Laser & Optoelectronics Progress, Volume. 60, Issue 21, 2101001(2023)

Scattering Polarization Characteristics of Aerosols in Actual Weather Conditions

Yuzhao Ma1,2、*, Chen Gao2, and Jun Zhu1
Author Affiliations
  • 1Tianjin Key Laboratory for Advanced Signal Processing, Civil Aviation University of China, Tianjin 300300, China
  • 2College of Electronic Information and Automation, Civil Aviation University of China, Tianjin 300300, China
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    In this study, the polarization properties of light scattered by aerosols are investigated in actual atmospheric conditions at different visibilities considering the multiple scattering effects and the Earth's surface reflection. The vector radiation transfer equation is solved using the successive order scattering method. First, the visibilities of all the days in 2019 are evaluated. Representative high- and low-visibility atmospheres are then used as the transmission media. The macroscopic information and the microphysical properties of the aerosols provided by AERONET are used in the numerical simulations of the polarization properties of the scattered light. The coupled-surface reflection model is subsequently used to determine the properties of light scattered by the Earth's surface. The Stokes vectors are obtained as the simulation results, and the polarization degrees of the scattered light are derived. Our simulation results show that the aerosol scattering properties tend to be different in high-visibility weather conditions compared to low-visibility ones. As the solar zenith angle increases in low-visibility weather, the I, Q, and U elements of the first-order downward scattered light vary irregularly. However, these elements increase at all the orders of upward scattered light and at the high-order downward scattered light. Conversely, for high-visibility weather, the values of the I, Q, and U elements of all the scattered light orders that possess similar variation characteristics, increase with the solar zenith angle. The corresponding polarization degrees exhibit similar trends. The results of our study can be useful for the remote sensing of the polarization properties of aerosol scattered light and for determining the microphysical properties of aerosols.

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    Yuzhao Ma, Chen Gao, Jun Zhu. Scattering Polarization Characteristics of Aerosols in Actual Weather Conditions[J]. Laser & Optoelectronics Progress, 2023, 60(21): 2101001

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    Paper Information

    Category: Atmospheric Optics and Oceanic Optics

    Received: Aug. 31, 2022

    Accepted: Nov. 4, 2022

    Published Online: Nov. 3, 2023

    The Author Email: Ma Yuzhao (yzma@cauc.edu.cn)

    DOI:10.3788/LOP222434

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