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NASA NTRS2016

Why Do Models Overestimate Surface Ozone in the Southeast United States?

Ozone pollution in the Southeast US involves complex chemistry driven by emissions of anthropogenic nitrogen oxide radicals (NO(x) triple bond NO + NO2) and biogenic isoprene. Model estimates of surface ozone concentrations tend to be biased high in the region and this is of concern for designing effective emission control strategies to meet air quality standards. We use detailed chemical observations from the SEAC(exp 4)RS aircraft campaign in August and September 2013, interpreted with the GEOS-Chem chemical transport model at 0.25 deg x 0.3125 deg horizontal resolution, to better understand the factors controlling surface ozone in the Southeast US. We find that the National Emission Inventory (NEI) for NO(x) from the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is too high. This finding is based on SEAC(exp 4)RS observations of NO(x) and its oxidation products, surface network observations of nitrate wet deposition fluxes, and OMI satellite observations of tropospheric NO2 columns. Our results indicate that NEI NO(x) emissions from mobile and industrial sources must be reduced by 30-60%, dependent on the assumption of the contribution by soil NO(x) emissions. Upper-tropospheric NO2 from lightning makes a large contribution to satellite observations of tropospheric NO2 that must be accounted for when using these data to estimate surface NO(x) emissions. We find that only half of isoprene oxidation proceeds by the high-NO(x) pathway to produce ozone; this fraction is only moderately sensitive to changes in NO(x) emissions because isoprene and NO(x) emissions are spatially segregated. GEOS-Chem with reduced NO(x) emissions provides an unbiased simulation of ozone observations from the aircraft and reproduces the observed ozone production efficiency in the boundary layer as derived from a regression of ozone and NO(x) oxidation products. However, the model is still biased high by 6 plus or minus 14 ppb relative to observed surface ozone in the Southeast US. Ozonesondes launched during midday hours show a 7 ppb ozone decrease from 1.5 km to the surface that GEOS-Chem does not capture. This bias may reflect a combination of excessive vertical mixing and net ozone production in the model boundary layer.

Oxidation↗

NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Forecasted Climate Penalties to Surface Ozone Across the 21st Century

Future climate change may bring local benefits or penalties to surface ozone pollution, resulting from changing temperature, precipitation, and transport patterns, as well as climate-sensitive natural precursor emissions. Here, we estimate climate penalty and benefits at the end of this century using version 2.0 of the Global Change and Air Pollution (GCAP 2.0) model framework, a one-way offline coupling between version E2.1 of the NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies (GISS) general circulation model (GCM) and the GEOS-Chem global 3-D chemical-transport model (CTM). We archive meteorology for driving GEOS-Chem from the E2.1 contributions to Phase 6 of the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project (CMIP6) for the present day (2005-2014 C.E.) and end-of-the 21st century (2090-2099 C.E.). Emissions and boundary conditions used for input to GEOS-Chem are consistent with the CMIP6 experimental design. We apply the model to isolate the impact of forecasted anthropogenic precursor emission changes versus climate-only driven changes on surface ozone for warming limited to 1.9 W m-2 versus 8.5 W m-2 above preindustrial levels. We find a global climate penalty of 47 (16-77) thousand additional deaths due to surface ozone at the end of the century in the extreme warming scenario, but only 13 (4-21) thousand additional deaths in the extreme mitigation scenario. Similarly, the extreme warming scenario is associated with a 40 % increase in economic losses due to crop damage from climate-only changes in surface ozone, but only an 8 % increase in the extreme mitigation scenario. The simulated climate penalties to surface ozone are most severe in South and East Asia.

Climate penalties↗

NASA NTRS1987

Vegetation mapping and stress detection in the Santa Monica Mountains, California

Thematic Mapper (TM) simulator data have been used to map coastal sage scrub in the mountains near Los Angeles by means of supervised classification. Changes in TM band radiances and band ratios are examined along an east-west gradient in ozone pollution loads. While the changes noted are interpretable in terms of ozone- and temperature-induced premature leaf drop, and consequent exposure of a dry, grassy understory, TM band and band ratio reflectances are influenced by a variety of independent factors which require that pollution stress interpretations be conducted in the context of the greatest possible ecological system comprehension.

