Comparative Analysis of the Sensitivity of Atmospheric Molecular Models to Variability in Available Radiosonde and MSIS Data in Scattering Applications

This study aims to compare the effects of different atmospheric molecular models deriving aerosol extinction coefficient profiles using radiosonde data and MSIS models from different years. Building these models relies on using existing atmospheric data in the form of radiosondes and computerized models such as MSIS to derive aerosol extinction. The analysis compares an old molecular scattering model with new models to investigate sensitivity of derived aerosol extinction to different molecular scattering model inputs. We show that the molecular models used have a significant impact on the derived aerosol extinction coefficient, and the choice of model should be carefully considered. Radiosonde data is often not present for all times during a given year from the necessary sources, such as months where certain radiosonde launch centers were inactive, or where the MSIS model does not contain recent years of models. Comparing the multiple atmospheric scattering models reveals that the radiosonde data varies widely by year. Although MSIS is more stable over time, our results show that radiosonde-based models generally differ from non-radiosonde-based models in predicting low atmospheric scattering. Knowing that models change with a shift in year or data source can ultimately help inform the selection of atmospheric scattering models in various applications.