@article {4991,
	title = {The Aura-OMI Aerosol Index distribution over Greece},
	journal = {Atmospheric Research},
	volume = {98},
	year = {2010},
	note = {Cited By :9Export Date: 2 November 2015Correspondence Address: Nastos, P.T.; University of Athens, Department of Geology and Geoenvironment, University Campus GR-15784 Athens, Greece; email: nastos@geol.uoa.grReferences: Ahn, C., Torres, O., Bhartia, P.K., Comparison of ozone monitoring instrument UV aerosol products with AQUA/Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer and Multiangle Imaging Spectroradiometer observations in 2006 (2008) J. Geophys. Res., 113. , D16S27;Alpert, P., Kishcha, P., Shtivelman, A., Krichak, S.O., Joseph, J.H., Vertical distribution of Saharan dust based on 2.5-year model predictions (2004) Atmos. Res., 70, pp. 109-130; 
Anderson, B.E., Grant, W.B., Gregory, G.L., Aerosols from biomass burning over the tropical South Atlantic region: distributions and impacts (1996) J. Geophys. Res., 101 (D19), pp. 24117-24138; 
Antoine, D., Nobileau, D., Recent increase of Saharan dust transport over the Meditterenean Sea, as revealed from ocean color satellite (SeaWiFS) observations (2006) J. Geophys. Res., 111, pp. D12214; 
Badarinath, K.V.S., Kharol, S.K., Kaskaoutis, D.G., Kambezidis, H.D., Dust storm over Indian region and its impact on the ground reaching solar radiation - a case study using multi-satellite data and ground measurements (2007) Sci. Total Environ., 384, pp. 316-332; 
Badarinath, K.V.S., Kharol, S.K., Krishna Prasad, V., Reddi, E.U.B., Kambezidis, H.D., Kaskaoutis, D.G., Influence of anthropogenic activities on UV Index variations - a study over tropical urban region using ground based observations and satellite data (2008) J. Atmos. Chem., 59, pp. 219-236; 
Baddock, M.C., Bullard, J.E., Bryant, R.G., Dust source identification using MODIS: a comparison of techniques applied to the Lake Eyre Basin, Australia (2009) Remote Sens. Environ., 113, pp. 1511-1528; 
Balis, D.S., Amiridis, V., Zerefos, C., Kazantzidis, A., Kazadzis, S., Bais, A.F., Meleti, C., Andreae, M.O., Study of the effect of different type of aerosols on UV-B radiation from measurements during EARLINET (2004) Atmos. Chem. Phys., 4, pp. 307-321; 
Curier, R.L., Veefkind, J.P., Braak, R., Veihelmann, B., Torres, O., de Leeuw, G., Retrieval of aerosol optical properties from OMI radiances using a multiwavelength algorithm: application to western Europe (2008) J. Geophys. Res., 113. , D17S90; 
De Graaf, M., Stammes, P., Torres, O., Koelemeijer, R.B.A., Absorbing Aerosol Index: sensitivity analysis, application to GOME and comparison with TOMS (2005) J. Geophys. Res., 110, pp. D01201; 
Duncan, B.N., Bey, I., A modeling study of the export pathways of pollution from Europe: seasonal and interannual variations (1987-1997) (2004) J. Geophys. Res., 109, pp. D08301; 
Eck, T.F., Holben, B.N., Ward, D.E., Dubovic, O., Reid, J.S., Smirnov, A., Mukelabai, M.M., Slutsker, I., Characterization of the optical properties of biomass burning aerosols in Zambia during the 1997 ZIBBEE field campaign (2001) J. Geophys. Res., 106 (D4), pp. 3425-3448; 
Eck, T.F., Holben, B.N., Ward, D.E., Variability of biomass burning aerosol optical characteristics in southern Africa during SAFARI 2000 dry season campaign and a comparison of single scattering albedo estimates from radiometric measurements (2003) J. Geophys. Res., 108 (D13), p. 8477; 
