Radiative and Thermal Impacts of Smoke Aerosol Longwave Absorption during Fires in the Moscow Region in Summer 2010

The aerosol longwave radiative forcing of the atmosphere and heating rate of the near-surface aerosol layer are estimated for the extreme smoke conditions in the Moscow region in summer 2010. Thermal radiation fluxes in the atmosphere are determined using the integral transmission function and semiempirical aerosol model developed on the basis of standard aerosol models and measurements at the Zvenigorod Scientific Station, Obukhov Institute of Atmospheric Physics, Russian Academy of Sciences. The aerosol radiative forcing reached 33 W/m² at the lower atmospheric boundary and ranged between–1.0 and 1.0 W/m² at the upper atmospheric boundary. The heating rate of the 10-m atmospheric layer near surface was up to 0.2 K/h during the maximum smoke conditions on August 7–9. The sensitivity of the aerosol longwave radiative forcing to the changes in the aerosol absorption coefficient and aerosol optical thickness are estimated.     

Effect of photochemical self-action of carbon-containing aerosol: Wildfires

It has been shown by numerical simulation that the rate of formation of secondary organic aerosols (SOAs) in smoke plumes caused by vegetation and peat fires under real conditions can significantly depend on the aerosol optical thickness (AOT). The AOT determines the photodissociation rate and hydroxyl radical concentration, which in turn determines the rate of SOA generation as a result of oxidation of semivolatile organic compounds. Quantitative analysis has been carried out for the situation that took place in European Russia during the 2010 Russian wildfires. The state-of-the-art 3D chemical transport model is used in this study; the simulations are optimized and validated using the data of monitoring of the particulate matter in the Moscow region and Finland. The findings indicate that it is important to allow for this effect in studies focused on the analysis and prediction of air pollution due to wildfires, as well as climate and weather studies, whose results may depend on the assumptions about the content and properties of atmospheric carbon-containing aerosol.     

Variations in parameters of aerosol optical thickness in Dushanbe

The results of studies of aerosol optical thickness (AOT) in Dushanbe conducted from July 2010 to March 2011 within the AERONET program are discussed. The statistical characteristics of AOT have been shown to significantly vary during dust intrusions. The seasonal variations in the dustiness of the atmosphere have been analyzed.     

The radiative and thermal effects of smoke aerosol over the region of Moscow during the summer fires of 2010

The shortwave radiative forcings of smoke aerosol in the cloudless atmosphere during the summer fires of 2010 in European Russia were quantitatively estimated for the land surface and the atmospheric upper boundary from measurement data obtained at the Zvenigorod Scientific Station of the Obukhov Institute of Atmospheric Physics (OIAP ZSS), Russian Academy of Sciences. Variations in the temperature of the surface air layer due to the smoke-induced attenuation of incoming solar radiation were estimated. The most intensive smoke generation in the atmosphere was observed on August 7–9, 2010, when the maximum aerosol optical thickness amounted to more than 4.0 at a wavelength of 550 nm. In this case, the albedo of single aerosol scattering amounted to ∼0.95–0.96 and the asymmetry factor amounted to ∼0.69–0.70. The maximum shortwave radiative forcing of aerosol amounted to about −360 W/m² for the land surface and almost −150 W/m² for the atmospheric upper boundary. During the period of intensive smoke generation, the cooling of the atmospheric surface layer over daylight hours (12 h) amounted, on average, to ∼6°C. The power character of the dependence of the shortwave radiative forcing of aerosol for the land surface on aerosol optical thickness up to its values exceeding 4.0, which was revealed earlier on the basis of data on aerosol optical thickness (up to 1.5) obtained at the OIAP ZSS during the summer forest and peatbog fires of 2002 in the region of Moscow, was supported.     

