MINOS
Mediterranean Intensive Oxidant Study
MINOS was a single field campaign in August 2001. It combined ground-based and aircraft observations to investigate pollution transport and its chemical and radiative effects over the Mediterranean. Finokalia on northern Crete provided a site for measurements of gases, aerosols, radiation, and meteorology. Aircraft sampled the atmosphere above the region. [A27]
Research and findings
With Krzysztof Markowicz and colleagues, I investigated the radiative effects of absorbing aerosols using direct radiation measurements and aerosol optical properties. The study found that aerosols—mostly of anthropogenic origin during the observations—reduced daily-average surface solar radiation by 17.9 W m⁻² while increasing solar absorption in the atmosphere by 11.3 W m⁻². [A26]
The broader MINOS synthesis described the Mediterranean as a meeting region for pollution transported from Europe, Asia, and North America, with different pathways at different altitudes. It connected the local radiation measurements to a larger picture of pollution extending through the troposphere. [A27]
Related publications
- A26
Markowicz, K., P.J. Flatau, M.V. Ramana, P.J. Crutzen, V. Ramanathan. Absorbing Mediterranean aerosols lead to a large reduction in the solar radiation at the surface, Geophysical Research Letters, 29, pp. 29-1 to 29-4, 10.1029/2002GL015767, 2002.
- A27
Lelieveld, J., H. Berresheim, S. Borrmann, P.J. Crutzen, F.J. Dentener, H. Fischer, J. Feichter, P.J. Flatau, J. Heland, R. Holzinger, R. Korrmann, M.G. Lawrence, Z. Levin, K. Markowicz, N. Mihalopoulos, A. Minikin, V. Ramanathan, M. de Reus, G.J. Roelofs, H.A. Scheeren, J. Sciare, H. Schlager, M. Schultz, P. Siegmund, B. Steil, E.G. Stephanou, P. Stier, M. Traub, C. Warneke, J. Williams, and H. Ziereis. Global air pollution crossroads over the Mediterranean, Science, 298, 5594, pp. 794-799, 2002.
- B.I.57