ARL Weekly News – February 17, 2023

Recent Activities

Presentation to Howard Univ. on GHG Monitoring project.

Xinrong Ren was invited by Dr. Sen Chiao at Howard University to give a department seminar on the work of the GHG monitoring team. This presentation titled “Measurements of Air Pollution and Greenhouse Gases in the Mid-Atlantic Region”, was given to the faculty and students at Howard University’s NOAA Center for Atmospheric Science and Meteorology (NCAS-M) on February 15th. The presentation was well received and resulted in much discussion on potential collaboration in the measurement of meteorology, air pollution, and greenhouse gases among Howard University, NOAA, University of Maryland, and a few other research institutions.

WMO Sand And Dust Committee Appointment.

Barry Baker was appointed to the WMO Sand and Dust North America committee.

Volcanic Ash Forecasting Meetings in New Zealand.

Alice Crawford traveled to Rotorua, New Zealand to attend several meetings related to volcanic ash forecasting. Due to flooding at the Auckland airport her trip was delayed by several days and she missed attending the International Association of Volcanology and Chemistry of the Earth’s Interior (IAVCEI) scientific assembly in person however a pre-recorded version of her talk “Probabilistic Volcanic Ash Forecasting for Aviation” was presented in the “Tephra Impacts: numerical modeling, field measurements and observations, hazard assessment and forecasting challenges” section on 2 February and was well received.

From 4-5 February, Alice attended the 8th World Meteorological Organization (WMO) International workshop on volcanic ash (IWVA-8), gave a presentation “Evaluating probabilistic forecasts of volcanic ash” and took part in panel discussions (see pictures below). More information on the workshop can be found here: https://community.wmo.int/en/activity-areas/aviation/workshops/iwva-8
Coauthors for the presentations are Tianfeng Chai, Hyun Cheol Kim, Sonny Zinn and Mark Cohen from ARL. Allison Ring at University of Maryland AOSC department, Binyu Wang and Jeff McQueen from EMC, Jamie Kibler, Washington VAAC manager, Justin Sieglaff, CIMSS at University of Wisconsin, and Michael Pavalonis, NESDIS.

From 7 – 9 February she attended the 20th meeting of WG-MOG-IAVW (Working Group on Meteorological Operations Group – International Airways Volcano Watch) as an advisor to the US Met panel member, Rebecca Cotton (FAA). Study notes from several working groups Alice was part of were presented and discussed. (picture attached is of attendees).

Publications

 

Accepted: The influence of synoptic scale wind patterns on column integrated nitrogen dioxide, ground level ozone, and the development of sea breeze circulations in the New York City metropolitan area.

A paper describing the impact of synoptic scale wind patterns on the influence of air quality and sea breeze formations through the use of a HYSPLIT cluster analysis was accepted for publication to the Journal of Applied Meteorology and Climatology.  Citation: Nauth, D., C.P. Loughner, and M. Tzortziou, 2023: The influence of synoptic scale wind patterns on column integrated nitrogen dioxide, ground level ozone, and the development of sea breeze circulations in the New York City metropolitan area, Journal of Applied Meteorology and Climatology, accepted, doi:10.1175/JAMC-D-22-0145.1.

Published: Processes Contributing to North American Cold Air Outbreaks Based on Air Parcel Trajectory Analysis

Hartig, K., Tziperman, E., & Loughner, C. P. (2023). Processes Contributing to North American Cold Air Outbreaks Based on Air Parcel Trajectory Analysis, Journal of Climate, 36(3), 931-943. Retrieved Feb 22, 2023, from https://journals.ametsoc.org/view/journals/clim/36/3/JCLI-D-22-0204.1.xml

Abstract: Wintertime cold air outbreaks are periods of extreme cold, often persisting for several days and spanning hundreds of kilometers or more. They are commonly associated with intrusions of cold polar air into the midlatitudes, but it is unclear whether the air mass’s initial temperature in the Arctic or its cooling as it travels is the determining factor in producing a cold air outbreak. By calculating air parcel trajectories for a preindustrial climate model scenario, we study the role of the origin and evolution of air masses traveling over sea ice and land and resulting in wintertime cold air outbreaks over central North America. We find that not all Arctic air masses result in a cold air outbreak when advected into the midlatitudes. We compare trajectories that originate in the Arctic and result in cold air outbreaks to those that also originate in the Arctic but lead to median temperatures when advected into the midlatitudes. While about one-third of the midlatitude temperature difference can be accounted for by the initial height and temperature in the Arctic, the other two-thirds are a result of differences in diabatic heating and cooling as the air masses travel. Vertical mixing of cold surface air into the air mass while it travels dominates the diabatic cooling and contributes to the cold events. Air masses leading to cold air outbreaks experience more negative sensible heat flux from the underlying surface, suggesting that preconditioning to establish a cold surface is key to producing cold air outbreaks.

