Long-range transport of carbon monoxide from tropical ground to upper troposphere: a case study for South East Asia in October 1997

Tellus B ◽  
2002 ◽  
Vol 54 (1) ◽  
pp. 22-40 ◽  
Author(s):  
SHOICHI TAGUCHI ◽  
HIDEKAZU MATSUEDA ◽  
HISAYUKI Y. INOUE ◽  
YOUSUKE SAWA
Keyword(s):  
Carbon Monoxide ◽  
East Asia ◽  
Long Range ◽  
Long Range Transport ◽  
South East Asia ◽  
Upper Troposphere ◽  
Range Transport

scholarly journals Tropospheric CO vertical profiles measured by IAGOS aircraft in 2002–2017 and the role of biomass burning

2018 ◽  
pp. 1-41
Author(s):  
Hervé Petetin ◽  
Bastien Sauvage ◽  
Mark Parrington ◽  
Hannah Clark ◽  
Alain Fontaine ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
East Asia ◽  
Long Range ◽  
Biomass Burning ◽  
South India ◽  
Long Range Transport ◽  
Anthropogenic Emissions ◽  
South East Asia ◽  
Vertical Profiles ◽  
Range Transport

<p><strong>Abstract.</strong> This study investigates the role of biomass burning and long-range transport in the anomalies of carbon monoxide (CO) regularly observed along the tropospheric vertical profiles measured in the framework of IAGOS. Considering the high interannual variability of biomass burning emissions and the episodic nature of pollution long-range transport, one strength of this study is the amount of data taken into account, namely 30,000 vertical profiles at 9 clusters of airports in Europe, North America, Asia, India and southern Africa over the period 2002&amp;ndash;2017. </p> <p> As a preliminary, a brief overview of the spatio-temporal variability, latitudinal distribution, interannual variability and trends of biomass burning CO emissions from 14 regions is provided. The distribution of CO mixing ratios at different levels of the troposphere is also provided based on the entire IAGOS database (125 million CO observations). </p> <p> This study focuses on the free troposphere (altitudes above 2<span class="thinspace"></span>km) where the long-range transport of pollution is favoured. Anomalies at a given airport cluster are here defined as departures from the local seasonally-averaged climatological vertical profile. The intensity of these anomalies varies significantly depending on the airport, with maximum (minimum) CO anomalies of 110&amp;ndash;150 (48)<span class="thinspace"></span>ppbv in Asia (Europe). Looking at the seasonal variation of the frequency of occurrence, the 25<span class="thinspace"></span>% strongest CO anomalies appears reasonably well distributed along the year, in contrast to the 5<span class="thinspace"></span>% or 1<span class="thinspace"></span>% strongest anomalies that exhibit a strong seasonality with for instance more frequent anomalies during summertime in northern United-States, during winter/spring in Japan, during spring in South-east China, during the non-monsoon seasons in south-east Asia and south India, and during summer/fall at Windhoek, Namibia. Depending on the location, these strong anomalies are observed in different parts of the free troposphere. </p> <p> In order to investigate the role of biomass burning emissions in these anomalies, we used the SOFT-IO v1.0 IAGOS added-value products that consist of FLEXPART 20-days backward simulations along all IAGOS aircraft trajectories, coupled with anthropogenic (MACCity) and biomass burning (GFAS) CO emission inventories and vertical injections. SOFT-IO estimates the contribution (in ppbv) of the recent (less than 20 days) primary worldwide CO emissions, tagged per source region. Biomass burning emissions are found to play an important role in the strongest CO anomalies observed at most airport clusters. The regional tags indicate a large contribution from boreal regions at airport clusters in Europe and North America during summer season. In both Japan and south India, the anthropogenic emissions dominate all along the year, except for the strongest summertime anomalies observed in Japan that are due to Siberian fires. The strongest CO anomalies at airport clusters located in south-east Asia are induced by fires burning during spring in south-east Asia and during fall in equatorial Asia. In southern Africa, the Windhoek airport was mainly impacted by fires in southern hemisphere Africa and South America. </p> <p> To our knowledge, no other studies have used such a large dataset of in situ vertical profiles for deriving a climatology of the impact of biomass burning versus anthropogenic emissions on the strongest CO anomalies observed in the troposphere, in combination with information on the source regions. This study therefore provides both qualitative and quantitative information for interpreting the highly variable CO vertical distribution in several regions of interest.</p>

scholarly journals Injection in the lower stratosphere of biomass fire emissions followed by long-range transport: a MOZAIC case study

