Visualization of 3D aerosol distribution with satellite and ground observation data on Google Earth

Volumetric reconstruction of aerosol distribution is a new algorithm using spatially retrieval of aerosol optical thickness (AOT) and vertically resolved extinction from both satellite and ground based observations. Implementing this algorithm to visualize 3D data covering a wide area on virtual globe is an effective way to monitor local air quality. Google Earth is challenging tool for managing and visualizing 3D geospatial data in a virtual environment. In this study, we present a framework to visualize an integration of aerosol retrieval data by the analytical model based on the non-linear exponential fitting with AOT retrieved from the MODerate-resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) and ground-based surface visibility was assessed over Korea. It was suggested the model is applicable because it can replace the costly instruments. Additionally, exported aerosol data into Google Earth, the method can allow real-time vertical aerosol distribution sampling and enable convenient visual observation of the altitude in all variations.

Acknowlegements

The authors wish to acknowledge the NASA Goddard Earth Science Distributed Active Archive Center for the MODIS data. This work was funded by the Korea Meteorological Administration Research and Development Program under Grant KMIPA2015-2012.