scholarly journals Asian Long-Range Transport in Relation to Atmospheric Rivers in Northern California

Atmosphere ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 10 (6) ◽  
pp. 313
Author(s):  
Catherine N. Liu ◽  
Sen Chiao ◽  
Ju-Mee Ryoo
Keyword(s):  
Long Range ◽  
Cold Season ◽  
Asian Dust ◽  
Long Range Transport ◽  
Back Trajectory ◽  
Northern California ◽  
Atmospheric Rivers ◽  
Back Trajectory Analysis ◽  
Range Transport ◽  
Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer

The study investigates the effect of aerosol long-range transport on precipitation over Northern California during atmospheric river (AR) events in the 2017 cold season (January–April). ARs in 2017 were one of the strongest to date, and the intense precipitation associated with the ARs resulted in flooding, destruction of property, and contamination of water supplies. The Aerosol Optical Depth (AOD) from Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) data shows Asian dust traveling across the Northern Pacific Ocean along with AR events. Aerosol measurements in California, provided by the Interagency Monitoring of Protected Visual Environments (IMPROVE), show that more Asian dust tends to be observed over the coast, while non-Asian/localized dust is observed inland. A mixture of Asian and localized dust is observed over the mountains, although higher amounts of both are observed in the spring (March–April). Back trajectory analysis confirms that Asian aerosols are transported along the air parcels, and each AR event has its own transport pattern in terms of horizontal advection and vertical lifting. Correlation between precipitation and aerosols is low. This suggests that aerosols contribute little to the decrease of local precipitation during the 2017 AR events.

Contamination of Antarctic snow by polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons dominated by combustion sources in the polar region

2010 ◽  
Vol 7 (6) ◽  
pp. 504 ◽  
Author(s):  
Petr Kukučka ◽  
Gerhard Lammel ◽  
Alice Dvorská ◽  
Jana Klánová ◽  
Andrea Möller ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons ◽  
Long Range ◽  
Aromatic Hydrocarbons ◽  
Solid Phase ◽  
Weddell Sea ◽  
Long Range Transport ◽  
Back Trajectory ◽  
Range Transport ◽  
Polycyclic Aromatic ◽  
Combustion Sources

Environmental context Is long-range transport from populated and industrialised areas to blame for pollution of remote regions? We report that, for the world's most remote region, Antarctica, and one prominent class of global pollutants, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, long-range transport from other continents has not contributed significantly to recent snow contamination. Rather, the major sources are regional scientific stations and ocean transport, mostly tourism. Abstract Firn samples attributed to the period between 2002 and 2005 were collected from a snow pit on the Ekström Shelf Ice in the Weddell Sea (70°43.8′S, 8°25.1′W). Low-volume meltwater samples (5 mL) were extracted by solid-phase microextraction (SPME) and analysed for polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. The recovery of the analytical method for the 4–6 ring PAHs was low. PAH concentrations in snow were found within the range of 26–197 ng L–1. The most prevailing substances were determined to be naphthalene, 1- and 2-methylnaphthalene, acenaphthylene, acenaphthene and phenanthrene, with naphthalene accounting for an overall mean of 82% of total PAH. Potential emission sources of PAHs in snow were studied using back-trajectory statistics and available emission data of combustion sources in and around Antarctica. The distance to the sources (ships and research stations) in this region was found to control the snow PAH concentrations. There was no indication for intercontinental transport or marine sources.

scholarly journals Spectral optical properties of long-range transport Asian dust and pollution aerosols over Northeast Asia in 2007 and 2008

2010 ◽  
Vol 10 (12) ◽  
pp. 5391-5408 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. Jung ◽  
Y. J. Kim ◽  
K. Y. Lee ◽  
M. G. -Cayetano ◽  
T. Batmunkh ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Optical Properties ◽  
Long Range ◽  
Atmospheric Chemistry ◽  
Light Attenuation ◽  
Measurement Data ◽  
Absorption Efficiency ◽  
Asian Dust ◽  
Urban Site ◽  
Long Range Transport ◽  
Range Transport

Abstract. As a part of the IGAC (International Global Atmospheric Chemistry) Mega-cities program, aerosol physical and optical properties were continuously measured from March 2007 to March 2008 at an urban site (37.57° N, 126.94° E) in Seoul, Korea. Spectral optical properties of long-range transported Asian dust and pollution aerosols have been investigated based on the year long measurement data. Optically measured black carbon/thermally measured elemental carbon (BC/EC) ratio showed clear monthly variation with high values in summer and low values in winter mainly due to the enhancement of light attenuation by the internal mixing of EC. Novel approach has been suggested to retrieve the spectral light absorption coefficient (babs) from Aethalometer raw data by using BC/EC ratio. Mass absorption efficiency, σabs (=babs/EC) at 550 nm was determined to be 9.0±1.3, 8.9±1.5, 9.5±2.0, and 10.3±1.7 m2 g−1 in spring, summer, fall, and winter, respectively with an annual mean of 9.4±1.8 m2 g−1. Threshold values to classify severe haze events were suggested in this study. Increasing trend of aerosol single scattering albedo (SSA) with wavelength was observed during Asian dust events while little spectral dependence of SSA was observed during long-range transport pollution (LTP) events. Satellite aerosol optical thickness (AOT) and Hysplit air mass backward trajectory analyses as well as chemical analysis were performed to characterize the dependence of spectral optical properties on aerosol type. Results from this study can provide useful information for studies on regional air quality and aerosol's effects on climate change.

