstract:

Northern Africa is well known as the largest producing region of dust, which is transported across the Atlantic to the Caribbean, under specific weather conditions. Saharan dust was observed, over the Caribbean Basin, to try to determine the roles they may play in human health, and in the fertilization of Amazon Forest. Scientists have not only used the satellite sensors MODIS and VIIRS to measure the volume of dust that makes this trans-Atlantic journey, but also the AERONET network of photometers, and PM10 Suspended Particulate Matter. We have successfully compared and shown a high correlation between the measurements from VIIRS aerosol optical thickness (AOT) and PM10 so that to be able to determine an accurate modeling of the mineral contribution of dust to PM₁₀ directly from the measurements of VIIRS. The aim of this work is to show that it is possible to accurately forecast the daily mean concentration of PM₁₀ using linear regression models. In this way, countries of the Caribbean region which cannot afford Particle Sensor for Pm10 will be able to have a precise idea of the PM₁₀ daily forecast upon there region.