A High-Spatial-Resolution, Localized MODIS Aerosol Optical Depth Product for Use in Air Quality Exposure Assessment During Large Wildfire Smoke Events

Aerosol optical depth (AOD) has potential use for determining the intra-urban variability of airborne particulate matter exposure during wildfire events; however, the standard Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) AOD products have limitations for this application. Specifically, the 10x10 km resolution is too coarse for intra-urban population exposure assessments, the assumed aerosol optical properties are not representative of biomass burning aerosol, and the cloud masking algorithm misinterprets heavy smoke as clouds. We developed a localized MODIS AOD product at 1.5 and 2.5 km resolutions and tested the performance in northern California during the 2008 wildfires. The localized product's algorithm uses local biomass burning aerosol optical properties, local surface reflectance data, and a relaxed cloud filter. During the 2008 season, persistent heavy smoke was produced over northern California and the San Joaquin Valley for over two months. As California is both highly populated and covered with a relatively dense network of ground-based aerosol monitoring stations, this event provided an excellent opportunity to develop the AOD product and test its ability to predict aerosol concentrations on the ground to assess population exposure. We will present our methodology and discuss its potential for air quality and public health applications.