Aerosols and Carbon Monoxide

Review “ A Closer Look: Aerosols in the Atmosphere,” found on page 326 and 327 of The Blue Planet textbook. Watch the following instructional YouTube video to learn how to use NASA’s Earth Observations and ImageJ (audio required) to compare Aerosol Optical Thickness and Carbon Monoxide (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qkhQr31S2R8). We made the video before NASA updated the NEO website, so the web interface looks slightly different than in the instructional video. You should, however, be familiar with the new format from the solar insolation assignment done in the first section of class. All the features are the same, and navigating through the monthly images is even easier. As in the video, please make animated stacks of 2011 - so January through December, 2011. By default, the website uses the Aqua/MODIS data, which is fine. Also, please read the basic, intermediate, and advanced information available on the tabs for AOT and CO datasets on the NEO website. What to turn in: - LASTNAME_Week2_combinedstack.TIFF (You can attach the file to your response to the thread. Change LASTNAME_ to your last name.) - Written answers to the following questions (in 200-250 words): 1) What are the major sources of aerosols, and are they evenly distributed in time (i.e., throughout the year) and in space (i.e., across the earth surface)? 2) What are major sources of carbon monoxide, and is it evenly distributed in time and space? 3) Describe places in the world with the highest and lowest values of both AOT and CO in terms of population – is there a relationship? (Population is another dataset within Earth Observations) How do aerosols and carbon monoxide relate to energy production and use?  

Sample Solution