Price, Curtis V.↗

NASA NTRS2005

Remote Sensing Characterization of the Urban Landscape for Improvement of Air Quality Modeling

The urban landscape is inherently complex and this complexity is not adequately captured in air quality models, particularly the Community Multiscale Air Quality (CMAQ) model that is used to assess whether urban areas are in attainment of EPA air quality standards, primarily for ground level ozone. This inadequacy of the CMAQ model to sufficiently respond to the heterogeneous nature of the urban landscape can impact how well the model predicts ozone pollutant levels over metropolitan areas and ultimately, whether cities exceed EPA ozone air quality standards. We are exploring the utility of high-resolution remote sensing data and urban growth projections as improved inputs to the meteorology component of the CMAQ model focusing on the Atlanta, Georgia metropolitan area as a case study. These growth projections include "business as usual" and "smart growth" scenarios out to 2030. The growth projections illustrate the effects of employing urban heat island mitigation strategies, such as increasing tree canopy and albedo across the Atlanta metro area, in moderating ground-level ozone and air temperature, compared to "business as usual" simulations in which heat island mitigation strategies are not applied. The National Land Cover Dataset at 30m resolution is being used as the land use/land cover input and aggregated to the 4km scale for the MM5 mesoscale meteorological model and the (CMAQ) modeling schemes. Use of these data has been found to better characterize low densityhburban development as compared with USGS 1 km land use/land cover data that have traditionally been used in modeling. Air quality prediction for fiture scenarios to 2030 is being facilitated by land use projections using a spatial growth model. Land use projections were developed using the 2030 Regional Transportation Plan developed by the Atlanta Regional Commission, the regional planning agency for the area. This allows the state Environmental Protection agency to evaluate how these transportation plans will affect fbture air quality.

Quattrochi, Dale A.↗

NASA NTRS2005

Urban Landscape Characterization Using Remote Sensing Data For Input into Air Quality Modeling

The urban landscape is inherently complex and this complexity is not adequately captured in air quality models that are used to assess whether urban areas are in attainment of EPA air quality standards, particularly for ground level ozone. This inadequacy of air quality models to sufficiently respond to the heterogeneous nature of the urban landscape can impact how well these models predict ozone pollutant levels over metropolitan areas and ultimately, whether cities exceed EPA ozone air quality standards. We are exploring the utility of high-resolution remote sensing data and urban growth projections as improved inputs to meteorological and air quality models focusing on the Atlanta, Georgia metropolitan area as a case study. The National Land Cover Dataset at 30m resolution is being used as the land use/land cover input and aggregated to the 4km scale for the MM5 mesoscale meteorological model and the Community Multiscale Air Quality (CMAQ) modeling schemes. Use of these data have been found to better characterize low density/suburban development as compared with USGS 1 km land use/land cover data that have traditionally been used in modeling. Air quality prediction for future scenarios to 2030 is being facilitated by land use projections using a spatial growth model. Land use projections were developed using the 2030 Regional Transportation Plan developed by the Atlanta Regional Commission. This allows the State Environmental Protection agency to evaluate how these transportation plans will affect future air quality.

Quattrochi, Dale A.↗

NASA NTRS2001

Tropical Tropospheric Ozone and Smoke Interactions: Satellite Observations During the 1997 Indonesian Fires

Biomass burning generates hydrocarbons, nitrogen oxides and carbon monoxide that lead to tropospheric ozone pollution. Other combustion products form soot and various aerosol particles that make up smoke. Since early 1997 smoke and tropospheric ozone have been monitored in real-time from TOMS (Total Ozone Mapping Spectrometer) at toms.gsfc.nasa.gov (smoke aerosol) and metosrv2.umd.edu/-tropo (tropospheric ozone). The striking increase in smoke and tropospheric ozone observed during the 1997 Indonesian fires was the first extreme episode observed. During the August-November period, plumes of excess ozone and smoke coincided at times but were decoupled at other times, a phenomenon followed with trajectories. Thus, trans-boundary evolution of smoke and ozone differed greatly. The second discovery of the 1997 TOMS record was a dynamical interaction of ozone with the strong El Nino Southern Oscillation (ENSO) and Indian Ocean Dipole (IOD) that led to a jump in tropospheric ozone in March 1997 over the entire Indian Ocean, well ahead of the intense burning period. A climatology of smoke and tropospheric ozone from a 1980's TOMS instrument shows offsets in the timing of these pollutants - further evidence that factors other than biomass burning exert a strong influence on tropical tropospheric ozone.

