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The present work proposes a new model based on a convolutional neural network (CNN) to retrieve solar shortwave (SW) irradiance via the estimation of the cloud modification factor (CMF) from daytime sky images captured by all-sky cameras; this model is named CNN-CMF. To this end, a total of 237,669 sky images paired with SW irradiance measurements obtained by using pyranometers were selected at the following three sites: Valladolid and Izaña, Spain, and Lindenberg, Germany. This dataset was randomly split into training and testing sets, with the latter excluded from the training model in order to validate it using the same locations. Subsequently, the test dataset was compared with the corresponding SW irradiance measurements obtained by the pyranometers in scatter density plots. The linear fit shows a high determination coefficient ( R 2 ) of 0.99 . Statistical analyses based on the mean bias error (MBE) values and the standard deviation (SD) of the SW irradiance differences yield results close to − 2 % and 9 % , respectively. The MBE indicates a slight underestimation of the CNN-CMF model compared to the measurement values. After its validation, model performance was evaluated at the Antarctic station of Marambio (Argentina), a location not used in the training process. A similar comparison between the model-predicted SW irradiance and pyranometer measurements yielded R 2 = 0.95 , with an MBE of around 2 % and an SD of approximately 26 % . Although the precision provided by the SD at the Marambio station is lower, the MBE shows that the model's accuracy is similar to previous results but with a slight overestimation of the SW irradiance. Finally, the determination coefficient improved to 0.99 , and the MBE and SD are about 3 % and 11 % , respectively, when the CNN-CMF model is used to estimate daily SW irradiation values. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We present a new model based on a convolutional neural network (CNN) to predict daytime cloud cover (CC) from sky images captured by all‐sky cameras, which is called CNN‐CC. A total of 49,016 daytime sky images, recorded at different Spanish locations (Valladolid, La Palma, and Izaña) from two different all‐sky camera types, are manually classified into different CC (oktas) values by trained researchers. Subsequently, the images are randomly split into a training set and a test set to validate the model. The CC values predicted by the CNN‐CC model are compared with the observations made by trained people on the test set, which serve as reference. The predicted CC values closely match the reference values within ±$$ \pm $$1 oktas in 99% of the cloud‐free and overcast cases. Moreover, this percentage is above 93% for the rest of partially cloudy cases. The mean bias error (MBE) and standard deviation (SD) of the differences between the predicted and reference CC values are calculated, resulting in MBE=0.007$$ \mathrm{MBE}=0.007 $$ oktas and SD=0.674$$ \mathrm{SD}=0.674 $$ oktas. The MBE and SD are also represented for different intervals of measured aerosol optical depth and Ångström exponent values, revealing that the performance of the CNN‐CC model does not depend on aerosol load or size. Once the model is validated, the CC obtained from a set of images captured every 5 min, from January 2018 to March 2022, at the Antarctic station of Marambio (Argentina) is compared against direct field observations of CC (not from images) taken at this location, which is not used in the training process. As a result, the model slightly underestimates the observations with an MBE of −$$ - $$0.3 oktas. The retrieved data are analyzed in detail. The monthly and annual CC values are calculated. Overcast conditions are the most frequent, accounting for 46.5% of all observations throughout the year, rising to 64.5% in January. The annual mean CC value at this location is 5.5 oktas, with a standard deviation of approximately 3.1 oktas. A similar analysis is conducted, separating data by hours, but no significant diurnal cycles are observed except for some isolated months. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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During the months of February–March (FM) of the 2020–2022 period, several intense dust intrusions from northern Africa affected Europe. The frequency of dust events was exceptional, considering that wintertime is the season with minimum dust activity in the Mediterranean, and some episodes displayed a duration and/or intensity never recorded before, affecting large areas of the western Euro-Mediterranean (WEM) region. The main objective of this work is to construct a catalogue of FM dust events over the WEM for the 2003–2022 period based on satellite aerosol retrievals and to analyse their atmospheric drivers at the synoptic and large