Aerosol profile variations retrieval through Kernel functions in the oxygen absorption band at 762 nm

The aerosol kernel functions, relating (through a Fredholm integral equation) the variations in radiance measured by satellites to the variations of aerosol extinction profile, have been computed with a 20 cm/sup -1/ spectral resolution within the Oxygen A-band (LOWTRAN atmospheric database has been used). The kernel was originally evaluated at wavelengths in the near infrared region outside absorption bands. Notwithstanding the fact that a higher spectral resolution should be adopted to fully take advantage of the Oxygen band possibilities, even the 20 cm/sup -1/ resolution permits a better information content and an improved accuracy with respect to the wavelengths previously investigated: indeed the retrieval relative error is approximately reduced by a half.