2008 ◽  
Vol 8 (6) ◽  
pp. 20925-20964
Author(s):  
J.-P. Cammas ◽  
J. Brioude ◽  
J.-P. Chaboureau ◽  
J. Duron ◽  
C. Mari ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Boundary Layer ◽  
Carbon Monoxide ◽  
Long Range ◽  
Source Region ◽  
Eastern Coast ◽  
Long Range Transport ◽  
Mixing Ratio ◽  
Fire Emissions ◽  
Range Transport

Abstract. This paper analyses a stratospheric injection by deep convection of biomass fire emissions over North America (Alaska, Yukon and Northwest Territories) on 24 June 2004 and its long-range transport over the eastern coast of the United States and the eastern Atlantic. The case study is done using MOZAIC observations of ozone, carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides (NOx+PAN) and water vapour during the crossing of the southernmost tip of an upper level trough over the Eastern Atlantic on 30 June 03:00 UTC and 10:00 UTC and in a vertical profile over Washington DC on 30 June 17:00 UTC, and by lidar observations of aerosol backscattering at Madison (University of Wisconsin) on 28 June. Attribution of the plumes to the boreal fires is achieved by backward simulations with a Lagrangian particle dispersion model (FLEXPART). A simulation with the Meso-NH model for the source region shows that a boundary layer tracer, mimicking the boreal forest fire smoke, is lofted into the lowermost stratosphere (2–5 pvu layer) during the diurnal convective cycle. The isentropic levels (above 335 K) correspond to those of the downstream MOZAIC observations. The parameterized convective detrainment flux is intense enough to fill the volume of a model mesh (20 km horizontal, 500 m vertical) above the tropopause with pure boundary layer air in a time period compatible with the convective diurnal cycle, i.e. about 5 h. The maximum instantaneous detrainment fluxes deposited about 15–20% of the initial boundary layer tracer concentration at 335 K, which according to the 275-ppbv carbon monoxide maximum mixing ratio observed by MOZAIC over eastern Atlantic, would be associated with a 1.4–1.8 ppmv carbon monoxide mixing ratio in the boundary layer over the source region.

scholarly journals Injection in the lower stratosphere of biomass fire emissions followed by long-range transport: a MOZAIC case study

2009 ◽  
Vol 9 (15) ◽  
pp. 5829-5846 ◽  
Author(s):  
J.-P. Cammas ◽  
J. Brioude ◽  
J.-P. Chaboureau ◽  
J. Duron ◽  
C. Mari ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Boundary Layer ◽  
Carbon Monoxide ◽  
Long Range ◽  
Source Region ◽  
Eastern Coast ◽  
Long Range Transport ◽  
Mixing Ratio ◽  
Fire Emissions ◽  
Range Transport