scales, paying special attention to the recent 2020–2022 period of high dust activity. Overall, our results indicate large intraseasonal and interannual variability in the occurrence of wintertime dust events over the WEM. Dust events of FM 2020–2022 were characterized by enhanced dust concentration and high maximum altitudes in comparison with those of previous years (2003–2019). WEM dust events are associated with enhanced activity of high-pressure systems over the Euro-Atlantic sector, which favour the obstruction of the westerlies and the occurrence of cut-off lows at subtropical latitudes. However, these high-pressure systems can exhibit a large variety of configurations, including meridional dipole blocking patterns with poleward shifted jets or Mediterranean subtropical ridges with an intensified mid-latitude jet. The former is the dominant favourable pattern for WEM dust occurrence, but the latter was relatively common during the 2020–2022 period. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Absolute calibration of Earth observation (EO) sensors is key to ensuring long-term stability and interoperability, and it is essential for long-term global climate records and forecasts. The Moon provides a photometrically stable calibration source within the range of the Earth's radiometric levels and is free from atmospheric interference. However, to use this ideal calibration source, one must model the variation in its disc-integrated irradiance resulting from changes in Sun–Earth–Moon geometries. The Lunar Irradiance Model of the European Space Agency (LIME) is a new lunar irradiance model developed from ground-based observations acquired using a lunar radiometer operating from the Izaña Atmospheric Observatory near Mount Teide, located in Tenerife, Spain. Nightly top-of-atmosphere (TOA) irradiance is determined using the Langley plot method, and each observation is traceable to the international system of units (SI) through the radiometer calibration performed at the National Physical Laboratory (NPL). Approximately 590 lunar observations acquired between March 2018 and December 2022 currently contribute to the model parameter derivation, which builds on the widely used ROLO (Robotic Lunar Observatory) model analytical formulation. This paper presents the strategy used to derive LIME parameters: the characterisation of the lunar radiometer, the derivation of nightly top-of-atmosphere lunar irradiance and a description of the model parameter derivation, along with the associated metrologically rigorous uncertainty. The model output has been compared to PROBA-V, Pléiades and Sentinel-3B, as well as to the VITO implementation of the ROLO model. Initial results indicate that LIME predicts 3 %–5 % higher lunar-disc-integrated irradiance than the ROLO model for the visible and near-infrared channels. The model output has an expanded (k=2) radiometric uncertainty of ∼ 2 % at the lunar radiometer wavelengths, and it is expected that planned observations until at least 2024 further constrain the model parameters in subsequent updates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Spectroradiometric measurements of direct solar irradiance traceable to the SI were performed by three spectroradiometer systems during a 3-week campaign in September 2022 at the Izaña Atmospheric Observatory (IZO) located on the island of Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain. The spectroradiometers provided direct spectral irradiance measurements in the spectral ranges 300 to 550 nm (QASUME), 550 to 1700 nm (QASUME-IR), 300 to 2150 nm (BiTec Sensor, BTS), and 316 to 1030 nm (Precision Solar Spectroradiometer, PSR), with relative standard uncertainties of 0.7 %, 0.9 %, and 1 % for QASUME/QASUME-IR, the PSR, and the BTS respectively. The calibration of QASUME and QASUME-IR was validated prior to this campaign at Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt (PTB) by measuring the spectral irradiance from two spectral irradiance sources, the high-temperature blackbody BB3200pg as a national primary standard and the tuneable laser facility TULIP. The top-of-atmosphere (ToA) solar irradiance spectra from the spectroradiometers were retrieved from direct solar irradiance measurements using zero-air-mass extrapolation during cloud-free conditions, which were then compared to the TSIS-1 Hybrid Solar Reference Spectrum (HSRS). These ToA solar spectra agreed to within 1 % for spectral ranges longer than 400 nm (for QASUME also at shorter wavelengths) in the spectral regions free of significant trace gas absorption and were well within the combined uncertainties over the full investigated spectral range. Using the results from the comparison with QASUME, the relative standard uncertainty of the TSIS-1 HSRS ToA solar spectrum in the spectral range 308 to 400 nm could be reduced from its nominal 1.3 % to 0.8 %, representing the relative standard uncertainty of the QASUME ToA solar spectrum in this spectral range. The spectral aerosol optical depth (AOD) retrieved from the solar irradiance measurements of these spectroradiometers using the TSIS-1 HSRS as the reference ToA solar spectrum agreed to within 0.01 in optical depth in nearly all common spectral channels of two narrowband filter radiometers belonging to the Global Atmosphere Watch Precision Filter Radiometer (GAW-PFR) network and Aerosol Robotic Network (AERONET). This study shows that it is now possible to retrieve spectral AOD over the extended spectral range from 300 to 1700 nm using solar irradiance measurements traceable to the SI using laboratory-calibrated spectroradiometers with similar quality to that from traditional Langley-based calibrated instruments. The main improvement to previous investigations is the recent availability of the high-spectral-resolution TSIS-1 HSRS with very low uncertainties, which provides the top-of-atmosphere reference for the spectral atmospheric transmission measurements obtained from ground-based solar irradiance measurements. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

During the winters of the 2020–2022 period, several intense North African dust intrusions affected Europe. Some of them displayed a duration never recorded before. They were referred to as exceptional by several international operational and research institutions considering that wintertime is the season with minimum dust activity in the Mediterranean and Europe. These anomalous winter events with origin in North Africa largely affected western Mediterranean. The main objective of the present work is to analyse the atmospheric drivers (synoptic and large-scale environments) of wintertime (from January to March) dust events over the region covering North Africa, the Western Mediterranean and the Euro-Atlantic during the period 2003–2022. Overall, our results indicate large interannual variability over the study period. A dust catalogue of dust events identified by aerosols retrievals from satellite and aerosol reanalysis products shows a very irregular record and large differences between winter months. The analyses demonstrate a positive anomaly in dust concentration and maximum altitude during the dust events of 2020–2022 in comparison with those of previous years (2003–2019). Winter dust events over western Mediterranean are associated with enhanced blocking activity over the Euro-Atlantic sector, which favours the obstruction of the westerlies and the occurrence of cut-off lows at subtropical latitudes. However, these high-pressure systems can exhibit a large variety of configurations, including meridional dipole blocking patterns with poleward shifted jets or Mediterranean subtropical ridges with an intensified mid-latitude jet. The former was more frequent during the reference 2003–2019 period, whereas the latter was relatively common during the anomalous 2020–2022 period. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Absolute calibration of Earth observation sensors is key to ensuring long term stability and interoperability, essential for long term global climate records and forecasts. The Moon provides a photometrically stable calibration source, within the range of the Earth radiometric levels and is free from atmospheric interference. However, to use this ideal calibration source one must model the variation of its disk integrated irradiance resulting from changes in Sun-Earth-Moon geometries. LIME, the Lunar Irradiance Model of the European Space Agency, is a new lunar irradiance model developed from ground-based observations acquired using a lunar photometer operating from the Izaña Atmospheric Observatory and Teide Peak, located in Tenerife, Spain. Nightly top-of-atmosphere irradiance is determined using the Langley plot method and each observation is traceable to the international system of units (SI), through the photometer calibration performed at the National Physical Laboratory. Approximately 590 lunar observations acquired between March 2018 and December 2022 currently contribute to the model parameter derivation, which builds on the widely-used ROLO (Robotic Lunar Observatory) model analytical formulation. This paper presents the strategy used to derive LIME model parameters: the characterisation of the lunar photometer, the derivation of nightly top of atmosphere lunar irradiance and a description of the model parameter derivation, along with the associated metrologically-rigorous uncertainty. The model output has been compared to PROBA-V, Pleiades, Sentinel 3B as well as to the VITO implementation of the ROLO model. Initial results indicate that LIME predicts 3 %–5 % higher disk integrated lunar irradiance than the ROLO model for the visible and near-infrared channels. The model output has an expanded (k = 2) radiometric