Author(s)

Minho Kim, Xingyou Zhang, James B. Holt, Yang Liu

Epidemiology and Surveillance Branch, Division of Population Health, National Center for Chronic Disease and Public Health Promotion, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, USA.
Rollins School of Public Health, Emory University, Atlanta, USA.

Recent studies have explored the relationship between aerosol optical depth (AOD) measurements by satellite sensors and concentrations of particulate matter with aerodynamic diameters less than 2.5 μm (PM_2.5). However, relatively little is known about spatial and temporal patterns in this relationship across the contiguous United States. In this study, we investigated the relationship between US Environmental Protection Agency estimates of PM_2.5 concentrations and Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) AOD measurements provided by two NASA satellites (Terra and Aqua) across the contiguous United States during 2005. We found that the combined use of both satellite sensors provided more AOD coverage than the use of either satellite sensor alone, that the correlation between AOD measurements and PM_2.5 concentrations varied substantially by geographic location, and that this correlation was stronger in the summer and fall than that in the winter and spring.

Aerosol Optical Depth; Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer; Terra; Aqua; PM_2.5; Contiguous United States

Kim, M. , Zhang, X. , Holt, J. and Liu, Y. (2013) Spatio-Temporal Variations in the Associations between Hourly PM_2.5 and Aerosol Optical Depth (AOD) from MODIS Sensors on Terra and Aqua. Health, 5, 8-13. doi: 10.4236/health.2013.510A2002.