Abstract. This paper analyses a stratospheric injection by deep convection of biomass fire emissions over North America (Alaska, Yukon and Northwest Territories) on 24 June 2004 and its long-range transport over the eastern coast of the United States and the eastern Atlantic. The case study is based on airborne MOZAIC observations of ozone, carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides and water vapour during the crossing of the southernmost tip of an upper level trough over the Eastern Atlantic on 30 June and on a vertical profile over Washington DC on 30 June, and on lidar observations of aerosol backscattering at Madison (University of Wisconsin) on 28 June. Attribution of the observed CO plumes to the boreal fires is achieved by backward simulations with a Lagrangian particle dispersion model (FLEXPART). A simulation with the Meso-NH model for the source region shows that a boundary layer tracer, mimicking the boreal forest fire smoke, is lofted into the lowermost stratosphere (2–5 pvu layer) during the diurnal convective cycle at isentropic levels (above 335 K) corresponding to those of the downstream MOZAIC observations. It is shown that the order of magnitude of the time needed by the parameterized convective detrainment flux to fill the volume of a model mesh (20 km horizontal, 500 m vertical) above the tropopause with pure boundary layer air would be about 7.5 h, i.e. a time period compatible with the convective diurnal cycle. Over the area of interest, the maximum instantaneous detrainment fluxes deposited about 15 to 20% of the initial boundary layer tracer concentration at 335 K. According to the 275-ppbv carbon monoxide maximum mixing ratio observed by MOZAIC over Eastern Atlantic, such detrainment fluxes would be associated with a 1.4–1.8 ppmv carbon monoxide mixing ratio in the boundary layer over the source region.

scholarly journals Atmospheric pollution over the eastern Mediterranean during summer – a review

2017 ◽  
Vol 17 (21) ◽  
pp. 13233-13263 ◽  
Author(s):  
Uri Dayan ◽  
Philippe Ricaud ◽  
Régina Zbinden ◽  
François Dulac
Keyword(s):  
Boundary Layer ◽  
Carbon Monoxide ◽  
Long Range ◽  
Mixed Layer ◽  
Air Pollutants ◽  
Asian Monsoon ◽  
Eastern Mediterranean ◽  
Long Range Transport ◽  
Range Transport ◽  
Ventilation Rates

Abstract. The eastern Mediterranean (EM) is one of the regions in the world where elevated concentrations of primary and secondary gaseous air pollutants have been reported frequently, mainly in summer. This review discusses published studies of the atmospheric dispersion and transport conditions characterizing this region during the summer, followed by a description of some essential studies dealing with the corresponding concentrations of air pollutants such as ozone, carbon monoxide, total reactive nitrogen, methane, and sulfate aerosols observed there. The interlaced relationship between the downward motion of the subsiding air aloft induced by global circulation systems affecting the EM and the depth of the Persian Trough, a low-pressure trough that extends from the Asian monsoon at the surface controlling the spatiotemporal distribution of the mixed boundary layer during summer, is discussed. The strength of the wind flow within the mixed layer and its depth affect much the amount of pollutants transported and determine the potential of the atmosphere to disperse contaminants off their origins in the EM. The reduced mixed layer and the accompanying weak westerlies, characterizing the summer in this region, led to reduced ventilation rates, preventing an effective dilution of the contaminants. Several studies pointing at specific local (e.g., ventilation rates) and regional peculiarities (long-range transport) enhancing the build-up of air pollutant concentrations are presented. Tropospheric ozone (O3) concentrations observed in the summer over the EM are among the highest over the Northern Hemisphere. The three essential processes controlling its formation (i.e., long-range transport of polluted air masses, dynamic subsidence at mid-tropospheric levels, and stratosphere-to-troposphere exchange) are reviewed. Airborne campaigns and satellite-borne initiatives have indicated that the concentration values of reactive nitrogen identified as precursors in the formation of O3 over the EM were found to be 2 to 10 times higher than in the hemispheric background troposphere. Several factors favor sulfate particulate abundance over the EM. Models, aircraft measurements, and satellite-derived data have clearly shown that sulfate has a maximum during spring and summer over the EM. The carbon monoxide (CO) seasonal cycle, as obtained from global background monitoring sites in the EM, is mostly controlled by the tropospheric concentration of the hydroxyl radical (OH) and therefore demonstrates high concentrations over winter months and the lowest concentrations during summer when photochemistry is active. Modeling studies have shown that the diurnal variations in CO concentration during the summer result from long-range CO transport from European anthropogenic sources, contributing 60 to 80 % of the boundary-layer CO over the EM. The values retrieved from satellite data enable us to derive the spatial distribution of methane (CH4), identifying August as the month with the highest levels over the EM. The outcomes of a recent extensive examination of the distribution of methane over the tropospheric Mediterranean Basin, as part of the Chemistry-Aerosol Mediterranean Experiment (ChArMEx) program, using model simulations and satellite measurements, are coherent with other previous studies. Moreover, this methane study provides some insight into the role of the Asian monsoon anticyclone in controlling the variability of CH4 pollutant within mid-to-upper tropospheric levels above the EM in summer.