Long-range transport of Asian dust to the Lower Fraser Valley, British Columbia, Canada

2001 ◽  
Vol 106 (D16) ◽  
pp. 18361-18370 ◽  
Author(s):  
I. G. McKendry ◽  
J. P. Hacker ◽  
R. Stull ◽  
S. Sakiyama ◽  
D. Mignacca ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
British Columbia ◽  
Long Range ◽  
Asian Dust ◽  
Long Range Transport ◽  
Range Transport ◽  
Lower Fraser Valley ◽  
Fraser Valley

scholarly journals Impacts of transported background ozone on California air quality during the ARCTAS-CARB period – a multi-scale modeling study

2010 ◽  
Vol 10 (5) ◽  
pp. 12079-12131 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. Huang ◽  
G. R. Carmichael ◽  
B. Adhikary ◽  
S. N. Spak ◽  
S. Kulkarni ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Air Quality ◽  
Long Range ◽  
Atmospheric Chemistry ◽  
Temporal Variations ◽  
Eastern Pacific ◽  
Long Range Transport ◽  
Northern California ◽  
Multi Scale ◽  
Background Ozone ◽  
Range Transport

Abstract. Multi-scale tracer and full-chemistry simulations with the STEM atmospheric chemistry model are used to analyze the effects of transported background ozone (O3) from the eastern Pacific on California air quality during the ARCTAS-CARB experiment conducted in June 2008. Previous work has focused on the importance of long-range transport of O3 to North America air quality in springtime. However during this summer experiment the long-range transport of O3 is also shown to be important. Simulated and observed O3 transport patterns from the coast to inland northern California are shown to vary based on meteorological conditions and the oceanic O3 profiles, which are strongly episodically affected by Asian inflows. Analysis of the correlations of O3 at various altitudes above the coastal site at Trinidad Head and at a downwind surface site in northern California, show that under long-range transport events, high O3 air-masses (O3>60 ppb) at altitudes between about 2 and 4 km can be transported inland and can significantly influence surface O3 20–30 h later. These results show the importance of characterizing the vertical structure of the lateral boundary conditions (LBC) needed in air quality simulations. The importance of the LBC on O3 prediction during this period is further studied through a series of sensitivity studies using different forms of LBC. It is shown that the use of the LBC downscaled from RAQMS global model that assimilated MLS and OMI data improves the model performance. We also show that the predictions can be further improved through the use of LBC based on NASA DC-8 airborne observations during the ARCTAS-CARB experiment. These results indicate the need to develop observational strategies to improve the representation of the vertical and temporal variations in the air over the eastern Pacific.

scholarly journals Long-range transport of giant particles in Asian dust identified by physical, mineralogical, and meteorological analysis

2014 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
pp. 505-521 ◽  
Author(s):  
G. Y. Jeong ◽  
J. Y. Kim ◽  
J. Seo ◽  
G. M. Kim ◽  
H. C. Jin ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Electron Microscopy ◽  
Long Range ◽  
Asian Dust ◽  
The Yellow Sea ◽  
Dust Particles ◽  
Long Range Transport ◽  
Gobi Desert ◽  
Strong Wind ◽  
Regional Circulation ◽  
Range Transport

Abstract. Giant particles transported over long distances are generally of limited concern in atmospheric studies due to their low number concentrations in mineral dust and possible local origin. However, they can play an important role in regional circulation of earth materials due to their enormous volume concentration. Asian dust laden with giant particles was observed in Korea on 31 March 2012, after a migration of about 2000 km across the Yellow Sea from the Gobi Desert. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) revealed that 20% of the particles exceeded 10 μm in equivalent sphere diameter, with a maximum of 60 μm. The median diameter from the number distribution was 5.7 μm, which was larger than the diameters recorded of 2.5 and 2.9 μm in Asian dust storms in 2010 and 2011, respectively, and was consistent with independent optical particle counter data. Giant particles (>10 μm) contributed about 89% of the volume of the dust in the 2012 storm. Illite–smectite series clay minerals were the major mineral group followed by quartz, plagioclase, K-feldspar, and calcite. The total phyllosilicate content was ~52%. The direct long-range transport of giant particles was confirmed by calcite nanofibers closely associated with clays in a submicron scale identified by high-resolution SEM and transmission electron microscopy. Since giant particles consisted of clay agglomerates and clay-coated quartz, feldspars, and micas, the mineral composition varied little throughout the fine (<5 μm), coarse (5–10 μm), giant-S (10–20 μm), and giant-L (>20 μm) size bins. Analysis of the synoptic conditions of the 2012 dust event and its migration indicated that the mid-tropospheric strong wind belt directly stretching to Korea induced rapid transport of the dust, delivering giant particles. Giant dust particles with high settling velocity would be the major input into the terrestrial and marine sedimentary and ecological systems of East Asia and the western Pacific. Analysis of ancient aeolian deposits in Korea suggested the common deposition of giant particles from Asian dust through the late Quaternary Period. The roles of giant particles should be reviewed with regard to regional circulation of mineral particles and nutrients.

scholarly journals Airborne Asian Dust: Case Study of Long-Range Transport and Implications for the Detection of Volcanic Ash

2003 ◽  
Vol 18 (2) ◽  
pp. 121-141 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. J. Simpson ◽  
G. L. Hufford ◽  
R. Servranckx ◽  
J. Berg ◽  
D. Pieri
Keyword(s):  
Long Range ◽  
Volcanic Ash ◽  
Asian Dust ◽  
Long Range Transport ◽  
Range Transport ◽  
Dust Case
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