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Dataset: ABC-Rad_LIN_DSA.nc
Catalog: /thredds/catalog/abc-rad/catalog.html
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idabc-rad/ABC-Rad_LIN_DSA.nc
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  • summary: ABC-Rad (AERONET-BSRN-CAMS-Radiation) - DOCUMENTATION - Several datasets have been compiled from different sources comprising measurements of the downwelling surface solar irradiance, modelled values of the cloud-free downwelling surface solar irradiance, modelled values of the circumsolar irradiance, reference ground-based aerosol optical properties, and modelled aerosol optical depth. The data are all quality-controlled and cloud-screened. This dataset facilitates data-driven research, model calibration and validation, and the development of benchmarking frameworks. More specifically, it is of value to scientists or practitioners studying the effects of aerosols on the downwelling surface solar irradiance. The inclusion of modelled circumsolar data is also of use to scientists or practitioners working with this variable. The datasets herein are saved for each station independently, and the files follow the naming convention: ABC-Rad_xxx_yyy.nc. ABC-Rad stands for AERONET, BSRN, CAMS, and Radiation; xxx represents the BSRN station acronym, and yyy indicates the AERONET product, either DSA (Direct Sun Algorithm) or INV (Inversions).The selection of stations was based on availability of reference data of aerosol optical properties from AERONET (https://doi.org/10.1016/S0034-4257(98)00031-5) and co-located ground measurement of the downwelling surface solar irradiance from the BSRN network (https://doi.org/10.1175/1520-0477(1998)079<2115:BSRNBW>2.0.CO;2). A threshold was set such that the stations be no more than 500 m apart, and that AERONET stations comprise both Direct Sun Algorithm and Inversion products. To match in time with the cloud-free downwelling surface solar irradiance data of the McClear model (https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-6-2403-2013) of the CAMS Radiation Service (https://doi.org/10.24381/5cab0912), only stations which have overlapping measurements in time after the year 2004 were retained. This resulted in 24 stations (the selected stations have both DSA and INV AERONET products available with them).
  • summary: AERONET DATA - The reference aerosol optical properties available in this dataset were retrieved from the AERONET data (https://aeronet.gsfc.nasa.gov/). They were downloaded from the Version 3 Direct Sun Algorithm and Inversion Algorithm products, all in Level 2 to ensure quality-assured and cloud-screened data. Additionally, the aerosol optical depth (AOD) at the exact wavelength of 550 nm is not provided from AERONET but was computed for the Direct Sun Algorithm data by utilizing a second-order polynomial fit (https://doi.org/10.1175/1520-0469(1976)033<2242:AMFITO>2.0.CO;2).
  • summary: BSRN DATA — The ground-measured downwelling surface solar irradiance data are available as one-minute averages at all 24 stations. Measurements of the BSRN network are collected using Class A thermopiles, and the global horizontal irradiance (GHI), beam (or direct) normal irradiance (BNI) and diffuse horizontal irradiance (DHI) are measured using separate radiometers. The pyrheliometers used for BNI measurements have aperture half-angles of either 2.5° or 2.9°. The quality-control tests presented in Forstinger et al. (https://doi.org/10.18086/swc.2021.38.02) were applied to filter any suspicious reference data from the analysis. The applied tests were namely the K-tests (https://doi.org/10.1016/j.solener.2017.05.004 and https://doi.org/10.1016/j.egypro.2015.03.205), along with the closure, extremely rare limits, physically possible limits and tracker off tests (https://doi.org/10.2174/1874282300802010023 and https://bsrn.awi.de/fileadmin/user_upload/bsrn.awi.de/Publications/BSRN_recommended_QC_tests_V2.pdf).
  • summary: CAMS RADIATION DATA — The cloud-free McClear global horizontal irradiance (GHI), beam (or direct) normal irradiance (BNI), beam horizontal irradiance (BHI) and diffuse horizontal irradiance (DHI) are freely available through the Atmosphere Data Store of CAMS (https://doi.org/10.24381/5cab0912). The data was downloaded at a time step of 1 min from the CAMS solar radiation service dataset, where the sky type was selected as cloud-free, which corresponds to McClear values. The data was downloaded in “expert mode”, where the following outputs are also provided: solar zenith angle, total column content in water vapor and ozone, partial optical depths at 550 nm for black carbon, dust, sea salt, organic matter, sulphate, nitrate, ammonium and secondary organics, the parameters fiso, fvol and fgeo, ground albedo.
  • summary: MATCHING THE DATA — The datasets herein are only concerned with clear-skies. The matching with AERONET data already takes care of having no clouds in the direction of the Sun. To further account for clouds across the sky vault, a restrictive cloud-screening algorithm for BSRN radiation observations was applied. The applied cloud-free detection algorithm is based on the correlation between measured GHI and a modelled cloud-free irradiance model (modified Lambert Beer) fitted to measurements over a moving time windows. Following the selection of cloud-free instances of BSRN data, the quality-assured AERONET data were matched in time to their corresponding BSRN stations, such that at each timestamp the maximum absolute time difference between them was no longer than one-minute. The corresponding McClear data was then matched to them at its native one-minute time steps.