Published: Role of vertical advection and diffusion in long-range PM2.5 transport in Northeast Asia

Kim, E., B.-U. Kim, Y.-H. Kang, H.C. Kim, and S. Kim: Role of vertical advection and diffusion in long-range PM2.5 transport in Northeast Asia, Environmental Pollution, (320) 120997, doi:10.1016/j.envpol.2022.120997

Abstract: This study quantitatively analyzed the role of vertical mixing in long-range transport (LRT) of PM2.5 during its high concentration episode in Northeast Asia toward the end of February 2014. The PM2.5 transport process from an upwind to downwind area was examined using the Community Multi-scale Air Quality (CMAQ) modeling system with its instrumented tool and certain code modifications. We identified serial distinctive roles of vertical advection (ZADV) and diffusion (VDIF) processes. The surface PM2.5 in an upwind area became aloft by VDIF— during daytime—to the planetary boundary layer (PBL) altitude of 1 km or lower. In contrast, ZADV updraft effectively transported PM2.5 vertically to an altitude of 2–3 km above the PBL. Furthermore, we found that the VDIF and ZADV in the upwind area synergistically promoted the vertical mixing of air pollutants up to an altitude of 1 km and higher. The aloft PM2.5 in the upwind area was then transported to the downwind area by horizontal advection (HADV), which was faster than HADV at the surface layer. Additionally, VDIF and ZADV over the downwind area mixed down the aloft PM2.5 on the surface. During this period, the VDIF and ZADV increased the PM2.5 concentrations in the downwind area by up to 15 μg·m−3 (15%) and 101 μg·m−3 (60%), respectively. This study highlights the importance of vertical mixing on long-range PM2.5 transport and warrants more in-depth model analysis with three-dimensional observations to enhance its comprehensive understanding.

Published: Relationship between Synoptic Weather Pattern and Surface Particulate Matter (PM) Concentration During Winter and Spring Seasons Over South Korea

Lee, D., H.C. Kim, J.-H. Jeong, B. Kim, D. Lee, J.-Y. Choi, M.Y. Song, and J.-H. Yoon: Relationship between Synoptic Weather Pattern and Surface Particulate Matter (PM) Concentration During Winter and Spring Seasons Over South Korea, Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres, 127, e2022JD037517, https://doi.org/10.1029/2022JD037517, 2022

This study quantitatively analyzed the role of vertical mixing in long-range transport (LRT) of PM2.5 during its high concentration episode in Northeast Asia toward the end of February 2014. The PM2.5 transport process from an upwind to downwind area was examined using the Community Multi-scale Air Quality (CMAQ) modeling system with its instrumented tool and certain code modifications. We identified serial distinctive roles of vertical advection (ZADV) and diffusion (VDIF) processes. The surface PM2.5 in an upwind area became aloft by VDIF— during daytime—to the planetary boundary layer (PBL) altitude of 1 km or lower. In contrast, ZADV updraft effectively transported PM2.5 vertically to an altitude of 2–3 km above the PBL. Furthermore, we found that the VDIF and ZADV in the upwind area synergistically promoted the vertical mixing of air pollutants up to an altitude of 1 km and higher. The aloft PM2.5 in the upwind area was then transported to the downwind area by horizontal advection (HADV), which was faster than HADV at the surface layer. Additionally, VDIF and ZADV over the downwind area mixed down the aloft PM2.5 on the surface. During this period, the VDIF and ZADV increased the PM2.5 concentrations in the downwind area by up to 15 μg·m−3 (15%) and 101 μg·m−3 (60%), respectively. This study highlights the importance of vertical mixing on long-range PM2.5 transport and warrants more in-depth model analysis with three-dimensional observations to enhance its comprehensive understanding.