Aerosol optical properties in a rural environment near the mega-city Guangzhou, China: Implications for regional air pollution, radiative forcing and remote sensing.
The scattering and absorption of solar radiation by atmospheric aerosols is a key element of the Earth's radiative energy balance and climate. The optical properties of aerosol particles are, however, highly variable and not well characterized, especially near newly emerging mega-cities. In this study, aerosol optical properties were measured at a rural site approximately 60 km northwest of the mega-city Guangzhou in southeast China. The measurements were part of the PRIDE-PRD2006 intensive campaign, covering the period of 1–30 July 2006. Scattering and absorption coefficients of dry aerosol particles with diameters up to 10 ?m (PM10) were determined with a three-wavelength integrating nephelometer and with a photoacoustic spectrometer, respectively.