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Observation SiteThe site is located on the campus of the University of Ilorin, Nigeria (08o32'N; 04o34' E), in sub-Sahel Africa. It is positioned at the upper tip of the Guinea Savannah zone under the influence of the annual alternating southward and northward passages of the Inter-Tropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ). During the 'dry season' (November -February) when the ITCZ appears slightly south or north of Ilorin, the prevailing north - easterly wind, known as the 'Harmattan', brings in air containing Saharan dust. The dust plumes originate from the Bodel Depression in the Chad Basin. During the Harmattan, the atmospheric dust layer can have thickness up to 3 km and can reduce the visibility to less than 1 km. During the 'wet' season (March - October), conditions are typified by moist maritime south - westerly flow from the Gulf of Guinea over West Africa. This location is ideally suited for studying the effect of dust on surface radiative fluxes. Moreover, the area is also frequented by events of biomass burning, which adds a new challenge to the interpretation of the data.
Entrance to the campus
of the University of Ilorin 
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| Background | Observation Site | Scientific Observations | Activity | Motivation | Publications | Data |
