Aerosol Characterization in a Semi-rural Site in South-italy by Combined In-situ and Ground-based Remote Sensing Measurements

High resolution radiometric together with in-situ gravimetric and aethalometer measurements have been performed in a semi-rural site in Southwest Italy (Tito Scalo, 40° 35’ N, 15° 41’ E, 750m a.s.l) to derive aerosols optical and physical properties. The measurement site is located in the Mediterranean area and this condition allows to monitor aerosol properties variation due to the influence of air masses with different origin. In particular, dust particles from Saharan desert could be present together with polluted and smoke aerosol mainly from Central and Eastern Europe. Moreover marine particles are an almost constant component both from the Mediterranean itself and from the Atlantic Ocean. Some anthropogenic local sources impact the site, such as few little plants and a main road. Columnar properties have been inferred by a high resolution (1.5 nm) spectroradiometer Ocean Optics (400nm-800nm) to derive Aerosol Optical Depths (AODs), Angstrom turbidity parameters and size distributions, while daily mass size distributions at the ground have been obtained by a 13 stages impactor. Finally, Black Carbon (BC) concentrations have been measured during the campaign by using an aethalometer and, combining all these measurements, it has been possible to obtain a closure between aerosol optical and physical properties.