Air Quality Forecast Verification Using Satellite Data

2008 ◽  
Vol 47 (2) ◽  
pp. 425-442 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. Kondragunta ◽  
P. Lee ◽  
J. McQueen ◽  
C. Kittaka ◽  
A. I. Prados ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Air Quality ◽  
Long Range ◽  
Regional Scale ◽  
The United States ◽  
Long Range Transport ◽  
Forecast Performance ◽  
Air Quality Forecast ◽  
Time Period ◽  
Range Transport

Abstract NOAA’s operational geostationary satellite retrievals of aerosol optical depths (AODs) were used to verify National Weather Service developmental (research mode) particulate matter (PM2.5) predictions tested during the summer 2004 International Consortium for Atmospheric Research on Transport and Transformation/New England Air Quality Study (ICARTT/NEAQS) field campaign. The forecast period included long-range transport of smoke from fires burning in Canada and Alaska and a regional-scale sulfate event over the Gulf of Mexico and the eastern United States. Over the 30-day time period for which daytime hourly forecasts were compared with observations, the categorical (exceedance defined as AOD > 0.55) forecast accuracy was between 0% and 20%. Hourly normalized mean bias (forecasts − observations) ranged between −50% and +50% with forecasts being positively biased when observed AODs were small and negatively biased when observed AODs were high. Normalized mean errors are between 50% and 100% with the errors on the lower end during the 18–22 July 2004 time period when a regional-scale sulfate event occurred. Spatially, the errors are small over the regions where sulfate plumes were present. The correlation coefficient also showed similar features (spatially and temporally) with a peak value of ∼0.6 during the 18–22 July 2004 time period. The dominance of long-range transport of smoke into the United States during the summer of 2004, neglected in the model predictions, skewed the model forecast performance. Enhanced accuracy and reduced normalized mean errors during the time period when a sulfate event prevailed show that the forecast system has skill in predicting PM2.5 associated with urban/industrial pollution events.

scholarly journals Inconsistent decadal variations between surface and free tropospheric nitrogen oxides over United States

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zhe Jiang ◽  
Helen Worden ◽  
John R. Worden ◽  
Daven K. Henze ◽  
Dylan B. A. Jones ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Air Quality ◽  
Nitrogen Oxides ◽  
Climate Variability ◽  
Long Range ◽  
North American ◽  
Long Range Transport ◽  
Substantial Impact ◽  
Decadal Scale ◽  
Range Transport

Abstract. Decreases in surface emissions of nitrogen oxides (NOx = NO + NO2) in North America have led to substantial improvements in air-quality over the last several decades. Here we show that satellite observations of tropospheric nitrogen dioxide (NO2) columns over the contiguous United States (US) do not decrease after about 2009, while surface NO2 concentrations continue to decline through to the present. This divergence, if it continues, could have a substantial impact on surface air quality due to mixing of free-tropospheric air into the boundary layer. Our results show only limited contributions from local effects such as fossil fuel emissions, lightning, or instrument artifacts, but we do find a possible relationship of NO2 changes to decadal climate variability. Our analysis demonstrates that the intensity of transpacific transport is stronger in El Niño years and weaker in La Niña years, and consequently, that decadal-scale climate variability impacts the contribution of Asian emissions on North American atmospheric composition. Because of the short lifetime, it is usually believed that the direct contribution of long-range transport to tropospheric NOx distribution is limited. If our hypothesis about transported Asian emissions is correct, then this observed divergence between satellite and surface NOx could indicate mechanisms that allow for either NOx or its reservoir species to have a larger than expected effect on North American tropospheric composition. These results therefore suggest more aircraft and satellite studies to determine the possible missing processes in our understanding of the long-range transport of tropospheric NOx.

scholarly journals Long-range Transport of Aerosols from Biomass Burning over Southeastern South America and their Implications on Air Quality

2018 ◽  
Vol 18 (7) ◽  
pp. 1734-1745 ◽  
Author(s):  
Leila Droprinchinski Martins ◽  
Ricardo Hallak ◽  
Rafaela Cruz Alves ◽  
Daniela S. de Almeida ◽  
Rafaela Squizzato ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Air Quality ◽  
South America ◽  
Long Range ◽  
Biomass Burning ◽  
Long Range Transport ◽  
Range Transport

scholarly journals The contribution of marine organics to the air quality of the western United States

