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The TROPOspheric Monitoring Instrument (TROPOMI) onboard the Sentinel-5 Precursor (S5P) satellite was launched on 13 October 2017 to provide the atmospheric composition for atmosphere and climate research. The S5P is a Sun-synchronous polar-orbiting satellite providing global daily coverage. The TROPOMI swath is 2600 km wide, and the ground resolution for most data products is 7.2×3.5 km2 (5.6×3.5 km2 since 6 August 2019) at nadir. The Finnish Meteorological Institute (FMI) is responsible for the development of the TROPOMI UV algorithm and the processing of the TROPOMI surface ultraviolet (UV) radiation product which includes 36 UV parameters in total. Ground-based data from 25 sites located in arctic, subarctic, temperate, equatorial and Antarctic areas were used for validation of the TROPOMI overpass irradiance at 305, 310, 324 and 380 nm, overpass erythemally weighted dose rate/UV index, and erythemally weighted daily dose for the period from 1 January 2018 to 31 August 2019. The validation results showed that for most sites 60 %–80 % of TROPOMI data was within ±20 % of ground-based data for snow-free surface conditions. The median relative differences to ground-based measurements of TROPOMI snow-free surface daily doses were within ±10 % and ±5 % at two-thirds and at half of the sites, respectively. At several sites more than 90 % of cloud-free TROPOMI data was within ±20 % of ground-based measurements. Generally median relative differences between TROPOMI data and ground-based measurements were a little biased towards negative values (i.e. satellite data < ground-based measurement), but at high latitudes where non-homogeneous topography and albedo or snow conditions occurred, the negative bias was exceptionally high: from −30 % to −65 %. Positive biases of 10 %–15 % were also found for mountainous sites due to challenging topography. The TROPOMI surface UV radiation product includes quality flags to detect increased uncertainties in the data due to heterogeneous surface albedo and rough terrain, which can be used to filter the data retrieved under challenging conditions.

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.

This article presents a new method for transferring calibration from a reference sun photometer, referred to as the “master”, to a secondary sun 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 precision filter radiometer (denoted PFR) instrument from the World Optical Depth Research and Calibration Center (WORCC), considered the reference by the WMO (World Meteorological Organization), and a CE318-TS photometer (denoted Cimel), the standard photometer used by AERONET (AErosol RObotic NETwork). These two photometers have different optics, sun-tracking systems, and spectral bands. The Langley ratio (LR) method proposed in this study was used to transfer calibration to the closest spectral bands for 1 min synchronous data for air masses between 2 and 5, and it 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 6-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 IZO from the PFR to the Cimel: up to 0.29 % and 0.46 %, respectively, once external factors such as different fields 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-wavelength spectral bands (up to 0.78 % in IZO 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 of the signal on the two Cimel UV spectral bands, which was estimated by means of the LR method, resulting in a signal rate of change of approximately -0.09×10-2 per degree in the case of 380 nm and approximately -0.03×10-2 per degree in the case of 340 nm. This estimation allowed us to implement the first operative temperature correction on ultraviolet (UV) spectral bands.

Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy is particularly relevant for climate studies due to its ability to provide information on both fine absorption structures (i.e. trace gases) and broadband continuum signatures (i.e. aerosols or water continuum) across the entire infrared (IR) domain. In this context, this study assesses the capability of the portable and compact EM27/SUN spectrometer, used within the research infrastructure COCCON (COllaborative Carbon Column Observing Network), to retrieve spectral aerosol properties from low-resolution FTIR solar absorption spectra (0.5 cm−1). The study focuses on the retrieval of aerosol optical depth (AOD) and its spectral dependence in the 873–2314 nm spectral range from COCCON measurements at the subtropical high-mountain Izaña Observatory (IZO, Tenerife, Spain), which were coincidentally carried out with standard sun photometry within the Aerosol Robotic Network (AERONET) in the 3-year period from December 2019 to September 2022. The co-located AERONET–COCCON database was used to cross-validate these two independent techniques in the common spectral range (870–1640 nm), demonstrating an excellent agreement at the near-coincident spectral bands (mean AOD differences limited to 0.005, standard deviations up to 0.021 and Pearson regression coefficients up to 0.97). This indicates that the low-resolution COCCON instruments are suitable for detecting the aerosol broadband signal contained in the IR spectra in addition to the retrieval of precise trace gas concentrations, provided a robust calibration procedure (Langley-based or absolute calibration procedures) is used to compensate for the optical degradation of the external system (∼ 0.72 % per month). The study also assesses the capability of the EM27/SUN to simultaneously infer aerosols and trace gases and relate their common emission sources in two case study events: a volcanic plume from the La Palma eruption in 2021 and a nearby forest fire in Tenerife in 2022. Overall, our results demonstrate the potential of the portable low-resolution COCCON instruments to enhance the multi-parameter capability of the FTIR technique for atmospheric monitoring.

