Altitude and Particle Size Measurements of Noctilucent Clouds by RGB Photometry: Radiative Transfer and Correlation Analysis

TL;DR

This paper develops a simple RGB-photometry method to measure particle size and altitude of noctilucent clouds, validated with radiative transfer models and compared with lidar data, aiding climate change studies.

Contribution

It introduces a novel RGB-photometry technique for long-term cloud particle size and altitude measurement, validated through radiative transfer modeling.

Findings

Method successfully determines mean particle size and altitude.

Results correlate well with existing lidar data.

Provides long-term observational data for climate studies.

Abstract

Noctilucent or polar mesospheric clouds have become visually brighter and occurred more frequently during the recent years and decades. The study of possible reasons and relations with climate changes requires data on long-time trends of mean particle size and altitude. Extended worldwide observational data is a good tool for this, and it can be provided by simple RGB-photometry using widely distributed all-sky cameras. Based on observations of bright expanded clouds in summer 2020 and 2021, the method of mean particle size determination is developed, results are validated using the radiative transfer model. The procedure also allows finding the effective 'umbral' altitude of clouds. The correlation of size and altitude of particles is compared with existing lidar data and models of particle growth.