Thompson, A. M.↗

NASA NTRS2014

Ozone Profiles in the Baltimore-Washington Region (2006-2011): Satellite Comparisons and DISCOVER-AQ Observations

Much progress has been made in creating satellite products for tracking the pollutants ozone and NO2 in the troposphere. Yet, in mid-latitude regions where meteorological interactions with pollutants are complex, accuracy can be difficult to achieve, largely due to persistent layering of some constituents. We characterize the layering of ozone soundings and related species measured from aircraft over two ground sites in suburban Washington, DC (Beltsville, MD, 39.05N; 76.9W) and Baltimore (Edgewood, MD, 39.4N; 76.3W) during the July 2011 DISCOVER-AQ (Deriving Information on Surface Conditions from Column and Vertically Resolved Observations Relevant to Air Quality) experiment. First, we compare column-ozone amounts from the Beltsville and Edgewood sondes with data from overpassing satellites. Second, processes influencing ozone profile structure are analyzed using Laminar Identification and tracers: sonde water vapor, aircraft CO and NOy. Third, Beltsville ozone profiles and meteorological influences in July 2011 are compared to those from the summers of 2006-2010. Sonde-satellite offsets in total ozone during July 2011 at Edgewood and Beltsville, compared to the Ozone Monitoring Instrument (OMI), were 3 percent mean absolute error, not statistically significant. The disagreement between an OMIMicrowave Limb Sounder-based tropospheric ozone column and the sonde averaged 10 percent at both sites, with the sonde usually greater than the satellite. Laminar Identification (LID), that distinguishes ozone segments influenced by convective and advective transport, reveals that on days when both stations launched ozonesondes, vertical mixing was stronger at Edgewood. Approximately half the lower free troposphere sonde profiles have very dry laminae, with coincident aircraft spirals displaying low CO (80-110 ppbv), suggesting stratospheric influence. Ozone budgets at Beltsville in July 2011, determined with LID, as well as standard meteorological indicators, resemble those of 4 of the previous 5 summers. The penetration of stratospheric air throughout the troposphere appears to be typical for summer conditions in the Baltimore-Washington region.

satellite validation↗

NASA NTRS1997

Western Pacific Tropospheric Ozone and Potential Vorticity: Implications for Asian Pollution

Tropospheric ozone (03) cross sections measured with lidar from a DC-8 aircraft over the western Pacific correspond closely with potential vorticity (PV). Both are transported from the middle latitude stratosphere, although this is not the only source of 03, and both have sinks in the tropical boundary layer. 03 and PV are good indicators of photochemical and transport process interactions. In summer, some Asian pollution, raised by convection to the upper troposphere, passes southward into the tropics and to the Southern Hemisphere. In winter, subsidence keeps the pollution at low altitudes where it moves over the ocean towards the Inter-Tropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ), with photochemical destruction and secondary pollutant generation occurring en route. Convection raises this modified air to the upper troposphere, where some re may enter the stratosphere. Thus winter Asian pollution may at have a smaller direct influence on the global atmosphere than it would if injected at other longitudes and seasons.

Browell, Edward V.↗

NASA NTRS1999

Tropical Tropospheric Ozone: New Insights from Remote Sensing, Sondes and Field Studies

This talk will summarize our recent research in tropical tropospheric ozone studies in the field and from space. New tropospheric ozone and aerosol products from the TOMS (Total Ozone Mapping Spectrometer) satellite instrument will be highlighted (Hudson and Thompson, 1998; Thompson and Hudson, 1999). These are suitable for studying processes like ozone pollution resulting from biomass fires, seasonal and interannual variations and trends. Archived maps of tropospheric ozone over the tropics, from the Nimbus 7 observing period (1979-1992) are available in digital form at our website: http://metosrv2.umd.edu/-tropo. Real-time processing of TOMS data has produced images of tropical tropospheric ozone (TTO) since early 1997, using Earth-Probe TOMS; these maps are also available on the homepage. The need for validation data for TTO maps has led to establishment of the NASA/NOAA-sponsored SHADOZ (Southern Hemisphere Additional Ozonesondes) network, from which a 2-year record of high-quality ozonesonde data can be obtained: (http://hyperion.gsfc.nasa.gov/Data-services/Shadoz/shadoz-hmpg2.htrnl). Examples will be shown, along with ozonesondes from the January-February 1999 Aerosols-99 cruise of the R/V Ronald H Brown from Virginia to Cape Town, South Africa.

