SCIAMACHY Limb Water Vapor Retrieval - Influence of Aerosols and Aerosol Correction
Weigel, Katja; Brinkhoff, Lena A.; Rozanov, Alexei; Ernst, Florian; Eichmann, Kai-Uwe; Weber, Mark; Bovensmann, Heinrich; Burrows, John P.
IUP Bremen, GERMANY

SCIAMACHY (SCanning Imaging Absorption spectroMeter for Atmospheric CHartograpY) is an instrument on Envisat providing measurements from August 2002 to April 2012. Measurements of scattered solar radiation measured in the limb viewing geometry are used to retrieve profiles of water vapor in the upper troposphere and lower stratosphere (UTLS), at about 11 to 23 km height. Water vapor in the UTLS plays an important role for the radiative budget of the atmosphere and the chemistry and dynamic of the stratosphere. Therefore, our aim is to provide a long and consistent time series. For the retrieval, an accurate assumption for aerosols is important. Therefore, a variable aerosol correction based on a simplified extinction retrieval is applied. Here, we present the time series of water vapor and analyze the influence of aerosols on the results, comparing the aerosol correction used for the water vapor retrieval to the SCIAMACHY limb aerosol data product.