Three-dimensional solar radiation effects on the actinic flux field in a biomass-burning plume

Abstract

Three-dimensional (3-D) solar radiative transfer models describe radiative transfer under inhomogeneous atmospheric conditions more accurately than the commonly used one-dimensional (1-D) radiative transfer models that assume horizontal homogeneity of the atmosphere. Here results of 3-D radiative transfer simulations for a biomass-burning plume are presented and compared with local one-dimensional (1-1-D) simulations, i.e., 1-D simulations in every column of the model domain. The spatial distribution of the aerosol particles was derived from a 3-D atmospheric transport simulation. We studied the impact of 3-D radiative effects on the actinic flux within the plume center. The differences in the actinic flux between results from the 3-D and the 1-1-D simulations are considerable, ranging from -40% to more than +200%, depending on the wavelength, solar zenith angle, and the absorbing properties of the aerosol. The reason for this discrepancy is the neglect of horizontal photon transport in the 1-D simulation. These large 3-D effects on the actinic flux have the potential to influence significantly the in-plume photochemistry. Copyright 2003 by the American Geophysical Union.