Present study shows the seasonal variation of the Aerosol Optical Depth (AOD) and aerosols characteristics in an urban and rural environment over Delhi-NCR. Aerosol sampling was carried out using a Mini-Volume sampler at an urban and rural location in Delhi-NCR. A relatively higher PM_2.5 (particulate matter of size < 2.5 μm) concentrations were observed at the urban sampling site than the rural one in the summer as well as winter season. PM_2.5 samples were further analyzed by Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) and Energy Dispersive X-Ray Spectroscopy (EDX) in order to understand the morphology and elemental composition of the PM_2.5 aerosols. Summer SEM results showed the dominance of fluffy agglomerate (soot) in urban area whereas the rural area was relatively clean. The winter season SEM results showed the presence of aggregates of smaller particles at urban site whereas flaky, round and irregular shaped particles were observed at the rural site. EDX analysis showed the presence of elements such as C, Cu, Zn, Ga and Fe (representative elements) in varying concentrations at both the urban and rural sampling locations. NASA’s Aqua satellite MODIS sensor AOD data for summer and winter seasons have been used to study the spatial distributions of aerosols over the study region. AOD was found to be relatively higher in urban area as compared to the rural area in both the summer and winter seasons indicating the contribution of high amount of anthropogenic aerosols in the urban atmosphere.

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Purnima Bhardwaj, Alok Kumar Pandey, Krishan Kumar, and V. K. Jain, "Seasonal variability of aerosols and their characteristics in urban and rural locations of Delhi-NCR," Proc. SPIE 10431, Remote Sensing Technologies and Applications in Urban Environments II, 1043109 (Presented at SPIE Remote Sensing: September 11, 2017; Published: 4 October 2017); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2278506.