uncertainty of ∼2 % at the lunar photometer wavelengths, and it is expected that planned observations until at least 2024 further constrain the model parameters in subsequent updates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Spectroradiometric measurements of direct solar irradiance traceable to the SI were performed by three spectroradiometer systems during a three week campaign in September 2022 at the Izaña Atmospheric Observatory (IZO) located on the island of Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain. The spectroradiometers provided direct spectral irradiance measurements in the spectral range 300 nm to 550 nm (QASUME), 550 nm to 1700 nm (QASUME-IR), 300 nm to 2150 nm (BTS), and 316 nm to 1030 nm (PSR), with relative standard uncertainties of 0.7%, 0.9% and 1% for QASUME/QASUME-IR, PSR, and BTS respectively. The calibration of QASUME and QASUME-IR was validated prior to this campaign at the PTB by measuring the spectral irradiance from two spectral irradiance sources, the high temperature blackbody BB3200pg as national primary standard and the tuneable laser facility TULIP. The Top of Atmosphere (ToA) solar irradiance spectra from the spectroradiometers were retrieved from direct solar irradiance measurements using zero airmass extrapolation during cloudfree conditions which were then compared to the TSIS-1 HSRS solar spectrum. These ToA solar spectra agreed to within 1% for the spectral range longer than 400 nm (for QASUME also at shorter wavelengths) in the spectral regions free of significant trace gas absorption and well within the combined uncertainties over the full investigated spectral range. Using the results from the comparison with QASUME, the relative standard uncertainty of the TSIS-1 HSRS ToA solar spectrum in the spectral range 308 nm to 400 nm could be reduced from its nominal 1.3% to 0.8%, representing the relative standard uncertainty of the QASUME ToA solar spectrum in this spectral range. The spectral Aerosol Optical Depth (AOD) retrieved from the solar irradiance measurements of these spectroradiometers using TSIS-1 HSRS as the reference ToA solar spectrum agreed to within 0.01 in optical depth in nearly all common spectral channels of two narowband filter radiometers belonging to the GAWPFR and AERONET networks. This study shows that it is now possible to retrieve spectral AOD over the extended spectral range from 300 nm to 1700 nm using solar irradiance measurements traceable to the SI using laboratory calibrated spectroradiometers with similar qual20 ity as from traditional Langley-based calibrated instruments. The main improvement to previous investigations is the recent availability of the high spectral resolution TSIS-1 HSRS solar spectrum with very low uncertainties which provides the Top of Atmosphere reference for the spectral atmospheric transmission measurements obtained from ground based solar irradiance measurements. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article presents a new method for transferring calibration from a reference photometer, referred to as the "master", to a secondary photometer, referred to as the "field", using a synergetic approach when master and field instruments have different spectral bands. The method was first applied between a PFR, (Precision Filter Radiometer) instrument from the World Optical Depth Research and Calibration Center (WORCC) considered the reference by the WMO (World Meteorological Organiza- tion), and a CE318-TS photometer, the standard photometer used by AERONET (AErosol RObotic NETwork). These two photometers have different optics, sun-tracking systems and spectral bands. The Langley Ratio method (LR) proposed in this study was used to transfer calibration to the closest spectral bands for 1-minute synchronous data, for airmasses between 2 and 5, and was compared to the state of the art Langley calibration technique. The study was conducted at two different locations, Izaña Observatory (IZO) and Valladolid, where measurements were collected almost simultaneously over a six-month period under different aerosol regimes. In terms of calibration aspects, our results showed very low relative differences and standard deviations in the calibration constant transferred in Izaña from PFR to Cimel, up to 0.29 % and 0.46 %, respectively, once external factors such as different field-of-view between photometers or the presence of calibration issues were considered. However, these differences were higher in the comparison performed at Valladolid (1.04 %) and in the shorter wavelengths spectral bands (up to 0.78 % in Izaña and 1.61 % in Valladolid). Additionally, the LR method was successfully used to transfer calibrations between different versions of the CE318-T photometer, providing an accurate calibration transfer (0.17 % to 0.69 %) in the morning LRs, even when the instruments had differences in their central wavelengths (Δλ up to 91 nm). Overall, our results indicate that the LR method is a useful tool not only for transferring calibrations but also for detecting and correcting possible instrumental issues. This is exemplified by the temperature dependence on the two Cimel UV spectral bands, which was estimated by means of the LR method to be ~ -0.09x10-2/° in the case of 380 nm and ~ -0.03x10-2/° in the case of 340 nm. This estimation served us to implement the first operative temperature correction on ultraviolet (UV) spectral bands. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