Thompson, Anne M.↗

NASA NTRS1999

Tropical Tropospheric Ozone: New Insights from Remote Sensing and Field Studies

Thompson, Anne↗

NASA NTRS1990

Convection links biomass burning to increased tropical ozone - However, models will tend to overpredict O3

Biomass burning throughout the inhabited portions of the tropics generates precursors which lead to significant local atmospheric ozone pollution. Several simulations show how this smog could be only an easily observed, local manifestation of a much broader increase in tropospheric ozone. The basic processes are illustrated with a one-dimensional time-dependent model that is closer to true meteorological motions than commonly used eddy diffusion models. Its application to a representative region of South America gives reasonable simulations of the local pollutants measured there. Three illustrative simulations indicate the importance of dilution, principally due to vertical transport, in increasing the efficiency of ozone production, possibly enough for high ozone to be apparent on a very large, intercontinental scale.

Chatfield, Robert B.↗

NASA NTRS1976

Remote measurements of ambient air pollutants with a bistatic laser system

The ambient air pollutants ozone, nitric oxide, and ethylene have been monitored in the Pasadena area with a bistatic IR laser apparatus. These pollutants were measured with a differential absorption technique, using selected wavelengths in the 9.5-, 5.2-, and 10.5-micron regions, respectively. The transmitted laser radiation was detected using both direct and heterodyne detection techniques. In the direct detection case, cube corner retroreflectors provided the return, and the heterodyne detection responded to scattered radiation from various rough surfaces, ranging from 400 m to 1.9 km in distance from the apparatus. Significant departures from ambient background concentration levels were noticed in the region near a local freeway during periods of moderate and heavy traffic.

Menzies, R. T.↗

NASA NTRS2006

Remote Sensing and Spatial Growth Modeling Coupled with Air Quality Modeling to Assess the Impact of Atlanta, Georgia on the Local and Regional Environment

The growth of cities, both in population and areal extent, appears as an inexorable process. Urbanization continues at a rapid rate, and it is estimated that by the year 2025, 80 percent of the world s population will live in cities. Directly aligned with the expansion of cities is urban sprawl. Urban expansion has profound impacts on a host of biophysical, environmental, and atmospheric processes. A reduction in air quality over cities is a major result of these impacts. Strategies that can be directly or indirectly implemented to help remediate air quality problems in cities and that can be accepted by political decision makers and the general public are now being explored to help bring down air pollutants and improve air quality. The urban landscape is inherently complex and this complexity is not adequately captured in air quality models, particularly the Community Multiscale Air Quality (CMAQ) model that is used to assess whether urban areas are in attainment of EPA air quality standards, primarily for ground level ozone. This inadequacy of the CMAQ model to sufficiently respond to the heterogeneous nature of the urban landscape can impact how well the model predicts ozone pollutant levels over metropolitan areas and ultimately, whether cities exceed EPA ozone air quality standards. We are exploring the utility of high-resolution remote sensing data and urban spatial growth modeling (SGM) projections as improved inputs to the meteorology component of the CMAQ model focusing on the Atlanta, Georgia metropolitan area as a case study. These growth projections include "business as usual" and "smart growth" scenarios out to 2030. The growth projections illustrate the effects of employing urban heat island mitigation strategies, such as increasing tree canopy and albedo across the Atlanta metro area, which in turn, are used to model how ozone and air temperature can potentially be moderated as impacts on elevating ground-level ozone, as opposed to not utilizing heat island mitigation strategies. The National Land Cover Dataset at 30m resolution is being used as the land use/land cover input and aggregated to the 4km scale for the MM5 mesoscale meteorological model and the (CMAQ) modeling schemes. Use of these data have been found to better characterize low density/suburban development as compared with USGS 1km land use/land cover data that have traditionally been used in modeling. Air quality prediction for future scenarios to 2030 is being facilitated by land use projections using a spatial growth model. Land use projections were developed using the 2030 Regional Transportation Plan developed by the Atlanta Regional Commission, the regional planning agency for the area. This allows the State Environmental Protection agency to evaluate how these transportation plans will affect future air quality. The coupled SGM and air quality modeling approach provides insight on what the impacts of Atlanta s growth will be on the local and regional environment and exists as a mechanism that can be used by policy makers to make rationale decisions on urban growth and sustainability for the metropolitan area in the future.