Engelstaedter, S., Tegen, I., Washington, R., North African dust emissions and transport (2006) Earth-Sci. Rev., 79, pp. 73-100; 
Fotiadi, A., Hatzianastassiou, N., Drakakis, E., Matsoukas, C., Pavlakis, K.G., Hatzidimitriou, D., Gerasopoulos, E., Vardavas, I., Aerosol physical and optical properties in the Eastern Mediterranean Basin, Crete, from Aerosol Robotic Network data (2006) Atmos. Chem. Phys., 6, pp. 5399-5413; 
Gass{\'o}, S., Stein, A.F., Does dust from Patagonia reach the sub-Antarctic Atlantic Ocean (2007) Geophys. Res. Lett., 34, pp. L01801; 
Habib, G., Venkataraman, C., Chiapello, I., Ramachadran, S., Bopucher, O., Reddy, M.S., Seasonal and interannual variability in absorbing aerosols over India derived from TOMS: relationship to regional meteorology and emissions (2006) Atmos. Environ., 40, pp. 1909-1921; 
Herman, B.M., Celarier, E., Earth surface climatology at 340nm and 380nm from TOMS data (1997) J. Geophys. Res., 102, pp. 12059-12076; 
Hsu, N.C., Herman, J.R., Torres, O., Holben, N.B., Tanre, D., Eck, T.F., Smirnov, A., Lavenu, F., Comparisons of the TOMS aerosol index with sunphotometer aerosol optical thickness: results and applications (1999) J. Geophys. Res., 104, pp. 6269-6279; 
Israelevich, P.L., Levin, Z., Joseph, J.H., Ganor, E., Desert aerosol transport in the Mediterranean region as inferred from the TOMS aerosol index (2002) J. Geophys. Res.; 
Kalivitis, N., Gerasopoulos, E., Vrekousis, M., Kouvarakis, G., Kubilay, N., Hatzianastassiou, N., Vardavas, I., Mihalopoulos, N., Dust transport over the Eastern Mediterranean from TOMS, AERONET and surface measurements (2007) J. Geophys. Res., 112, pp. D03202; 
Kallos, G., Astitha, M., Katsafados, P., Spyrou, C., Long-range transport of anthropogenically and naturally produced particulate matter in the Mediterranean and North Atlantic: current state of knowledge (2007) J. Appl. Meteorol. Climatol., 46, pp. 1230-1251; 
Kambezidis, H.D., Peppes, A., Melas, D., An experimental study in Athens area under the sea breeze conditions (1995) Atmos. Res., 36, pp. 139-156; 
Kaskaoutis, D.G., Kosmopoulos, P., Kambezidis, H.D., Nastos, P.T., Aerosol climatology and discrimination of different types over Athens, Greece based on MODIS data (2007) Atmos. Environ., 41, pp. 7315-7329; 
Kaskaoutis, D.G., Kambezidis, H.D., Nastos, P.T., Kosmopoulos, P.G., Study on an intense dust storm over Greece (2008) Atmos. Environ., 42, pp. 6884-6896; 
Kazadzis, S., Bais, A., Arola, A., Krotkov, N., Kouremeti, N., Meleti, C., Ozone Monitoring Instrument spectral UV irradiance products: comparison with ground based measurements at an urban environment (2008) Atmos. Chem. Phys. Discuss., 8, pp. 17467-17493; 
Kosmopoulos, P.G., Kaskaoutis, D.G., Nastos, P.T., Kambezidis, H.D., Seasonal variation of columnar aerosol optical properties over Athens, Greece, based on MODIS data (2008) Remote Sens. Environ., 112, pp. 2354-2366; 
Koukouli, M.E., Balis, D.S., Amiridis, V., Kazadsis, S., Bais, A., Nickovic, S., Torres, O., Aerosol variability over Thessaloniki using ground based remote sensing observations and the TOMS aerosol index (2006) Atmos. Environ., 40, pp. 5367-5378; 
Kubilay, N., Oguz, T., Kocak, M., Ground-based assessment of Total Ozone Mapping Spectrometer (TOMS) data for dust transport over the northeastern Mediterranean (2005) Global Biogeochem. Cycles, 19. , GB1022; 