A comprehensive characterisation of atmospheric aerosols in the subtropical eastern North Atlantic has been carried out using long-term ground-based Aerosol Robotic NETwork (AERONET) photometric observations over the period 2005–2020 from a unique network made up of four stations strategically located from sea level to 3555 m on the island of Tenerife. This site can be considered a sentinel for the passage of airmasses going to Europe from Africa, and therefore the aerosol characterisation performed here adds important information for analysing their evolution during their path toward Northern Europe. Two of these stations (Santa Cruz de Tenerife – SCO – at sea level and La Laguna – LLO – at 580 m a.s.l.) are located within the marine atmospheric boundary layer (MABL), and the other two (Izaña – IZO – at 2373 m a.s.l. and Teide Peak – TPO – at 3555 m a.s.l.) are high mountain stations within the free troposphere (FT). Monthly climatology of the aerosol optical depth (AOD), Ångström exponent (AE), aerosol concentration, size distribution and aerosol optical properties has been obtained for the MABL and FT. Measurements that are quite consistent across the four sites have been used to categorise the main atmospheric scenarios, and these measurements confirm an alternation between predominant background conditions and predominant dust-loaded Saharan air mass conditions caused by seasonal dust transport over the subtropical North Atlantic. Background conditions prevail in the MABL and FT for most of the year, while dust-laden conditions dominate in July and August. The MABL under background conditions appears as a well-mixed layer with a low aerosol concentration (the volume concentration, VolCon, ranges from 0.02 ± 0.01 to 0.04 ± 0.02 µm3 µm−2), a predominance of coarse-mode marine aerosols (the effective radius, Reff, changes from 1.60 ± 0.19 to 1.91 ± 0.34 µm), and a volume contribution of the fine-mode fraction Vf/Vt . The clean FT is characterised by remarkably low aerosol loading and a predominant impact of fine-mode aerosols throughout the year (Vf/Vt has a maximum value of 0.93 ± 0.13), with an average Reff of 0.16 ± 0.02 µm. However, under dust-laden conditions and mainly in summer, we observe a predominance of coarse-mode aerosols with maximum VolCon values of 0.26 ± 0.23 µm3 µm−2 for the MABL and 0.16 ± 0.12 (0.06 ± 0.05) µm3 µm−2 for IZO (TPO), and a similar and quite consistent fine-mode fraction of 0.12 ± 0.03 in the vertical within the MABL and FT. Similarities in micro-physical and optical intensive aerosol properties confirm that the Saharan Air Layer (SAL) is a well-mixed layer in terms of the particulate composition. An estimation of the difference in the aerosol loading in the 1 km layer between IZO and TPO (in terms of VolCon and AOD) is performed in this study, and this shows that aerosol loading at IZO is double that at TPO, but they have similar fine-mode fractions, effective radii and intensive optical properties. The long-term trend analysis at SCO shows a significant negative trend in the fine-mode AOD between 2005 and 2020 (−1.8 ± 0.5) × 10−5 yr−1, which might be linked to the large reduction in oil-refining SO2 emissions from the SCO refinery in 2012.

