AERONET-a federated instrument network and data archive for aerosol Characterization

The paper introduces AERONET, a remote-sensing aerosol monitoring network initiated by NASA and expanded through national and international collaboration to support the Earth satellite systems of NASA, CNES, and NASDA. It relies on weather-resistant automatic sun and sky scanning spectral radiometers that frequently measure atmospheric aerosol optical properties and precipitable water at remote sites, with measurements transmitted automatically via the GOES and METEOSAT geostationary Data Collection Systems for near real-time reception and processing over most of the Earth's surface.

NASA built a UNIX-based near real-time processing, display, and analysis system that provides internet access to the emerging global database, guided by a philosophy of open access, centralized processing, and a user-friendly graphical interface. This approach imposed standardization on the measurements and fostered international cooperation in ground-based aerosol monitoring, enabling aerosol characterization at local, regional, and global scales with applications to transport and radiation budget studies, radiative transfer modeling, and validation of satellite aerosol retrievals.