SPATIAL-TEMPORAL DUST FUSION MODEL FOR INTEGRATION OF MODIS AND WRF-CHEM AEROSOL OPTICAL DEPTH

Dust storms are common meteorological events appearing in arid and semi-arid regions. Various methods have been developed to calculate aerosol optical depth (AOD) in dust storms studies. The AOD data obtained either from remote sensing measurements or numerical models have their own specific limitations and advantages. In this study, in order to benefit from the advantages of both types of AOD data and generate a fused AOD product with higher spatial and temporal resolutions, the Spatial-Temporal Dust Fusion Model (STDFM) was developed to integrate remote sensing data on AOD and numerical model AOD via simultaneous enhancing of spatial and temporal resolutions from 15 to 3 kilometers and from one day to one hour, respectively. The remote sensing AOD data from MODIS and numerical modeling of AOD from WRF model from 16-20 June, 2012 for the geographical region of Iran were used to verify the applicability and assess the accuracy of the STDFM. An average correlation coefficient of 0.64 was measured between the STDFM-fused AOD and the AOD data retrieved from ground-based visibility. The results affirmed the high accuracy of STDFM in obtaining fused AOD with higher spatial and temporal resolutions.