  • summary: CIRCUMSOLAR IRRADIANCE DATA — Strictly using the McClear estimates, the parametric model of Eissa et al. (https://doi.org/10.1016/j.solener.2018.02.015) was applied to determine circumsolar irradiance (at normal and horizontal incidence) for an opening half-angle of either 2.5° or 2.9° (depending on the reference BSRN BNI measurement). This is done to allow for correcting the McClear beam and diffuse irradiance estimates (which do not account for the circumsolar irradiance). The Eissa et al. model was applied using the version where the coefficients were established using data from two sites mixed. To apply the circumsolar correction, the CSNI is added to the McClear BNI value, and the CSHI is subtracted from the McClear DHI value. This implies an increase in the modelled BNI and a decrease in the modelled DHI. For completion, the circumsolar irradiance from the parametric model of Eissa et al. is also computed using the BSRN measurements.
  • license: This compiled and harmonized dataset is licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0), https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/. It incorporates data products originating from AERONET, BSRN, and CAMS. The original source datasets remain subject to their respective licenses, terms of use, and attribution requirements. This repository does not redistribute the original raw source archives.
  • citing the dataset: When using this dataset, please give credit to the original data providers by citing the relevant references: AERONET: B.N. Holben, T.F. Eck, I. Slutsker, D. Tanré, J.P. Buis, A. Setzer, E. Vermote, J.A. Reagan, Y.J. Kaufman, T. Nakajima, F. Lavenu, I. Jankowiak, A. Smirnov, AERONET-A federated instrument network and data archive for aerosol characterization, Remote Sens. Environ. 66 (1998) 1–16. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0034-4257(98)00031-5. D.M. Giles, A. Sinyuk, M.G. Sorokin, J.S. Schafer, A. Smirnov, I. Slutsker, T.F. Eck, B.N. Holben, J.R. Lewis, J.R. Campbell, E.J. Welton, S. V. Korkin, A.I. Lyapustin, Advancements in the Aerosol Robotic Network (AERONET) Version 3 database - Automated near-real-time quality control algorithm with improved cloud screening for Sun photometer aerosol optical depth (AOD) measurements, Atmos. Meas. Tech. 12 (2019) 169–209. https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-12-169-2019. BSRN: A. Ohmura, E.G. Dutton, B. Forgan, C. Frohlich, H. Gilgen, H. Hegner, A. Heimo, G. Konig-Langlo, B. Mcarthur, G. Muller, R. Philipona, R. Pinker, C.H. Whitlock, K. Dehne, M. Wild, Baseline Surface Radiation Network (BSRN/WCRP): New precision radiometry for climate research, Bull. Am. Meteorol. Soc. 79 (1998) 2115–2136. https://doi.org/10.1175/1520-0477(1998)079<2115:BSRNBW>2.0.CO;2. McClear/CAMS: M. Lefevre, A. Oumbe, P. Blanc, B. Espinar, B. Gschwind, Z. Qu, L. Wald, M. Schroedter-Homscheidt, C. Hoyer-Klick, A. Arola, A. Benedetti, J.W. Kaiser, J.J. Morcrette, McClear: A new model estimating downwelling solar radiation at ground level in clear-sky conditions, Atmos. Meas. Tech. 6 (2013) 2403–2418. https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-6-2403-2013. https://doi.org/10.24381/5cab0912 Circumsolar irradiance: Y. Eissa, P. Blanc, H. Ghedira, A. Oumbe, L. Wald, A fast and simple model to estimate the contribution of the circumsolar irradiance to measured broadband beam irradiance under cloud-free conditions in desert environment, Solar Energy 163 (2018) 497–509. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.solener.2018.02.015. The compiled dataset: Webservice-Energy Catalogue link to metadata: https://geocatalog.webservice-energy.org/geonetwork/srv/fre/catalog.search#/metadata/384592a6-1d67-46f6-995d-8202bf51f190 Digital Object Identifier (DOI): https://doi.org/10.23646/384592a6-1d67-46f6-995d-8202bf51f190 Access to data files: https://tds.webservice-energy.org/thredds/catalog/abc-rad/catalog.html
  • acknowledgement: The research leading to these results has received funding from SciDoSol, a sponsorship chair at Mines Paris – PSL funded by TotalEnergies, RTE, Somfy, TSE and CalibSun. And from the Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service, a program being operated by the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF) on behalf of the European Union. It also took place within the Task 16 “Solar Resource for High Penetration and Large Scale Applications” of the Photovoltaic Power Systems Programme (PVPS) of the International Energy Agency (IEA). The authors also thank the PIs of AERONET and BSRN stations, along with all the personnel who installed and maintained the instruments.
  • AERONET
  • Holben et al. 1998 – Remote Sensing of Environment
  • Lefèvre et al. 2013 – McClear Model
  • CAMS Radiation Service Dataset
  • Forstinger et al. 2021 – SWC
  • Christian A. Gueymard 2017 – Solar Energy
  • N. Geuder et al. 2015 – Energy Procedia
  • Long & Shi 2008 – BSRN QC Tests
  • BSRN Recommended QC Tests (PDF)
  • Eissa et al. 2018 – Circumsolar Irradiance Model

Contributors:

  • Principal Investigator : Dr. Yehia Eissa
  • Principal Investigator : Dr. Yves-Marie Saint-Drenan
  • Principal Investigator : Dr. Gabriel Chesnoiu
  • Principal Investigator : Pr. Philippe Blanc
  • Principal Investigator : MSc. Rapaël Jolivet
  • Data Manger : MSc. Lionel Menard

Keywords:

  • : SciDoSol
  • : AERONET
  • : BSRN
  • : Coprenicus
  • : CAMS
  • : McClear
  • : Global irradiance
  • : Beam irradiance
  • : Direct irradiance
  • : Diffuse irradiance
  • : Circumsolar irradiance
  • : IEA-PVPS
  • : Energy
  • : Renewable energy
  • : in-situ
  • : insitu
  • : Measurements
  • : Solar
  • : MINES Paris PSL
  • : Webservice-energy
  • : Thredds
  • : TDS
  • : NetCDF
  • : CF Convention - Climate and Forecast Convention

Dates:

  • modified : 2026-05-19T14:41:58.965Z

Creators:

Publishers:

Properties:

  • Institution = MINES Paris PSL/ARMINES
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