Every year, large-scale African dust outbreaks frequently pass over the Canary Islands (Spain). Here we describe the seasonal evolution of atmospheric aerosol extinction and meteorological vertical profiles on Tenerife over the period 2007–2018 using long-term micropulse lidar (MPL-3) and radiosonde observations. These measurements are used to categorise the different patterns of dust transport over the subtropical North Atlantic and, for the first time, to robustly describe the dust vertical distribution in the Saharan Air Layer (SAL) over this region. Three atmospheric scenarios dominate the aerosol climatology: dust-free (clean) conditions, the Saharan summer scenario (summer-SAL) and the Saharan winter scenario (winter-SAL). A relatively well-mixed marine boundary layer (MBL) was observed in the case of clean (dust-free) conditions; it was associated with rather constant lidar extinction coefficients (α) below 0.036 km−1 with minimum α (< 0.022 km−1) in the free troposphere (FT). The summer-SAL has been characterised as a dust-laden layer strongly affecting both the MBL (Δα = +48 % relative to clean conditions) and the FT. The summer-SAL appears as a well-stratified layer, relatively dry at lower levels (Δr∼-44 % at the SAL’s base, where r is the water vapour mixing ratio) but more humid at higher levels compared with clean FT conditions (Δr∼+332 % at 5.3 km), with a peak of α> 0.066 km−1 at ∼ 2.5 km. Desert dust is present up to ∼ 6.0 km, the SAL top based on the altitude of SAL's temperature inversion. In the winter-SAL scenario, the dust layer is confined to lower levels below 2 km altitude. This layer is characterised by a dry anomaly at lower levels (Δr∼ −38 % in comparison to the clean scenario) and a dust peak at ∼ 1.3 km height. Clean FT conditions were found above 2.3 km. Our results reveal the important role that both dust and water vapour play in the radiative balance within the summer-SAL and winter-SAL. The dominant dust-induced shortwave (SW) radiative warming in summer (heating rates up to +0.7 K d−1) is found slightly below the dust maximum. However, the dominant contribution of water vapour was observed as a net SW warming observed within the SAL (from 2.1 to 5.7 km) and as a strong cold anomaly near the SAL's top (−0.6 K d−1). The higher water vapour content found to be carried on the summer-SAL, despite being very low, represents a high relative variation in comparison to the very dry clean free troposphere in the subtropics. This relevant aspect should be properly taken into account in atmospheric modelling processes. In the case of the winter-SAL, we observed a dust-induced radiative effect dominated by SW heating (maximum heating of +0.7 K d−1 at 1.5 km, near the dust peak); both dust and atmospheric water vapour impact heating in the atmospheric column. This is the case of the SW heating within the SAL (maximum near the r peak), the dry anomaly at lower levels (Δr∼ −38 % at 1 km) and the thermal cooling (∼ 0.3 K d−1) from the temperature inversion upwards. Finally, we hypothesise that the SAL can impact heterogeneous ice nucleation processes through the frequent occurrence of mid-level clouds observed near the SAL top at relatively warm temperatures. A dust event that affected Tenerife on August 2015 is simulated using the regional DREAM model to assess the role of dust and water vapour carried within SAL in the ice nucleation processes. The modelling results reproduce the arrival of the dust plume and its extension over the island and confirm the observed relationship between the summer-SAL conditions and the formation of mid- and high-level clouds.

High-resolution Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) solar observations are particularly relevant for climate studies, as they allow atmospheric gaseous composition and multiple climate processes to be monitored in detail. In this context, the present paper provides an overview of 20 years of FTIR measurements taken in the framework of the NDACC (Network for the Detection of Atmospheric Composition Change) from 1999 to 2018 at the subtropical Izaña Observatory (IZO, Spain). Firstly, long-term instrumental performance is comprehensively assessed, corroborating the temporal stability and reliable instrumental characterization of the two FTIR spectrometers installed at IZO since 1999. Then, the time series of all trace gases contributing to NDACC at IZO are presented (i.e. C2H6, CH4, ClONO2, CO, HCl, HCN, H2CO, HF, HNO3, N2O, NO2, NO, O3, carbonyl sulfide (OCS), and water vapour isotopologues H216O, H218O, and HD16O), reviewing the major accomplishments drawn from these observations. In order to examine the quality and long-term consistency of the IZO FTIR observations, a comparison of those NDACC products for which other high-quality measurement techniques are available at IZO has been performed (i.e. CH4, CO, H2O, NO2, N2O, and O3). This quality assessment was carried out on different timescales to examine what temporal signals are captured by the FTIR records, and to what extent. After 20 years of operation, the IZO NDACC FTIR observations have been found to be very consistent and reliable over time, demonstrating great potential for climate research. Long-term NDACC FTIR data sets, such as IZO, are indispensable tools for the investigation of atmospheric composition trends, multi-year phenomena, and complex climate feedback processes, as well as for the validation of past and present space-based missions and chemistry climate models.

