Correlation of Visibility with Aerosol Optical Depth at Ikeja Nigeria (2000-2014).

Abstract

Visibility impairment has not only been a challenge to aviation industry, but also to road users. This visibility impairment is due to
scattering of light by suspended particles such as fine and coarse aerosol. Aerosol optical depth (AOD) for this region (urban) under
study was analyzed and correlated with visibility during the two seasons (dry and wet season) of the region to understand the trend
and possible influence of aerosol loadings. Data for visibility and AOD were obtained from Nigeria Meteorological Agency and MODIS
respectively. Pearson’s correlation was used to check the relationship between these data at different seasons and their trends noted.
Visibility (in km), fine and coarse AODs for Ikeja maintain a seasonal circle, further at any instance AOD affect the visibility at minimal
rate with a positive but weak correlation of R2=0.246, having R2=0.1972 during dry season and R2=0.00 at rainy season. This implies that
visibility within the area is not solely inhibited or dependent on aerosols and therefore, a recovery plan to tackle this challenge should
be drawn.