Measuring Aerosols
Source: NASA Earth Observatory
[02-Nov-2010] Although it became clear about 40 years ago that aerosols could affect climate, the measurements needed to establish the magnitude of such effects - or even whether specific aerosol types warm or cool the surface - were lacking. This situation has improved considerably. Today scientists use an array of satellite, aircraft, and ground-based instruments to monitor aerosols. Read more about these measurement methods in this article on the NASA Earth Observatory website. Measuring Aerosols 
This map shows the average distribution of aerosols from June 2000 through May 2010, measured by the Multi-angle Imaging Spectroradiometer (MISR). Red indicates high concentrations of aerosols, beige indicates low concentrations. Credit: Robert Simmon, based on MISR data..