Spectral direct UV–visible normal solar irradiance (DNI) has been measured with an EKO MS-711 grating spectroradiometer, which has a spectral range of 300–1100 nm, and 0.4 nm step, at the Izaña Atmospheric Observatory (IZO, Spain). It has been used to determine aerosol optical depth (AOD) at several wavelengths (340, 380, 440, 500, 675, and 870 nm) between April and September 2019, which has been compared with synchronous AOD measurements from a reference Cimel and Aerosol RObotic NETwork (AERONET) sun photometer. The EKO MS-711 has been calibrated at the Izaña Atmospheric Observatory by using the Langley plot method during the study period. Although this instrument has been designed for spectral solar DNI measurements, and therefore has a field of view (FOV) of 5∘ that is twice the recommended amount in solar photometry for AOD determination, the AOD differences compared to the AERONET–Cimel reference instrument (FOV ∼1.2∘) are fairly small. A comparison of the results from the Cimel AOD and EKO MS-711 AOD presents a root mean square (rms) of 0.013 (24.6 %) at 340 and 380 nm, and 0.029 (19.5 %) for longer wavelengths (440, 500, 675, and 870 nm). However, under relatively high AOD, near-forward aerosol scattering might be significant because of the relatively large circumsolar radiation (CSR) due to the large EKO MS-711 FOV, which results in a small but significant AOD underestimation in the UV range. The AOD differences decrease considerably when CSR corrections, estimated from libRadtran radiative transfer model simulations, are performed and obtain an rms of 0.006 (14.9 %) at 340 and 380 nm, and 0.005 (11.1 %) for longer wavelengths. The percentage of 2 min synchronous EKO AOD–Cimel AOD differences within the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) traceability limits were ≥96 % at 500, 675, and 870 nm with no CSR corrections. After applying the CSR corrections, the percentage of AOD differences within the WMO traceability limits increased to >95 % for 380, 440, 500, 675, and 870 nm, while for 340 nm the percentage of AOD differences showed a poorer increase from 67 % to a modest 86 %.

A comprehensive comparison of more than 70 000 synchronous 1 min aerosol optical depth (AOD) data from three Global Atmosphere Watch precision-filter radiometers (GAW-PFR), traceable to the World AOD reference, and 15 Aerosol Robotic Network Cimel radiometers (AERONET-Cimel), calibrated individually with the Langley plot technique, was performed for four common or “near” wavelengths, 380, 440, 500 and 870 nm, in the period 2005–2015. The goal of this study is to assess whether, despite the marked technical differences between both networks (AERONET, GAW-PFR) and the number of instruments used, their long-term AOD data are comparable and consistent. The percentage of data meeting the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) traceability requirements (95 % of the AOD differences of an instrument compared to the WMO standards lie within specific limits) is >92 % at 380 nm, >95 % at 440 nm and 500 nm, and 98 % at 870 nm, with the results being quite similar for both AERONET version 2 (V2) and version 3 (V3). For the data outside these limits, the contribution of calibration and differences in the calculation of the optical depth contribution due to Rayleigh scattering and O3 and NO2 absorption have a negligible impact. For AOD >0.1, a small but non-negligible percentage (∼1.9 %) of the AOD data outside the WMO limits at 380 nm can be partly assigned to the impact of dust aerosol forward scattering on the AOD calculation due to the different field of view of the instruments. Due to this effect the GAW-PFR provides AOD values, which are ∼3 % lower at 380 nm and ∼2 % lower at 500 nm compared with AERONET-Cimel. The comparison of the Ångström exponent (AE) shows that under non-pristine conditions (AOD >0.03 and AE ) the AE differences remain . This long-term comparison shows an excellent traceability of AERONET-Cimel AOD with the World AOD reference at 440, 500 and 870 nm channels and a fairly good agreement at 380 nm, although AOD should be improved in the UV range.

