Long-term MAX-DOAS network observations of NO₂ in Russia and Asia (MADRAS) during the period 2007–2012: instrumentation, elucidation of climatology, and comparisons with OMI satellite observations and global model simulations

Abstract. We conducted long-term network observations using standardized Multi-Axis Differential optical absorption spectroscopy (MAX-DOAS) instruments in Russia and ASia (MADRAS) from 2007 onwards and made the first synthetic data analysis. At seven locations (Cape Hedo, Fukue and Yokosuka in Japan, Hefei in China, Gwangju in Korea, and Tomsk and Zvenigorod in Russia) with different levels of pollution, we obtained 80 927 retrievals of tropospheric NO₂ vertical column density (TropoNO2VCD) and aerosol optical depth (AOD). In the technique, the optimal estimation of the TropoNO2VCD and its profile was performed using aerosol information derived from O₄ absorbances simultaneously observed at 460–490 nm. This large data set was used to analyze NO₂ climatology systematically, including temporal variations from the seasonal to the diurnal scale. The results were compared with Ozone Monitoring Instrument (OMI) satellite observations and global model simulations. Two NO₂ retrievals of OMI satellite data (NASA ver. 2.1 and Dutch OMI NO₂ (DOMINO) ver. 2.0) generally showed close correlations with those derived from MAX-DOAS observations, but had low biases of up to ~50%. The bias was distinct when NO₂ was abundantly present near the surface and when the AOD was high, suggesting a possibility of incomplete accounting of NO₂ near the surface under relatively high aerosol conditions for the satellite observations. Except for constant biases, the satellite observations showed nearly perfect seasonal agreement with MAX-DOAS observations, suggesting that the analysis of seasonal features of the satellite data were robust. Weekend reduction in the TropoNO2VCD found at Yokosuka and Gwangju was absent at Hefei, implying that the major sources had different weekly variation patterns. While the TropoNO2VCD generally decreased during the midday hours, it increased exceptionally at urban/suburban locations (Yokosuka, Gwangju, and Hefei) during winter. A global chemical transport model, MIROC-ESM-CHEM (Model for Interdisciplinary Research on Climate–Earth System Model–Chemistry), was validated for the first time with respect to background NO₂ column densities during summer at Cape Hedo and Fukue in the clean marine atmosphere.