The effect of atmospheric circulation on the evolution and radiative forcing of smoke aerosol over European Russia during the summer of 2010

The evolution of smoke plume over European Russia (ER) during the massive forest and peatbog fires of summer 2010 has been studied using observations of aerosol optical depth (AOD) from MODIS instruments (both Aqua and Terra platforms), objective analysis of meteorological fields performed at the Russian Hydrometeorological Research Center, NCEP/NCAR reanalysis, as well as upper air data. A relation between the structure inhomogeneities of the AOD field and regional atmospheric circulation has been found. It is shown that, on August 5–9, 2010, the maximum of smoke pollution did complete turn around Moscow, while remaining at a distance of 200 to 650 km from the megacity. Both regionally averaged shortwave aerosol radiative forcings (ARFs) at the top and the bottom of the atmosphere are estimated for the period of extreme smoke pollution over ER. The spatial distributions of ARF values over the territory of the region and the estimates of the local and spatially distributed thermal effects of smoke aerosol are given. It is shown that, on August 5–9, 2010, the spatial distribution of AOD and the calculated thermal effects of smoke aerosol were in agreement with the spatial distributions of air-temperature anomalies observed in the lower 1.5-km layer of the atmosphere. MODIS’s AOD data obtained during the wildfires were validated by AOD observations from the CIMEL sun photometer operated at the AERONET station Zvenigorod.     

Aerosol and radiation characteristics of the atmosphere during forest and peat fires in 1972, 2002, and 2010 in the region of Moscow

Estimates of some aerosol and radiation characteristics of the atmosphere in the summer of 2010 are obtained according to the results of the measurements made at the Meteorological Observatory (MO) at Moscow State University and are compared with the results of the measurements performed in 2002 and 1972 during the forest and peat fires. In contrast to 1972 and 2002, the period under study in 2010 is characterized by a greater frequency of the highest class of fire danger according to Nesterov, higher aerosol optical depths of the atmosphere up to 4.6, and a more significant weakening of solar radiation in different spectrum regions. In 2010 the smoke aerosol caused losses of the total shortwave radiation of 33%, visible radiation of 39%, ultraviolet radiation of 300–380 nm of 51%, and erythemal radiation of 63%. At the same time, an increase in the downward long-wave radiation to 40–50 W/m² under extreme aerosol optical depths is recorded.     

First retrieval of data regarding spatial distribution of Asian dust aerosol from the Geostationary Ocean Color Imager

Aerosol optical thickness (AOT) was retrieved from the Geostationary Ocean Color Imager (GOCI) on board the Communication, Ocean, and Meteorological Satellite (COMS) for the first time. AOT values were retrieved over the ocean at a spatial scale of 0.5 × 0.5 km² by using the look-up table (LUT)-based separation technique. The radiative transfer model (RTM) was used for different models of atmosphere-ocean environmental conditions, taking into account the realistic variability of scattering and absorption. Ocean surface properties affected by whitecaps and pigment content were also taken into account. The results show that the radiance observed by the GOCI amounts to only 5% of the radiation that penetrated the ocean and, consequently, 95% of the radiation is scattered in the atmosphere or reflected at the ocean surface in the visible wavelengths longer than 0.6 ìm. Within these wavelengths, radiance variations at the top of atmosphere (TOA) due to pigment variations are within 10%, while the radiance variation due to wind speed is considerably higher. For verification of GOCI-retrieved AOTs, comparison between GOCI and ground-based sunphotometer measurement at Gosan, Korea (126.10°E, 33.23°N)) showed good correlation (r = 0.99). The GOCI observations obtained by using the proposed technique showed promising results for the daily monitoring of atmospheric aerosol loading as well as being useful for environmental supervisory authorities.     