Lelieveld, J., Global air pollution crossroads over the Mediterranean (2002) Science, 298, pp. 794-999; 
Levelt, P.F., van den Oord, G.H.J., Dobber, M.R., M{\"a}lkki, A., Visser, H., de Vries, J., Stammes, P., Saari, H., The Ozone Monitoring Instrument (2006) IEEE Trans. Geosci. Remote Sens., 44 (5), p. 1093; 
Levelt, P.F., Hilsenrath, E., Leppelmeier, G.W., van den Oord, G.B.J., Bhartia, P.K., Tamminen, J., de Haan, J.F., Veefkind, J.P., Science objectives of the Ozone Monitoring Instrument (2006) IEEE Trans. Geosci. Remote Sens., 44 (5), p. 1199; 
Meloni, D., di Sarra, A., Biavati, G., DeLuisi, J.J., Monteleone, F., Pace, G., Piacentino, S., Sferlazzo, D.M., Seasonal behavior of Saharan dust events at the Mediterranean island of Lampedusa in the period 1999-2005 (2007) Atmos. Environ., 41, pp. 3041-3056; 
Meloni, D., di Sarra, A., Monteleone, F., Pace, G., Piacentino, S., Sferlazzo, D.M., Seasonal transport patterns of intense Saharan dust events at the Mediterranean island of Lampedusa (2008) Atmos. Res., 88, pp. 134-148; 
Moulin, C., Lambert, C.E., Dayan, U., Satellite climatology of African dust transport in Mediterranean atmosphere (1998) J. Geophys. Res., 103, pp. 13137-13144; 
Nastos, P.T., Zerefos, C.S., Decadal changes in extreme daily precipitation totals in Greece (2008) Adv. Geosci., 16, pp. 55-62; 
Nastos, P.T., Philandras, C.M., Repapis, C.C., Application of canonical analysis to air temperature and precipitation regimes over Greece (2002) Fresenius Environ. Bull., 11 (8), pp. 488-493; 
Papadimas, C.D., Hatzianastassiou, N., Mihalopoulos, N., Querol, X., Vardavas, I., Spatial and temporal variability of aerosol properties over Mediterranean basin based on 6years (2000-2006) MODIS data (2008) J. Geophys. Res., 113, pp. D11205; 
Papayannis, A., Balis, D., Amiridis, V., Chourdakis, G., Tsaknakis, G., Zerefos, C.S., Castanho, A.D.A., Grabowski, J., Measurements of Saharan dust aerosols over the Eastern Mediterranean using elastic backscatter-Raman lidar, spectrophotometric and satellite observations in the frame of the EARLINET project (2005) Atmos. Chem. Phys., 5, pp. 2065-2079; 
Prospero, J.M., Ginoux, P., Torres, O., Nicholson, S.E., Gill, T., Environmental characterization of global sources of atmospheric soil dust identified with Nimbus 7 Total Ozone Mapping Spectrometer (TOMS) absorbing aerosol product (2002) Rev. Geophys., 40; 
Ramachandran, S., Spectral aerosol optical characteristics during the northeast monsoon over the Arabian Sea and the tropical Indian Ocean: 2. Angstrom and anthropogenic influence (2004) J. Geophys. Res., 109, pp. D19208; 
Satheesh, S.K., Srinivasan, J., Moorthy, K.K., Contribution of sea-salt to aerosol optical depth over the Arabian Sea derived from MODIS observations (2006) Geophys. Res. Lett., 33, pp. L03809; 
Schoeberl, M.R., Overview of the EOS Aura mission (2006) IEEE Trans. Geosci. Remote Sens., 44, pp. 1066-1074; 
Sinyuk, A., Torres, O., Dubovik, O., Combined use of satellite and surface observations to infer the imaginary part of the refractive index of Saharan dust (2003) Geophys. Res. Lett., 30; 
Stohl, A., Eckhardt, S., Forster, C., James, P., Spichtinger, N., On the pathways and timescales of intercontinental air pollution transport (2002) J. Geophys. Res., 107, pp. D4684; 
