Retrieval of volcanic ash and ice cloud physical properties together with gas concentration from IASI measurements using the AVL model

Observation and tracking of volcanic aerosols are important for preventing possible aviation hazards and determining the influence of aerosols on climate. The useful information primary includes the concentration, particle size and altitude of aerosol load. Moreover, volcanic eruptions are usually accompanied by strong emissions of SO2 and enhanced concentrations of H2O in the atmosphere. Volcanic ash particles can also catalyze the formation of ice clouds by serving as cloud nuclei. Hyperspectral infrared sounders, such as IASI (Infrared Atmospheric Sounding Interferometer), have proven to be powerful tools for capturing volcanic aerosol and ice cloud signatures and enhanced volcanic gas concentrations. Information on atmospheric constituents is extracted from such hyperspectral measurements with the help of radiative transfer (RT) codes capable of solving both direct and inverse RT problems. We will demonstrate the retrieval of aerosol and ice cloud physical properties together with gas concentration fr...