The Baseline Surface Radiation Network (BSRN) was implemented by the World Climate Research Programme (WCRP) starting observations with nine stations in 1992, under the auspices of the World Meteorological Organization (WMO). Currently, 59 BSRN stations submit their data to the WCRP. One of these stations is the Izaña station (station IZA, no. 61) that enrolled in this network in 2009. This is a high-mountain station located in Tenerife (Canary Islands, Spain, at 28.3∘ N, 16.5∘ W; 2373 m a.s.l.) and is a representative site of the subtropical North Atlantic free troposphere. It contributes with basic-BSRN radiation measurements, such as global shortwave radiation (SWD), direct radiation (DIR), diffuse radiation (DIF) and longwave downward radiation (LWD), and extended-BSRN measurements, including ultraviolet ranges (UV-A and UV-B), shortwave upward radiation (SWU) and longwave upward radiation (LWU), and other ancillary measurements, such as vertical profiles of temperature, humidity and wind obtained from radiosonde profiles (WMO station no. 60018) and total column ozone from the Brewer spectrophotometer. The IZA measurements present high-quality standards since more than 98 % of the data are within the limits recommended by the BSRN. There is an excellent agreement in the comparison between SWD, DIR and DIF (instantaneous and daily) measurements with simulations obtained with the LibRadtran radiative transfer model. The root mean square error (RMSE) for SWD is 2.28 % for instantaneous values and 1.58 % for daily values, while the RMSE for DIR is 2.00 % for instantaneous values and 2.07 % for daily values. IZA is a unique station that provides very accurate solar radiation data in very contrasting scenarios: most of the time under pristine sky conditions and periodically under the effects of the Saharan air layer characterized by a high content of mineral dust. A detailed description of the BSRN program at IZA, including quality control and quality assurance activities, is given in this work.

Solar ultraviolet (UV) irradiances were measured with NILU-UV multichannel radiometers at Ushuaia (54° S) and Marambio (64° S) between 2000 and 2013. The measurements were part of the Antarctic NILU-UV network, which was started in cooperation between Spain, Argentina and Finland. The erythemally weighted UV irradiance time series of both stations were analysed for the first time. The quality assurance procedures included a travelling reference instrument to transfer the irradiance scale to the stations. The time series were homogenized and high quality measurements were available for the period 2000–2010. During this period UV indices of 11 or more were measured on 5 and 35 days at Marambio and Ushuaia, respectively. At Marambio, the peak daily maximum UV index of 12 and daily doses of around 7 kJ m−2 were measured in November 2007. The highest UV daily doses at both stations were typically around 6 kJ m−2 and occurred when the stations were inside the polar vortex, resulting in very low total ozone amount. At both stations, daily doses in late November could even exceed those in the summer. At Marambio, in some years, also daily doses in October can be as high as those during the summer. At Ushuaia, the peak daily maximum UV index of 13 was measured twice: in November 2003 and 2009. Also during those days, the station of Ushuaia was inside the polar vortex.

A 7-year (2010–2016) comparison study between measured and simulated longwave downward radiation (LDR) under cloud-free conditions was performed at the Izaña Atmospheric Observatory (IZO, Spain). This analysis encompasses a total of 2062 cases distributed approximately evenly between day and night. Results show an excellent agreement between Baseline Surface Radiation Network (BSRN) measurements and simulations with libRadtran V2.0.1 and MODerate resolution atmospheric TRANsmission model (MODTRAN) V6 radiative transfer models (RTMs). Mean bias (simulated − measured) of 10 mm, the observed night-time difference between models and measurements is +5 W m−2 indicating a scale change of the World Infrared Standard Group of Pyrgeometers (WISG), which serves as reference for atmospheric longwave radiation measurements. Preliminary results suggest a possible impact of dust aerosol on infrared radiation during daytime that might not be correctly parametrized by the models, resulting in a slight underestimation of the modeled LDR, of about −3 W m−2, for relatively high aerosol optical depth (AOD > 0.20).