2010 ◽  
Vol 10 (15) ◽  
pp. 7415-7423 ◽  
Author(s):  
B. Gantt ◽  
N. Meskhidze ◽  
A. G. Carlton
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Air Quality ◽  
San Francisco ◽  
Atmospheric Chemistry ◽  
Environmental Protection Agency ◽  
Regional Scale ◽  
The United States ◽  
Coastal Areas ◽  
Western United States ◽  
The Us

Abstract. The contribution of marine organic emissions to the air quality in coastal areas of the western United States is studied using the latest version of the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regional-scale Community Multiscale Air Quality (CMAQv4.7) modeling system. Emissions of marine isoprene, monoterpenes, and primary organic matter (POM) from the ocean are implemented into the model to provide a comprehensive view of the connection between ocean biology and atmospheric chemistry and air pollution. Model simulations show that marine organics can increase the concentration of PM2.5 by 0.1–0.3 μg m−3 (up to 5%) in some coastal cities such as San Francisco, CA. This increase in the PM2.5 concentration is primarily attributed to the POM emissions, with small contributions from the marine isoprene and monoterpenes. When marine organic emissions are included, organic carbon (OC) concentrations over the remote ocean are increased by up to 50% (25% in coastal areas), values consistent with recent observational findings. This study is the first to quantify the air quality impacts from marine POM and monoterpenes for the United States, and it highlights the need for inclusion of marine organic emissions in air quality models.

Study of Effects of Long-Range Transport of Air Pollutants on the Atmospheric Environment

2014 ◽  
Vol 955-959 ◽  
pp. 1341-1345 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xia Zhang ◽  
Liang Tian ◽  
Xian Sun ◽  
Chuang Ye Jiang
Keyword(s):  
Air Quality ◽  
Long Range ◽  
Air Pollutants ◽  
Concentration Field ◽  
Atmospheric Environment ◽  
Shanxi Province ◽  
Long Range Transport ◽  
Flux Method ◽  
Range Transport ◽  
Pollutants Transport

Based on meteorological field output by MM5 mesoscale meteorological model and concentration field output by CALPUFF air quality model, “flux method” was applied to study effects of long-range transport of air pollutants on the atmospheric environment, in which micro-element method was used to solve the process of air pollutants transport in long-range of three-dimensional space. This method was first applied in studying a construction project’s impact on air quality in Guanzhong region of Shanxi Province. The results shows that the deviation of flux method is less which the value is 16 percent, and among all year around, the pollutants transport the more flux to the ENE and WSW directions of the project compared to other directions. Additional, the flux of fall and winter is more than it of spring and summer, and the project has a more severe influence of atmospheric environment in Xi’an city than it of Weinan city.

scholarly journals Long-range transport of North African dust to the eastern United States

1997 ◽  
Vol 102 (D10) ◽  
pp. 11225-11238 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kevin D. Perry ◽  
Thomas A. Cahill ◽  
Robert A. Eldred ◽  
Dabrina D. Dutcher ◽  
Thomas E. Gill
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Long Range ◽  
Long Range Transport ◽  
Eastern United States ◽  
North African ◽  
African Dust ◽  
Range Transport

Long-Range Transport of Anthropogenically and Naturally Produced Particulate Matter in the Mediterranean and North Atlantic: Current State of Knowledge

2007 ◽  
Vol 46 (8) ◽  
pp. 1230-1251 ◽  
Author(s):  
George Kallos ◽  
Marina Astitha ◽  
Petros Katsafados ◽  
Chris Spyrou
Keyword(s):  
Particulate Matter ◽  
Air Quality ◽  
North America ◽  
Atlantic Ocean ◽  
Long Range ◽  
Saharan Dust ◽  
Long Range Transport ◽  
Transport And Transformation ◽  
New Findings ◽  
Range Transport

Abstract During the past 20 years, organized experimental campaigns as well as continuous development and implementation of air-pollution modeling have led to significant gains in the understanding of the paths and scales of pollutant transport and transformation in the greater Mediterranean region (GMR). The work presented in this paper has two major objectives: 1) to summarize the existing knowledge on the transport paths of particulate matter (PM) in the GMR and 2) to illustrate some new findings related to the transport and transformation properties of PM in the GMR. Findings from previous studies indicate that anthropogenically produced air pollutants from European sources can be transported over long distances, reaching Africa, the Atlantic Ocean, and North America. The PM of natural origin, like Saharan dust, can be transported toward the Atlantic Ocean and North America mostly during the warm period of the year. Recent model simulations and studies in the area indicate that specific long-range transport patterns of aerosols, such as the transport from Asia and the Indian Ocean, central Africa, or America, have negligible or at best limited contribution to air-quality degradation in the GMR when compared with the other sources. Also, new findings from this work suggest that the imposed European Union limits on PM cannot be applicable for southern Europe unless the origin (natural or anthropogenic) of the PM is taken into account. The impacts of high PM levels in the GMR are not limited only to air quality, but also include serious implications for the water budget and the regional climate. These are issues that require extensive investigation because the processes involved are complex, and further model development is needed to include the relevant physicochemical processes properly.

