Vassilis Amiridis

About

Vassilis Amiridis is a prominent atmospheric scientist whose research centers on aerosol remote sensing, dust transport, and the optical characterization of atmospheric particles. Based at the National Observatory of Athens, Greece, his work has fundamentally advanced our understanding of aerosol dynamics across the Eastern Mediterranean, Northern Africa, and beyond. Amiridis has made landmark contributions to satellite-based aerosol retrieval methodologies, most notably through optimizing CALIPSO Saharan dust observations (180 citations) and developing the globally significant MIDAS dust optical depth dataset (145 citations), which has become an essential resource for Earth system modeling. His collaborative work on two decades of AOD measurements over China (146 citations) demonstrates an impressive breadth of geographic scope. A key innovator in lidar technology, he contributed to the development of the LIRIC algorithm (139 citations), which revolutionized vertical aerosol profiling by combining lidar and radiometric data within the EARLINET network. His long-term ground-based measurements over Athens have established valuable aerosol climatological records, while his studies on stratospheric wildfire smoke and volcanic ash from Eyjafjallajökull showcase his versatility in characterizing diverse particle types. With multiple papers exceeding 100 citations, Amiridis stands as a leading voice in atmospheric remote sensing, bridging satellite observations, ground-based networks, and transport modeling to illuminate how aerosols shape our climate system.

Research Focus

Key Achievements

Top Papers

1. 1
   Optimizing CALIPSO Saharan dust retrievals

   180 citations · 2013
2. 2
   Two decades of satellite observations of AOD over mainland China using ATSR-2, AATSR and MODIS/Terra: data set evaluation and large-scale patterns

   146 citations · 2018
3. 3
   ModIs Dust AeroSol (MIDAS): a global fine-resolution dust optical depth data set

   145 citations · 2021
4. 4
   Lidar-Radiometer Inversion Code (LIRIC) for the retrieval of vertical aerosol properties from combined lidar/radiometer data: development and distribution in EARLINET

   139 citations · 2016
5. 5
   Spatiotemporal variability and contribution of different aerosol types to the aerosol optical depth over the Eastern Mediterranean

   102 citations · 2016
6. 6
   Spatial and seasonal variations of aerosols over China from two decades of multi-satellite observations – Part 1: ATSR (1995–2011) and MODIS C6.1 (2000–2017)

   79 citations · 2018
7. 7
   A Decade of Aerosol Optical Properties Measurements over Athens, Greece

   73 citations · 2020
8. 8
   EARLINET observations of the 14–22-May long-range dust transport event during SAMUM 2006: validation of results from dust transport modelling

   63 citations · 2008
9. 9
   Is the near-spherical shape the “new black” for smoke?

   48 citations · 2020
10. 10
    Optical, microphysical, mass and geometrical properties of aged volcanic particles observed over Athens, Greece, during the Eyjafjallajökull eruption in April 2010 through synergy of Raman lidar and sunphotometer measurements

    45 citations · 2013

Key Collaborators

Contact & Links