One of the main issues of atmospheric research and air quality control is the reduction of harmful particulate matter (PM)
in the atmosphere. Small particles can enter the human airways and cause serious health problems such as COPD (Chronic
Obstructive Pulmonary Disease), asthma or even lung cancer.
Recently, interest has shifted from PM10 to finer fractions of particulate matter, e.g. PM2.5, because the health impact
of finer particles is considered to be more severe.
Up to now measurements of particulate matter were carried out mainly at ground level. However important atmospheric
processes, i.e. particle formation, transport and vertical mixing processes, take place predominantly at higher altitudes in
the planetary boundary layer. Lidar in principle provides the ability to observe these processes where they occur.
The new method outlined in this paper demonstrates the use of a small sized and quite inexpensive lidar in stand-alone
operation to investigate transport processes of particulate matter, and PM2.5 in particular. Continuous measurements of
PM2.5 as a reference are gained with a conventional in-situ monitor, installed on a tower at an altitude of 325 m in the
North of Berlin (Frohnauer Turm). These PM2.5 measurements will be compared with backscatter Lidar data (1064 nm)
taken from approx. 60 m over ground up to an altitude of 15 km with a spatial resolution of 15 m. The vertical backscatter
profiles at 325 m will be correlated to the concentrations obtained by the PM2,5 monitor on the tower. Both measurements
have a time resolution of 180 s to observe also processes that take place at short time scales. The objective is to gain
correlation functions for estimating PM2.5 concentrations from backscatter Lidar data. Such a calibrated Lidar system is
a valuable instrument for environmental agencies and atmospheric research groups to observe and investigate causes of
high level PM concentrations. First results show a reasonably good linear correlation depending on the level of the relative
humidity.
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