Lidar observations were analysed to characterize atmospheric pollen at four EARLINET (European Aerosol Research Lidar Network) stations (Hohenpeißenberg, Germany; Kuopio, Finland, Leipzig, Germany; and Warsaw, Poland) during the ACTRIS-COVID-19 campaign in May 2020. The re-analysis lidar data products, after the centralized and automatic data processing with the Single Calculus Chain (SCC), were used in this study, focusing on particle backscatter coefficients at 355 nm and 532 nm, and particle linear depolarization ratios (PDRs) at 532 nm. A novel method for the characterization of the pure pollen depolarization ratio was presented, based on the non-linear least square regression fitting using lidar-derived backscatter-related Ångström exponents (BAEs) and PDRs. Under the assumption that the BAE between 355 and 532 nm should be zero (± 0.5) for pure pollen, the pollen depolarization ratios were estimated: for Kuopio and Warsaw stations, the pollen depolarization ratios at 532 nm were of 0.24 (0.19–0.28) during the birch dominant pollen periods; whereas for Hohenpeiβenberg and Leipzig stations, the pollen depolarization ratios of 0.21 (0.15–0.27) and 0.20 (0.15–0.25) were observed for periods of mixture of birch and grass pollen. The method was also applied for the aerosol classification, using two case examples from the campaign periods: the different pollen types (or pollen mixtures) were identified at Warsaw station, and dust and pollen were classified at Hohenpeißenberg station.

2021