Recent advances in microwave remote sensing techniques for dust weather monitoring

Dust weather is a natural atmospheric phenomenon that frequently occurs in arid and semiarid regions. When dust processes intensify or develop on a large spatial scale (i.e., strong dust weather, such as dust storms), the concentration of atmospheric particulate matter can increase markedly, leading to adverse impacts on air quality, human health, and regional to even global climate. Accurate monitoring of dust weather is therefore of great importance for environmental management, disaster early warning, and climate assessment. However, under certain synoptic conditions, dust weather may coexist and interact with cloud systems. When clouds overlie the dust layer or when the dust signal is relatively weak while the cloud signal is strong, traditional optical remote sensing methods (e.g., visible and infrared channels) are unable to effectively penetrate cloud cover and accurately detect dust beneath clouds. Microwave remote sensing, owing to its strong cloud-penetrating capability, has demonstrated significant potential for monitoring dust under cloudy conditions. Motivated by this, the present paper reviews recent studies on monitoring dust weather using microwave remote sensing, provides a detailed overview of different methods, analyzes their underlying principles, advantages, and limitations, and outlines future research directions.