Linking the Eta Model with the Community Multiscale Air Quality (CMAQ) Modeling System to Build a National Air Quality Forecasting System

2005 ◽  
Vol 20 (3) ◽  
pp. 367-384 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tanya L. Otte ◽  
George Pouliot ◽  
Jonathan E. Pleim ◽  
Jeffrey O. Young ◽  
Kenneth L. Schere ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Air Quality ◽  
Environmental Protection Agency ◽  
Rural Areas ◽  
Numerical Models ◽  
The United States ◽  
Air Quality Forecast ◽  
Eta Model ◽  
State And Local ◽  
Air Quality Forecasting

Abstract NOAA and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) have developed a national air quality forecasting (AQF) system that is based on numerical models for meteorology, emissions, and chemistry. The AQF system generates gridded model forecasts of ground-level ozone (O3) that can help air quality forecasters to predict and alert the public of the onset, severity, and duration of poor air quality conditions. Although AQF efforts have existed in metropolitan centers for many years, this AQF system provides a national numerical guidance product and the first-ever air quality forecasts for many (predominantly rural) areas of the United States. The AQF system is currently based on NCEP’s Eta Model and the EPA’s Community Multiscale Air Quality (CMAQ) modeling system. The AQF system, which was implemented into operations at the National Weather Service in September of 2004, currently generates twice-daily forecasts of O3 for the northeastern United States at 12-km horizontal grid spacing. Preoperational testing to support the 2003 and 2004 O3 forecast seasons showed that the AQF system provided valuable guidance that could be used in the air quality forecast process. The AQF system will be expanded over the next several years to include a nationwide domain, a capability for forecasting fine particle pollution, and a longer forecast period. State and local agencies will now issue air quality forecasts that are based, in part, on guidance from the AQF system. This note describes the process and software components used to link the Eta Model and CMAQ for the national AQF system, discusses several technical and logistical issues that were considered, and provides examples of O3 forecasts from the AQF system.

scholarly journals Aerosol distribution in the northern Gulf of Guinea: local anthropogenic sources, long-range transport and the role of coastal shallow circulations

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cyrille Flamant ◽  
Adrien Deroubaix ◽  
Patrick Chazette ◽  
Joel Brito ◽  
Marco Gaetani ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Boundary Layer ◽  
West Africa ◽  
Long Range ◽  
Regional Scale ◽  
Lower Troposphere ◽  
Atmospheric Pollutants ◽  
Anthropogenic Sources ◽  
Long Range Transport ◽  
Aerosol Distribution ◽  
Range Transport

Abstract. The complex vertical distribution of aerosols over coastal southern West Africa (SWA) is investigated using airborne observations and numerical simulations. Observations were gathered on 2 July 2016 offshore of Ghana and Togo, during the field phase of the Dynamics-Aerosol-Chemistry-Cloud Interactions in West Africa project. The aerosol loading in the lower troposphere includes emissions from coastal cities (Accra, Lomé, Cotonou and Lagos) as well as biomass burning aerosol and dust associated with long-range transport from Central Africa and the Sahara, respectively. Our results indicate that the aerosol distribution is impacted by subsidence associated with zonal and meridional regional scale overturning circulations associated with the land-sea surface temperature contrast and orography over Ghana and Togo. Numerical tracer release experiments highlight the dominance of aged emissions from Accra on the observed pollution plume loadings over the ocean. The contribution of aged emission from Lomé and Cotonou is also evident above the marine boundary layer. Lagos emissions do not play a role for the area west of Cotonou. The tracer plume does not extend very far south over the ocean (i.e. less than 100 km from Accra), mostly because emissions are transported northeastward near the surface over land and westward above the marine atmospheric boundary layer. The latter is possible due to interactions between the monsoon flow, complex terrain and land-sea breeze systems, which support the vertical mixing of the urban pollution. This work sheds light on the complex – and to date undocumented – mechanisms by which coastal shallow circulations distribute atmospheric pollutants over the densely populated SWA region.

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