Comparison of three types of aerosol products during 2015-2017 in China

Abstract

In this study, we use sunphotometer (AERONET) data as reference to evaluate MODIS, Himawari-08, and MERRA-2 aerosol products over China. AERONET data from Beijing, Xianghe, Xuzhou, Taihu and Hong Kong are used. The results indicate that aerosol optical depths (AODs) obtained from MODIS, Himawari-08, and MERRA-2 from 2015-2017 over China are consistent with the AERONET observations. The accuracy of these AOD products shows a spatial and temporal variation. MODIS aerosol products tend to overestimate the AODs at Beijing, Xianghe and Xuzhou, with stronger overestimation in winter. For Taihu and Hong Kong, MODIS only overestimates the AODs in winter. Himawari-08 and MERRA-2 underestimate the AODs in autumn over almost all stations except Taihu.