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Atmosphere
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Aerosols and Their Radiative and Air Quality Impacts: Bridging Science...
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Aerosols and Their Radiative and Air Quality Impacts: Bridging Science and Policy

A special issue of Atmosphere (ISSN 2073-4433). This special issue belongs to the section "Aerosols".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 December 2025) | Viewed by 2593

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Patricia K. Quinn

grade E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Seattle, WA 98115, USA
Interests: radiative effects of aerosols; effects of aerosol on air quality
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

This Special Issue is soliciting papers showcasing recent results related to the science of and policy surrounding aerosol radiative forcing and air quality impacts. The overall objective is to highlight recent advances at the intersection of aerosol research and policy decisions. Potential topics include, but are not limited to, trends in aerosol and aerosol precursor emissions, long term monitoring of trends in aerosol concentrations using in situ and remote sensors, process studies on radiative forcing and air quality impacts of aerosol emissions, and modeling of aerosol direct radiative effects and aerosol–cloud interactions. Linkages between measurement and modeling results and how they have informed policy decisions are particularly suitable for this Special Issue. Policy decisions could range from those related to improving air quality or the feasibility of solar radiation management through marine cloud brightening. Scales of aerosol impacts can range from local to regional or to global.

Dr. Patricia K. Quinn
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Atmosphere is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • aerosols
  • air quality
  • radiative forcing
  • air pollution
  • emissions
  • monitoring
  • climate models
  • chemical transport models

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Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

19 pages, 2070 KB  
Article
Impact of 2015 El Niño and Monsoonal Variability on Aerosol Optical Properties over Penang, Malaysia
by Hussaini Yusuf, Norhaslinda Mohamed Tahrin and Hwee San Lim
Atmosphere 2026, 17(3), 255; https://doi.org/10.3390/atmos17030255 - 28 Feb 2026
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 473
Abstract
Atmospheric aerosols in Southeast Asia, influenced by climate and seasonal circulation, are examined here. This study analyzes the impact of the 2015 El Niño and monsoonal variability on aerosol properties over Penang, Malaysia, from 2015–2019. Aerosol Optical Depth (AOD), Ångström Exponent (AE), Fine [...] Read more.
Atmospheric aerosols in Southeast Asia, influenced by climate and seasonal circulation, are examined here. This study analyzes the impact of the 2015 El Niño and monsoonal variability on aerosol properties over Penang, Malaysia, from 2015–2019. Aerosol Optical Depth (AOD), Ångström Exponent (AE), Fine Mode Fraction (FMF), and Single Scattering Albedo (SSA) were analyzed using AERONET observations, complemented by satellite-derived fire data and NOAA HYSPLIT back-trajectory analysis. Pronounced seasonal variability was observed, with elevated AOD during the Southwest Monsoon (0.72 ± 0.15) associated with biomass burning and mixed urban aerosols, and lower AOD during the Northeast Monsoon (0.47 ± 0.12) due to cleaner maritime air masses. The inter-monsoon period exhibited the lowest AOD (0.28 ± 0.10), reflecting enhanced wet scavenging and mixed aerosol sources. Interannually, the 2015 El Niño recorded substantially higher aerosol loading, including extreme AOD events (>1.75), driven by intensified regional fire activity under dry conditions. A statistically significant but weak correlation (R2 = 0.12, p = 0.047) indicates biomass burning contributed to AOD, though transport processes were the dominant driver. Trajectory analysis confirmed that aerosols originated from fire-affected Sumatra during the Southwest Monsoon and from the South China Sea during the Northeast Monsoon. These results show that climate and winds drive aerosol changes, so regional monitoring and cross-border air management in Southeast Asia are needed. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Aerosols and Their Radiative and Air Quality Impacts: Bridging Science and Policy)
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23 pages, 3352 KB  
Article
Characterization of the Optical Properties of Biomass-Burning Aerosols in Two High Andean Cities, Huancayo and La Paz, and Their Effect on Radiative Forcing
by Cesar Victoria-Barros and René Estevan Arredondo
Atmosphere 2025, 16(11), 1240; https://doi.org/10.3390/atmos16111240 - 28 Oct 2025
Viewed by 1601
Abstract
Atmospheric aerosols are known to alter the Earth’s radiative balance and influence climate. However, accurately quantifying the magnitude of aerosol-induced radiative forcing remains challenging. We characterize optical properties of biomass-burning (BB) and non-biomass-burning (NB) aerosols and quantify BB aerosol radiative forcing at two [...] Read more.
Atmospheric aerosols are known to alter the Earth’s radiative balance and influence climate. However, accurately quantifying the magnitude of aerosol-induced radiative forcing remains challenging. We characterize optical properties of biomass-burning (BB) and non-biomass-burning (NB) aerosols and quantify BB aerosol radiative forcing at two AERONET (AErosol RObotic NETwork) sites in Huancayo (Peru) and La Paz (Bolivia) during 2015–2021. From AERONET data, we derive aerosol optical depth (AOD), Ångström exponent (AE), single-scattering albedo (SSA), and asymmetry parameter (ASY). We then employ the SBDART model to calculate aerosol radiative forcing (ARF) on monthly and multiannual timescales. BB aerosols peak in September (AOD: 0.230 at Huancayo; 0.235 at La Paz), while NB aerosols reach maxima in September at Huancayo (0.109) and November at La Paz (0.104). AE values exceeding unity for BB aerosols indicate fine-mode dominance. Huancayo exhibited the highest BB ARF in November: +16.4 W m−2 at the top of the atmosphere (TOA), –18.6 W m−2 at the surface (BOA), and +35.1 W m−2 within the atmospheric column (ATM). This was driven by elevated AOD and high scattering efficiency. At La Paz, where SSA data was only available for September, BBARF values were also significant (+15.16 at TOA, –17.52 at BOA, and +32.73 W m−2 within the ATM). This result underscores the importance of quantifying the ARF, particularly over South America where data is scarce. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Aerosols and Their Radiative and Air Quality Impacts: Bridging Science and Policy)
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