Marsli et al. (2025) Analysis of aerosol optical properties and implications to radiative forcing over the Mediterranean Basin

⚠️ Warning: This summary was generated from the abstract only, as the full text was not available.

Identification

• Journal: Springer Link (Chiba Institute of Technology)
• Year: 2025
• Date: 2025-12-19
• Authors: Ibtissam Marsli, Abdelilah Makaoui, Mohammed Amine Moussaoui, Ahmed Mezrhab, Mohammed Diouri
• DOI: 10.1051/e3sconf/202568000137/pdf

Research Groups

Burjassot (site), OHP Observatoire (site), Napoli_CeSMA (site), Thessaloniki (site), CUT-TEPAK (site), Medenine-IRA (site). These sites are associated with various research institutions across the Mediterranean basin.

Short Summary

This study examined aerosol optical properties and radiative forcing at six Mediterranean sites, revealing that Southern Mediterranean sites exhibit high aerosol optical depth dominated by coarse particles, leading to significant atmospheric heating (+25 W/m²) and surface cooling (–30 W/m²).

Objective

• To examine aerosol optical properties (aerosol optical depth, Angström exponent, volume size distributions) and aerosol radiative forcing at six ground-based sites across the Mediterranean basin.

Study Configuration

• Spatial Scale: Six ground-based measurement sites across the Mediterranean basin (Burjassot, OHP Observatoire, Napoli_CeSMA, Thessaloniki, CUT-TEPAK, Medenine-IRA).
• Temporal Scale: Annual mean values are reported, implying analysis over at least one year or using long-term averaged data.

Methodology and Data

• Models used: Not explicitly mentioned.
• Data sources: Ground-based measurements of aerosol optical depth, Angström exponent, and volume size distributions.

Main Results

• The annual mean aerosol optical depth at 500 nm was high at the Southern Mediterranean site Medenine-IRA, reaching 0.20.
• Medenine-IRA also showed a relatively lower Angström exponent (440–870 nm), indicating a dominance of coarse particles.
• Coarse-mode aerosols contributed significantly to the total volume particle concentration at all Mediterranean sites.
• The aerosol radiative forcing in the vertical columnar atmospheric balance showed a heating effect, with a high radiative forcing ATM value of +25 W/m² at Medenine-IRA, attributed to the absorption of solar radiation by larger dust aerosols.
• This increased atmospheric column warming at Medenine-IRA was accompanied by a marked cooling at the surface, reaching –30 W/m².

Contributions

• Provides a comprehensive, multi-site analysis of aerosol optical properties and their radiative forcing impacts across the Mediterranean basin.
• Quantifies the significant role of coarse-mode aerosols, particularly dust, in driving atmospheric heating and surface cooling effects in the Southern Mediterranean.
• Highlights the regional variability and complex climate and air quality impacts of natural and anthropogenic aerosols in the Mediterranean.

Funding

• Not mentioned in the provided paper text.

Citation

@article{Marsli2025Analysis,
  author = {Marsli, Ibtissam and Makaoui, Abdelilah and Moussaoui, Mohammed Amine and Mezrhab, Ahmed and Diouri, Mohammed},
  title = {Analysis of aerosol optical properties and implications to radiative forcing over the Mediterranean Basin},
  journal = {Springer Link (Chiba Institute of Technology)},
  year = {2025},
  doi = {10.1051/e3sconf/202568000137/pdf},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.1051/e3sconf/202568000137/pdf}
}