Quattrochi, Dale A.↗

NASA NTRS2020

Historical and Future Changes in Air Pollutants from CMIP6 Models

Poor air quality is currently responsible for large impacts on human health across the world. In addition, the air pollutants ozone (O3) and particulate matter less than 2.5 µm in diameter (PM2.5) are also radiatively active in the atmosphere and can influence Earth's climate. It is important to understand the effect of air quality and climate mitigation measures over the historical period and in different future scenarios to ascertain any impacts from air pollutants on both climate and human health. The Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 6 (CMIP6) presents an opportunity to analyse the change in air pollutants simulated by the current generation of climate and Earth system models that include a representation of chemistry and aerosols (particulate matter). The shared socio-economic pathways (SSPs) used within CMIP6 encompass a wide range of trajectories in precursor emissions and climate change, allowing for an improved analysis of future changes to air pollutants. Firstly, we conduct an evaluation of the available CMIP6 models against surface observations of O3 and PM2.5. CMIP6 models consistently overestimate observed surface O3 concentrations across most regions and in most seasons by up to 16 ppb, with a large diversity in simulated values over Northern Hemisphere continental regions. Conversely, observed surface PM2.5 concentrations are consistently underestimated in CMIP6 models by up to 10 µg m−3, particularly for the Northern Hemisphere winter months, with the largest model diversity near natural emission source regions. The biases in CMIP6 models when compared to observations of O3 and PM2.5 are similar to those found in previous studies. Over the historical period (1850–2014) large increases in both surface O3 and PM2.5 are simulated by the CMIP6 models across all regions, particularly over the mid to late 20th century, when anthropogenic emissions increase markedly. Large regional historical changes are simulated for both pollutants across East and South Asia with an annual mean increase of up to 40 ppb for O3 and 12 µg m−3 for PM2.5. In future scenarios containing strong air quality and climate mitigation measures (ssp126), annual mean concentrations of air pollutants are substantially reduced across all regions by up to 15 ppb for O3 and 12 µg m−3 for PM2.5. However, for scenarios that encompass weak action on mitigating climate and reducing air pollutant emissions (ssp370), annual mean increases in both surface O3 (up 10 ppb) and PM2.5 (up to 8 µg m−3) are simulated across most regions, although, for regions like North America and Europe small reductions in PM2.5 are simulated due to the regional reduction in precursor emissions in this scenario. A comparison of simulated regional changes in both surface O3 and PM2.5 from individual CMIP6 models highlights important regional differences due to the simulated interaction of aerosols, chemistry, climate and natural emission sources within models. The projection of regional air pollutant concentrations from the latest climate and Earth system models used within CMIP6 shows that the particular future trajectory of climate and air quality mitigation measures could have important consequences for regional air quality, human health and near-term climate. Differences between individual models emphasise the importance of understanding how future Earth system feedbacks influence natural emission sources, e.g. response of biogenic emissions under climate change.

Air pollutants↗

NASA NTRS2007

Use of AIRS, OMI, MLS, and TES Data in Assessing Forest Ecosystem Exposure to Ozone

Ground-level ozone at high levels poses health threats to exposed flora and fauna, including negative impacts to human health. While concern is common regarding depletion of ozone in the stratosphere, portions of the urban and rural United States periodically have high ambient levels of tropospheric ozone on the ground. Ozone pollution can cause a variety of impacts to susceptible vegetation (e.g., Ponderosa and Jeffrey pine species in the southwestern United States), such as stunted growth, alteration of growth form, needle or leaf chlorosis, and impaired ability to withstand drought-induced water stress. In addition, Southern Californian forests with high ozone exposures have been recently subject to multiyear droughts that have led to extensive forest overstory mortality from insect outbreaks and increased incidence of wildfires. Residual forests in these impacted areas may be more vulnerable to high ozone exposures and to other forest threats than ever before. NASA sensors collect a wealth of atmospheric data that have been used recently for mapping and monitoring regional tropospheric ozone levels. AIRS (Atmospheric Infrared Sounder), OMI (Ozone Monitoring Instrument), MLS (Microwave Limb Sounder), and TES (Tropospheric Emission Spectrometer) data could be used to assess forest ecosystem exposure to ozone. Such NASA data hold promise for providing better or at least complementary synoptic information on ground-level ozone levels that Federal agency partners can use to assess forest health trends and to mitigate the threats as needed in compliance with Federal laws and mandates. NASA data products on ozone concentrations may be able to aid applications of DSTs (decision support tools) adopted by the USDA FS (U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service) and by the NPS (National Park Service), such as the Ozone Calculator, in which ground ozone estimates are employed to assess ozone impacts to forested vegetation.