A 1-year inter-comparison of classical and modern radiation and sunshine duration (SD) instruments has been performed at Izaña Atmospheric Observatory (IZO) located in Tenerife (Canary Islands, Spain) starting on 17 July 2014. We compare daily global solar radiation (GSRH) records measured with a Kipp & Zonen CM-21 pyranometer, taken in the framework of the Baseline Surface Radiation Network, with those measured with a multifilter rotating shadowband radiometer (MFRSR), a bimetallic pyranometer (PYR) and GSRH estimated from sunshine duration performed by a Campbell–Stokes sunshine recorder (CS) and a Kipp & Zonen sunshine duration sensor (CSD). Given that the BSRN GSRH records passed strict quality controls (based on principles of physical limits and comparison with the LibRadtran model), they have been used as reference in the inter-comparison study. We obtain an overall root mean square error (RMSE) of ∼ 0.9 MJm−2 (4 %) for PYR and MFRSR GSRH, 1.9 (7 %) and 1.2 MJm−2 (5 %) for CS and CSD GSRH, respectively. Factors such as temperature, relative humidity (RH) and the solar zenith angle (SZA) have been shown to moderately affect the GSRH observations. As an application of the methodology developed in this work, we have re-evaluated the GSRH data time series obtained at IZO with two PYRs between 1977 and 1991. Their high consistency and temporal stability have been proved by comparing with GSRH estimates obtained from SD observations. These results demonstrate that (1) the continuous-basis inter-comparison of different GSRH techniques offers important diagnostics for identifying inconsistencies between GSRH data records, and (2) the GSRH measurements performed with classical and more simple instruments are consistent with more modern techniques and, thus, valid to recover GSRH data time series and complete worldwide distributed GSRH data. The inter-comparison and quality assessment of these different techniques have allowed us to obtain a complete and consistent long-term global solar radiation series (1977–2015) at Izaña.

A new zenith-looking narrow-band radiometer based system (ZEN), conceived for dust aerosol optical depth (AOD) monitoring, is presented in this paper. The ZEN system comprises a new radiometer (ZEN-R41) and a methodology for AOD retrieval (ZEN-LUT). ZEN-R41 has been designed to be stand alone and without moving parts, making it a low-cost and robust instrument with low maintenance, appropriate for deployment in remote and unpopulated desert areas. The ZEN-LUT method is based on the comparison of the measured zenith sky radiance (ZSR) with a look-up table (LUT) of computed ZSRs. The LUT is generated with the LibRadtran radiative transfer code. The sensitivity study proved that the ZEN-LUT method is appropriate for inferring AOD from ZSR measurements with an AOD standard uncertainty up to 0.06 for AOD500 nm ∼ 0.5 and up to 0.15 for AOD500 nm ∼ 1.0, considering instrumental errors of 5 %. The validation of the ZEN-LUT technique was performed using data from AErosol RObotic NETwork (AERONET) Cimel Electronique 318 photometers (CE318). A comparison between AOD obtained by applying the ZEN-LUT method on ZSRs (inferred from CE318 diffuse-sky measurements) and AOD provided by AERONET (derived from CE318 direct-sun measurements) was carried out at three sites characterized by a regular presence of desert mineral dust aerosols: Izaña and Santa Cruz in the Canary Islands and Tamanrasset in Algeria. The results show a coefficient of determination (R2) ranging from 0.99 to 0.97, and root mean square errors (RMSE) ranging from 0.010 at Izaña to 0.032 at Tamanrasset. The comparison of ZSR values from ZEN-R41 and the CE318 showed absolute relative mean bias (RMB) R2 higher than 0.97.

This paper presents the reconstruction of a 73-year time series of the aerosol optical depth (AOD) at 500 nm at the subtropical high-mountain Izaña Atmospheric Observatory (IZO) located in Tenerife (Canary Islands, Spain). For this purpose, we have combined AOD estimates from artificial neural networks (ANNs) from 1941 to 2001 and AOD measurements directly obtained with a Precision Filter Radiometer (PFR) between 2003 and 2013. The analysis is limited to summer months (July–August–September), when the largest aerosol load is observed at IZO (Saharan mineral dust particles). The ANN AOD time series has been comprehensively validated against coincident AOD measurements performed with a solar spectrometer Mark-I (1984–2009) and AERONET (AErosol RObotic NETwork) CIMEL photometers (2004–2009) at IZO, obtaining a rather good agreement on a daily basis: Pearson coefficient, R, of 0.97 between AERONET and ANN AOD, and 0.93 between Mark-I and ANN AOD estimates. In addition, we have analysed the long-term consistency between ANN AOD time series and long-term meteorological records identifying Saharan mineral dust events at IZO (synoptical observations and local wind records). Both analyses provide consistent results, with correlations > 85 %. Therefore, we can conclude that the reconstructed AOD time series captures well the AOD variations and dust-laden Saharan air mass outbreaks on short-term and long-term timescales and, thus, it is suitable to be used in climate analysis.

