VERTICALLY-RESOLVED CHARACTERIZATION OF THE FEBRUARY 2016 EXCEPTIONAL SAHARAN DUST EPISODE OVER THE IBERIAN PENINSULA BY FOUR EARLINET STATIONS

Abstract

An unusual Saharan dust outbreak occurred on 20-24 February 2016 over the Iberian Peninsula. This work focuses on the particle vertical distribution investigated at four EARLINET AERONET stations: Granada, Évora, Burjassot and Barcelona. This event was exceptional because: (i) Saharan dust outbreaks over the Iberian Peninsula are atypical during wintertime,(ii) the aerosol optical depth reached high values (up to 0.87 at 500 nm over Granada), and (iii) the dust vertical extension was confined to low altitudes.