Torres, O., Bhartia, P.K., Herman, J.R., Ahmad, Z., Gleason, J., Derivation of aerosol properties from satellite measurements of backscattered ultraviolet radiation: theoretical basis (1998) J. Geophys. Res., 103, pp. 17099-17110; 
Veihelmann, B., Levelt, P.F., Stamnes, P., Veefkind, J.P., Simulation study of the aerosol information content in OMI spectral reflectance measurements (2007) Atmos. Chem. Phys. Discuss., 7, pp. 1785-1821; 
Washington, R., Todd, M., Middleton, N.J., Goudie, A.S., Dust storm source areas determined by the Total Ozone Monitoring Spectrometer and surface observations (2003) Ann. Assoc. Amer. Geogr., 93, pp. 297-313; 
Zerefos, C., Ganev, K., Kourtidis, K., Tzortziou, M., Vasaras, A., Syrakov, E., On the origin of SO 2 above northern Greece (2000) Geophys. Res. Lett., 27, pp. 365-368
},
	month = {2010},
	pages = {28 - 39},
	abstract = {The Aerosol Index (AI) observations derived from the Ozone Monitoring Instrument (OMI) on board the Dutch-Finnish Aura satellite are analyzed over Greece covering the period from September 2004 to August 2008. The AI data cover the whole Greek territory (34{\textdegree}-42{\textdegree}N, 20{\textdegree}-28{\textdegree}E) with a spatial resolution of 0.25{\textdegree} {\texttimes} 0.25{\textdegree} The results show significant spatial and temporal variabilities of the seasonal and monthly-mean AI, with higher values at the southern parts and lower values over northern Greece. On the other hand, the AI values do not show significant differences between the western and eastern parts and, therefore, the longitude-averaged AI values can be utilized to reveal the strong south-to-north gradient. This gradient significantly changes from season to season being more intense in spring and summer, while it is minimized in winter. Another significant remark is the dominance of negative AI values over northern Greece in the summer months, indicating the presence of non-UV-absorbing aerosols, such as sulfate and sea-salt particles. The great geographical extent of the negative AI values in the summer months is indicative of long-range transport of such aerosols. In contrast, the high positive AI values over southern Greece, mainly in spring, clearly reveal the UV-absorbing nature of desert-dust particles affecting the area during Saharan dust events. The annual variation of spatial-averaged AI values shows a predominant spring maximum (0.424 {\textpm} 0.329, in April) due to dust particles, which dominate this average and a summer minimum due to the negative AI values observed over northern Greece. In the cold period of the year (November to February) the AI values are higher over northern Greece compared to those in south, while in the rest of the year the opposite is true. {\textcopyright} 2010 Elsevier B.V.},
	keywords = {Absorbing aerosol, Absorbing aerosols, aerosol, Aerosol Index, Atmospheric aerosols, dust, Greece, long range transport, OMI, Ozone, particle size, Satellite imagery, Size distribution, Spatial distribution, spatial variation, temporal variation, Ultraviolet spectrometers},
	isbn = {01698095 (ISSN)},
	url = {http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?eid=2-s2.0-84755161493\&partnerID=40\&md5=b89f7f738753aeb1c3ff62b9d8460bae},
	author = {Kaskaoutis, D. G. and Nastos, P. T. and Kosmopoulos, P. G. and Kambezidis, H. D. and Kharol, S. K. and Badarinath, K. V. S.}
}