This paper presents the reconstruction of the 80-year time series of daily global solar radiation (GSR) at the subtropical high-mountain Izaña Atmospheric Observatory (IZO) located in Tenerife (The Canary Islands, Spain). For this purpose, we combine GSR estimates from sunshine duration (SD) data using the Ångström–Prescott method over the 1933/1991 period, and GSR observations directly performed by pyranometers between 1992 and 2013. Since GSR measurements have been used as a reference, a strict quality control has been applied based on principles of physical limits and comparison with LibRadtran model. By comparing with high quality GSR measurements, the precision and consistency over time of GSR estimations from SD data have been successfully documented. We obtain an overall root mean square error (RMSE) of 9.2% and an agreement between the variances of GSR estimations and GSR measurements within 92%. Nonetheless, this agreement significantly increases when the GSR estimation is done considering different daily fractions of clear sky (FCS). In that case, RMSE is reduced by half, to about 4.5%, when considering percentages of FCS > 40% (~ 90% of days in the testing period). Furthermore, we prove that the GSR estimations can monitor the GSR anomalies in consistency with GSR measurements and, then, can be suitable for reconstructing solar radiation time series. The reconstructed IZO GSR time series between 1933 and 2013 confirms change points and periods of increases/decreases of solar radiation at Earth's surface observed at a global scale, such as the early brightening, dimming and brightening. This fact supports the consistency of the IZO GSR time series presented in this work, which may be a reference for solar radiation studies in the subtropical North Atlantic region.

A climatology of new particle formation (NPF) events at high altitude in the subtropical North Atlantic is presented. A 4-year data set (June 2008–June 2012), which includes number size distributions (10–600 nm), reactive gases (SO2, NOx, and O3), several components of solar radiation and meteorological parameters, measured at Izaña Global Atmosphere Watch (GAW) observatory (2373 m above sea level; Tenerife, Canary Islands) was analysed. NPF is associated with the transport of gaseous precursors from the boundary layer by orographic buoyant upward flows that perturb the low free troposphere during daytime. On average, 30% of the days contained an NPF event. Mean values of the formation and growth rates during the study period were 0.46 cm−3 s−1 and 0.42 nm h−1, correspondingly. There is a clearly marked NPF season (May–August), when these events account for 50–60% of the days per month. Monthly mean values of the formation and growth rates exhibit higher values in this season, 0.49–0.92 cm−3 s−1 and 0.48–0.58 nm h−1, respectively. During NPF events, SO2, UV radiation and upslope winds showed higher values than during non-events. The overall data set indicates that SO2 plays a key role as precursor, although other species seem to contribute during some periods. Condensation of sulfuric acid vapour accounts for most of the measured particle growth during most of the year (~70%), except for some periods. In May, the highest mean growth rates (~0.6 nm h−1) and the lowest contribution of sulfuric acid (~13%) were measured, suggesting a significant involvement of other condensing vapours. The SO2 availability seems also to be the most influencing parameter in the year-to-year variability in the frequency of NPF events. The condensation sink showed similar features to other mountain sites, showing high values during NPF events. Summertime observations, when Izaña is within the Saharan Air Layer, suggest that dust particles may play a significant role acting as coagulation sink of freshly formed nucleation particles. The contribution of dust particles to the condensation sink of sulfuric acid vapours seems to be modest (~8% as average). Finally, we identified a set of NPF events in which two nucleation modes, which may evolve at different rates, occur simultaneously and for which further investigations are necessary.

Enterococcus raffinosus is scarcely found in clinical samples and even less frequently as etiologic agent of endocarditis. We are herein presenting one case of mitral prosthetic-valve endocarditis in a 77-y-o male due to a vancomycinresistant Enterococcus raffinosus isolate, successfully treated with 6 weeks of linezolid, and a two-year follow up.Enterococcus raffinosus es una especie poco frecuente en materiales clínicos y menos aún como agente etiológico de endocarditis. En este trabajo se presenta un caso de endocarditis de válvula mitral protésica en un paciente de 77 años debida a Enterococcus raffinosus resistente a vancomicina y que fue exitosamente tratada con linezolid durante 6 semanas, con un seguimiento de 2 años.