Reversal of Aerosol Properties in Eastern China with Rapid Decline of Anthropogenic Emissions

The clean air actions of the Chinese government since 2013 have led to rapid reduction in anthropogenic emissions during the last five years. In this study, we present a regional-scale insight into the transition of aerosol properties during this special period based on integrated Moderate Resolutio...

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Main Authors: Minghui Tao, Lili Wang, Liangfu Chen, Zifeng Wang, Jinhua Tao
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2020-02-01
Series:Remote Sensing
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2072-4292/12/3/523
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spelling doaj-74cc606745db455ca39aa391558707452020-11-25T02:21:13ZengMDPI AGRemote Sensing2072-42922020-02-0112352310.3390/rs12030523rs12030523Reversal of Aerosol Properties in Eastern China with Rapid Decline of Anthropogenic EmissionsMinghui Tao0Lili Wang1Liangfu Chen2Zifeng Wang3Jinhua Tao4Laboratory of Critical Zone Evolution, School of Geography and Information Engineering, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan 430074, ChinaState Key Laboratory of Atmospheric Boundary Layer Physics and Atmospheric Chemistry, Institute of Atmospheric Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100029, ChinaState Key Laboratory of Remote Sensing Science, Institute of Remote Sensing and Digital Earth of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, ChinaState Key Laboratory of Remote Sensing Science, Institute of Remote Sensing and Digital Earth of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, ChinaState Key Laboratory of Remote Sensing Science, Institute of Remote Sensing and Digital Earth of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, ChinaThe clean air actions of the Chinese government since 2013 have led to rapid reduction in anthropogenic emissions during the last five years. In this study, we present a regional-scale insight into the transition of aerosol properties during this special period based on integrated Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS), Multi-angle Imaging Spectroradiometer (MISR), and ground-based AERONET (AErosol RObotic NETwork) observations. As a response, aerosols in eastern China have exhibited notable reversal in both the amount and optical properties. Regional haze pollution with Aerosol Optical Depth (AOD) &gt; 1.0 in northern China declined from more than ~80 days per year to less than ~30 days. While fine-mode particles exhibited a continuous decrease by ~30-40% during the time period of 2013&#8722;2018, the levels of coarse aerosols had no regular variations. MISR fraction AOD of different size modes shows that there has been an obvious overall decline in coarse particles over eastern China, but natural sources such as long-range dust transport make a considerable contribution. The Single Scattering Albedo (SSA) increased steadily from 2001 to 2012 by more than ~0.05. In contrast, aerosol absorption has been getting stronger since 2013, with SSA increasing by ~0.03, due to a much larger reduction in sulfate and nitrate. The drastic transition of aerosol properties has greatly changed aerosol radiative forcing (ARF) in eastern China. The negative ARF at the top (TOA) and bottom (BOA) of the atmosphere decreased by ~30 and ~50 W/m<sup>2</sup>, respectively, in Beijing during the 2001&#8722;2012 period. Although aerosol loading continued to decline after 2013, the magnitudes of TOA and BOA ARF have increased by ~10 and ~30 W/m<sup>2</sup>, respectively, since 2013, due largely to the enhanced aerosol absorption. Our results suggest that more comprehensive observations are needed to improve understanding of the intense climate and environment effects of dramatic aerosol properties in eastern China.https://www.mdpi.com/2072-4292/12/3/523aerosolssatellitereversaleastern chinaanthropogenic emissions
collection DOAJ
language English
format Article
sources DOAJ
author Minghui Tao
Lili Wang
Liangfu Chen
Zifeng Wang
Jinhua Tao
spellingShingle Minghui Tao
Lili Wang
Liangfu Chen
Zifeng Wang
Jinhua Tao
Reversal of Aerosol Properties in Eastern China with Rapid Decline of Anthropogenic Emissions
Remote Sensing
aerosols
satellite
reversal
eastern china
anthropogenic emissions
author_facet Minghui Tao
Lili Wang
Liangfu Chen
Zifeng Wang
Jinhua Tao
author_sort Minghui Tao
title Reversal of Aerosol Properties in Eastern China with Rapid Decline of Anthropogenic Emissions
title_short Reversal of Aerosol Properties in Eastern China with Rapid Decline of Anthropogenic Emissions
title_full Reversal of Aerosol Properties in Eastern China with Rapid Decline of Anthropogenic Emissions
title_fullStr Reversal of Aerosol Properties in Eastern China with Rapid Decline of Anthropogenic Emissions
title_full_unstemmed Reversal of Aerosol Properties in Eastern China with Rapid Decline of Anthropogenic Emissions
title_sort reversal of aerosol properties in eastern china with rapid decline of anthropogenic emissions
publisher MDPI AG
series Remote Sensing
issn 2072-4292
publishDate 2020-02-01
description The clean air actions of the Chinese government since 2013 have led to rapid reduction in anthropogenic emissions during the last five years. In this study, we present a regional-scale insight into the transition of aerosol properties during this special period based on integrated Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS), Multi-angle Imaging Spectroradiometer (MISR), and ground-based AERONET (AErosol RObotic NETwork) observations. As a response, aerosols in eastern China have exhibited notable reversal in both the amount and optical properties. Regional haze pollution with Aerosol Optical Depth (AOD) &gt; 1.0 in northern China declined from more than ~80 days per year to less than ~30 days. While fine-mode particles exhibited a continuous decrease by ~30-40% during the time period of 2013&#8722;2018, the levels of coarse aerosols had no regular variations. MISR fraction AOD of different size modes shows that there has been an obvious overall decline in coarse particles over eastern China, but natural sources such as long-range dust transport make a considerable contribution. The Single Scattering Albedo (SSA) increased steadily from 2001 to 2012 by more than ~0.05. In contrast, aerosol absorption has been getting stronger since 2013, with SSA increasing by ~0.03, due to a much larger reduction in sulfate and nitrate. The drastic transition of aerosol properties has greatly changed aerosol radiative forcing (ARF) in eastern China. The negative ARF at the top (TOA) and bottom (BOA) of the atmosphere decreased by ~30 and ~50 W/m<sup>2</sup>, respectively, in Beijing during the 2001&#8722;2012 period. Although aerosol loading continued to decline after 2013, the magnitudes of TOA and BOA ARF have increased by ~10 and ~30 W/m<sup>2</sup>, respectively, since 2013, due largely to the enhanced aerosol absorption. Our results suggest that more comprehensive observations are needed to improve understanding of the intense climate and environment effects of dramatic aerosol properties in eastern China.
topic aerosols
satellite
reversal
eastern china
anthropogenic emissions
url https://www.mdpi.com/2072-4292/12/3/523
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