scholarly journals Long-range transport of mutagens and other air pollutants from mainland East Asia to western Japan

2015 ◽  
Vol 37 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Souleymane Coulibaly ◽  
Hiroki Minami ◽  
Maho Abe ◽  
Tomohiro Hasei ◽  
Tadashi Oro ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
East Asia ◽  
Long Range ◽  
Air Pollutants ◽  
Long Range Transport ◽  
Range Transport ◽  
Western Japan

scholarly journals First simultaneous measurements of peroxyacetyl nitrate (PAN) and ozone at Nam Co in the central Tibetan Plateau: impacts from the PBL evolution and transport processes

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xiaobin Xu ◽  
Hualong Zhang ◽  
Weili Lin ◽  
Ying Wang ◽  
Shihui Jia
Keyword(s):  
Long Range ◽  
Early Morning ◽  
Diurnal Variations ◽  
Long Range Transport ◽  
Nam Co ◽  
Monsoon Period ◽  
Air Masses ◽  
Upper Troposphere ◽  
Central Tibetan Plateau ◽  
Range Transport

Abstract. Both peroxyacetyl nitrate (PAN) and ozone (O3) are key photochemical products in the atmosphere. Most of the previous in-situ observations of both gases have been made in polluted regions and at low altitude sites. Here we present first simultaneous measurements of PAN and O3 at Nam Co (NMC, 90°57′ E, 30°46′ N, 4745 m  a.s.l.), a remote site in the central Tibetan Plateau (TP). The observations were made during summer periods in 2011 and 2012. The PAN concentrations averaged 0.36 ppb (range: 0.11–0.76 ppb) and 0.44 ppb (range: 0.21–0.99 ppb) during 16–25 August 2011 and 15 May to 13 July 2012, respectively. The O3 concentration varied from 27.9 ppb to 96.4 ppb, with an average of 60.0 ppb. Profound diurnal cycles of PAN and O3 were observed, with minimum values around 05:00 LT, steep rises in the early morning, and broader platforms of high values during 09:00–20:00 LT. We find that the evolution of planetary boundary layer (PBL) played a key role in shaping the diurnal patterns of both gases, particularly the rapid increases of PAN and O3 in the early morning. Air entrainment from the free troposphere into the PBL seemed to cause the early morning increase and be a key factor of sustaining the daytime high concentrations of both gases. The days with higher daytime PBL (about 3 km) showed stronger diurnal variations of both gases and were mainly distributed in the drier pre-monsoon period, while those with shallower daytime PBL (about 2 km) showed minor diurnal variations of both gases and were mainly distributed in the humid monsoon period. Episodes of higher PAN levels were observed occasionally at NMC. These PAN episodes were caused either by rapid downward transport of air masses from the middle/upper troposphere or by long-range transport of PAN plumes from North India. The PAN level in the downward transport cases ranged from 0.5 ppb to 0.7 ppb and may indicate the PAN abundance in the middle/upper troposphere. In the long-range transport case, the PAN level varied in the range of 0.6–1.0 ppb. This long-range transport process influenced most of the western and central TP region for about a week in early June 2012. Our results suggest that polluted air masses from South Asia can significantly enhance the PAN level over the TP. As PAN act as a reservoir of NOx, the impacts of pollution transport from South Asia on tropospheric photochemistry over the TP region deserve further studies.

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