On 19 September 2021, a volcanic eruption began on the island of La Palma (Canary Islands, Spain). The eruption has allowed the assessment of an unprecedented multidisciplinary study on the effects of the volcanic plume. This work presents the estimation of the spectral direct radiative forcing (Δ F) and efficiency (Δ F E f f ) from solar radiation measurements at the Izaña Observatory (IZO) located on the island of Tenerife (∼140 km from the volcano). During the eruption, the IZO was affected by different types of aerosols: volcanic, Saharan mineral dust, and a mixture of volcanic and dust aerosols. Three case studies were identified using ground-based (lidar) data, satellite-based (Sentinel-5P Tropospheric Monitoring Instrument, TROPOMI) data, reanalysis data (Modern-Era Retrospective Analysis for Research and Applications, version 2, MERRA-2), and backward trajectories (Flexible Trajectories, FLEXTRA), and subsequently characterised in terms of optical and micro-physical properties using ground-based sun-photometry measurements. Despite the Δ F of the volcanic aerosols being greater than that of the dust events (associated with the larger aerosol load present), the Δ F E f f was found to be lower. The spectral Δ F E f f values at 440 nm ranged between −1.9 and −2.6 Wm − 2 nm − 1 AOD − 1 for the mineral dust and mixed volcanic and dust particles, and between −1.6 and −3.3 Wm − 2 nm − 1 AOD − 1 for the volcanic aerosols, considering solar zenith angles between 30 ∘ and 70 ∘ , respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Tiempo y Clima is the property of Asociacion Meteorologica Espanola and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The emergence of Moon photometers is allowing measurements of lunar irradiance over the world and increasing the potential to derive aerosol optical depth (AOD) at night-time, that is very relevant in polar areas. Actually, new photometers implement the latest technological advances that permit lunar irradiance measurements together with classical Sun photometry measurements. However, a proper use of these instruments for AOD retrieval requires accurate time-dependent knowledge of the extraterrestrial lunar irradiance over time, due to its fast change throughout the Moon's cycle. This paper uses the RIMO model (an implementation of the ROLO model) to estimate the AOD at night-time assuming that the calibration of the solar channels can be transferred to the Moon by a vicarious method. However, the obtained AOD values using a Cimel CE318-T Sun/sky/Moon photometer for 98 pristine nights with low and stable AOD at the Izaña Observatory (Tenerife, Spain) are not in agreement with the expected (low and stable) AOD values, estimated by linear interpolations from daytime values obtained during the previous evening and the following morning. Actually, AOD calculated using RIMO shows negative values and with a marked cycle dependent on the optical airmass. The differences between the AOD obtained using RIMO and the expected values are assumed to be associated with inaccuracies in the RIMO model, and these differences are used to calculate the RIMO correction factor (RCF). The RCF is a proposed correction factor that, multiplied by RIMO value, gives an effective extraterrestrial lunar irradiance that provides the expected AOD values. The RCF varies with the Moon phase angle (MPA) and with wavelength, ranging from 1.01 to 1.14, which reveals an overall underestimation of RIMO to the lunar irradiance. These obtained RCF values are modeled for each photometer wavelength to a second order polynomial as function of MPA. The AOD derived by this proposed method is compared with the independent AOD measurements obtained by a star photometer at Granada (Spain) for two years. The mean of the Moon-star AOD differences are between -0.015 and -0.005 and the standard deviation between 0.03 and 0.04 (which is reduced to about 0.01 if one month of data affected by instrumental issues is not included in the analysis), for 440, 500, 675 ad 870 nm; however, for 380 nm, the mean and standard deviation of these differences are higher. The Moon-star AOD differences are also analyzed as a function of MPA, showing no significant dependence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]