Lidar observations on aerosol mixing height in a tropical coastal environment

Abstract

The aerosol mixing height is derived from the altitude distribution of aerosols in the lower atmosphere up to ~1.2 km during the post-sunset period (~2000 hrs IST) using a bi-static CW lidar at a tropical coastal station, Trivandrum. The mixing height shows significant seasonal variation with maxima in the dry months of March and November as well as in the south-west monsoon period. The maxima in March and November are attributed to strong convective mixing, whereas the maximum in the south-west monsoon is attributed to mechanical mixing due to strong wind shears.