Hourly PM2.5 Estimates from a Geostationary Satellite Based on an Ensemble Learning Algorithm and Their Spatiotemporal Patterns over Central East China

Satellite-derived aerosol optical depths (AODs) have been widely used to estimate surface fine particulate matter (PM2.5) concentrations over areas that do not have PM2.5 monitoring sites. To date, most studies have focused on estimating daily PM2.5 concentrations using polar-orbiting satellite data (e.g., from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer), which are inadequate for understanding the evolution of PM2.5 distributions. This study estimates hourly PM2.5 concentrations from Himawari AOD and meteorological parameters using an ensemble learning model. We analyzed the spatial agglomeration patterns of the estimated PM2.5 concentrations over central East China. The estimated PM2.5 concentrations agree well with ground-based data with an overall cross-validated coefficient of determination of 0.86 and a root-mean-square error of 17.3 mu g m(-3). Satellite-estimated PM2.5 concentrations over central East China display a north-to-south decreasing gradient with the highest concentration in winter and the lowest concentration in summer. Diurnally, concentrations are higher in the morning and lower in the afternoon. PM2.5 concentrations exhibit a significant spatial agglomeration effect in central East China. The errors in AOD do not necessarily affect the retrieval accuracy of PM2.5 proportionally, especially if the error is systematic. High-frequency spatiotemporal PM2.5 variations can improve our understanding of the formation and transportation processes of regional pollution episodes.