Fluorescence_1 (IMAGE)
Caption
At the beginning of June 2025, smoke from Canadian forest fires was again observed in the atmosphere over Leipzig. The image shows a measurement from the night of 2/3 June 2025. In the lidar signal in the infrared range (upper plot) we see extended aerosol layers of 4.5-6.5 km and 8-10 km. From about 3 o'clock local time (= 01:00 UTC), cirrus clouds begin to form in the upper layer. The clouds can be recognised by the high signals (dark red colours) due to the strong backscattering from the ice crystals.
The measurement of the laser-induced fluorescence (lower plot) identifies the aerosol layers as smoke due to their strong fluorescence (again recognisable by the red colours). Using backward trajectories, the observed smoke layers can be traced back to Canada, where strong forest fires are currently raging again. The ice clouds can be recognised in the lower plot by their low fluorescence capacity, as the ice crystals in the clouds themselves do not fluoresce. Since the clouds form in the smoke layer, this is another exciting case for the investigation of aerosol-cloud interactions and the question of the extent to which smoke is suitable as an ice nucleus.
Credit
Benedikt Gast, TROPOS
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Credit must be given to the creator. No derivatives or adaptations of the work are permitted.
License
CC BY-ND