Remote sensing of the Earth’s atmosphere based on lunar eclipse observations

The near-infrared photometric measurements of lunar eclipses in 2004–2008 are analyzed. The obtained distributions of the degree of lunar disk darkening inside the Earth’s umbra are used to reconstruct the distribution of atmospheric aerosol and water vapor in the upper troposphere along the Earth’s limb. The characteristic features of this distribution in various latitude regions and the correlation between aerosol extinction and total ozone content are pointed out. Data on the absorption of radiation by water vapor are used to calculate the characteristic vertical scale of its distribution in the atmosphere. © 2009, Pleiades Publishing, Ltd.