Spruce, Joseph P.↗

NASA NTRS2004

New Perspectives from Satellite and Profile Observations on Tropospheric Ozone over Africa and the Adjacent Oceans: An Indian-Atlantic Ocean Link to tbe "Ozone Paradox"

In the past few years, tropospheric ozone observations of Africa and its adjacent ocenas have been greatly enhanced by high resolution (spatial and temporal) satellite measurements and profile data from aircraft (MOZAIC) and balloon-borne (SHADOZ) soundings. These views have demonstrated for the first time the complexity of chemical-dynamical interactions over the African continent and the Indian and Atlantic Oceans. The tropical Atlantic "ozone paradax" refers to the observation that during the season of maximum biomass burning in west Africa north of the Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ), the highest tropospheric ozone total column occurs south of the ITCZ over the tropical Atlantic. The longitudinal view of tropospheric ozone in the southern tropics from SHADOZ (Southern Hemisphere Additional Ozonesondes) soundings shown the persistence of a "zonal-wave one" pattern that reinforces the "ozone paradox". These ozone features interact with dynamics over southern and northern Africa where anthropogenic sources include the industrial regions of the South African Highveld and Mideastern-Mediterranean influences, respectively. Our newest studies with satellites and soundings show that up to half the ozone pollution over the Atlantic in the January-March "paradox" period may originate from south Asian pollution. Individual patches of pollurion over the Indian Ocean are transported upward by convective mixing and are enriched by pyrogenic, biogenic sources and lightning as they cross Africa and descend over the Atlantic. In summary, local sources, intercontinental import and export and unique regional transport patterns put Africa at a crossroads of troposheric ozone influences.

Thompson, Anne M.↗

NASA NTRS2021

Significant Climate Benefits from Near-Term Climate Forcer Mitigation in Spite of Aerosol Reductions

Near-term climate forcers (NTCFs), including aerosols and chemically reactive gases such as tropospheric ozone and methane, offer a potential way to mitigate climate change and improve air quality--so called "win-win" mitigation policies. Prior studies support improved air quality under NTCF mitigation, but with conflicting climate impacts that range from a significant reduction in the rate of global warming to only a modest impact. Here, we use state-of-the-art chemistry-climate model simulations conducted as part of the Aerosol and Chemistry Model Intercomparison Project (AerChemMIP) to quantify the 21st-century impact of NTCF reductions, using a realistic future emission scenario with a consistent air quality policy. Non-methane NTCF (NMNTCF; aerosols and ozone precursors) mitigation improves air quality, but leads to significant increases in global mean precipitation of 1.3% by mid-century and 1.4% by end-of-the-century, and corresponding surface warming of 0.23 and 0.21 K. NTCF (all-NTCF; including methane) mitigation further improves air quality, with larger reductions of up to 45% for ozone pollution, while offsetting half of the wetting by mid-century (0.7% increase) and all the wetting by end-of-the-century (non-significant 0.1% increase) and leading to surface cooling of -0.15 K by mid-century and -0.50 K by end-of-the-century. This suggests that methane mitigation offsets warming induced from reductions in NMNTCFs, while also leading to net improvements in air quality.

Near-term climate forcers (NTCFs)↗

NASA NTRS1973

Extraterrestrial solar energy and its possible variations

Values of the solar constant and solar spectrum have been adopted as design standards for NASA space vehicles and as engineering standards by IES/ASTM. High resolution spectral data for the UV and visible range, normalized to these standards have been derived. Applications of these results for weather analysis, air pollution, ozone production, and atmospheric energy exchange are reviewed. Indications of possible variations in solar energy, total and spectral, and their influence on the earth-atmosphere system are examined. Programs for future studies of these variations from satellites and high-altitude aircraft are discussed.

Thekaekara, M. P.↗