渤海气溶胶时空分布研究

利用2003—2008年在渤海所测的212组气溶胶数据,研究了气溶胶光学厚度(AOT)、浑浊度系数(β)和ngstrm指数α的时空分布规律,并初步探讨了气溶胶特征参数之间的关系。结果表明,在时间分布方面,渤海气溶胶光学厚度、浓度和粒径尺度在一天中的变化比较小,中午AOT较大,10点左右AOT较小。从6月份到9月份,AOT、β和α的范围和均值均呈下降趋势;3月份AOT、β和α均明显小于六、8、9月份的对应值。离岸25km之内的大部分地区,AOT随离岸距离的增大而减小;但25km以外,气溶胶变化没有规律。比较而言,气溶胶AOT和β变化比较一致。浑浊度系数(浓度因子)β比ngstrm指数(尺度因子)α对气溶胶光学厚度AOT的影响更明显,AOT和β的关系可采用一阶线性回归方程表示。     

Variability of trace gases in the atmospheric surface layer from observations in the city of Moscow

The results of continuous minute measurements of the surface concentrations of ozone, nitric oxide, nitrogen dioxide, carbon monoxide, and sulfur dioxide during the 2002–2004 period at the environmental station of the Oboukhov Institute of Atmospheric Physics, Russian Academy of Sciences (IAP), and the Faculty of Geography, Moscow State University (MSU), are discussed. It is shown that the conditions of Moscow’s southwestern region remote from large local pollution sources reflect the general regularities of the variability of trace gases in an urban atmosphere. This is manifested in the mean annual value of the ratio NO/NO₂ (a little less than 1), decreased daylight values of O₃, increased values of the rest of the trace gases as compared to the background region, and the presence of a secondary nocturnal maximum in the diurnal cycle of O₃. The features of the annual and diurnal cycles of the concentrations of the substances under analysis are discussed. In the diurnal cycle of the primary products of combustion (NO and CO), an excess of the morning maximum (over the evening one) is observed during both warm and transition periods and higher values of the night maximum (as compared to the daylight one) are noted for summer. The temperature stratification properties determined from the MSU long-term acoustic sounding data serve as a possible cause for both of the effects revealed. The annual cycle of the concentration of surface ozone is characterized by the highest values for spring and summer. The annual cycles of NO, NO₂, CO, and SO₂ do not demonstrate any obvious seasonal regularities. A significant seasonal variation of the ratio NO/NO₂, which is associated with the oxidizing properties of the urban atmosphere, is revealed. The record high concentrations of trace gases in the atmosphere over Moscow are given, and the meteorological conditions for their accumulation are discussed.     

Influence of atmospheric parameters on downward longwave radiation and features of its regime in Moscow

Measurement results of downward longwave radiation (DLR) in a wavelength range of 3.5?C50 ??m are considered which have been obtained with the use of a precision IR radiometer (Eppley pyrgeometer) of the PIR model at the Meteorological Observatory of Moscow State University in 2008?C2010. The influence of air temperature and atmospheric moisture content on the DLR values has been analyzed; correlations between DLR and the above parameters have been found. The effect of clouds on DLR has been estimated: DLR increases by about 30% in daytime and by 25% in nighttime under overcast low clouds. The annual average DLR in Moscow is 305 W/m², with a minimum in December?CMarch and a maximum in July?CAugust. Variations in DLR throughout a year can exceed 250 W/m². The daily average amplitude is 18?C33 W/m² in summer and 6?C13 W/m² in winter. An increase in DLR by about 40 W/m² is noted under conditions of haze from forest and peat-bog fires and an aerosol optical depth of about 4 at a wavelength of 500 nm.     

Chemical composition and microphysical characteristics of atmospheric aerosol over moscow and its vicinity in June 2009 and during the fire peak of 2010

The microphysical characteristics of aerosol were measured in the atmospheric surface layer simultaneously over the center of Moscow and its vicinity (Zvenigorod Scientific Station, Obukhov Institute of Atmospheric Physics, Russian Academy of Sciences) from June 15 to June 30, 2009, in order to compare the mass concentrations, particle-size distribution functions, and elemental compositions of aerosol over the megapolis and the background zone. During the fire peak of 2010, on August 8, aerosol samples were taken in the center of Moscow and their chemical composition was determined. Comparing results obtained from the simultaneous measurements of the concentrations of aerosol and its elemental composition made it possible to determine their interdiurnal variability, which suggests that the features of time variations are of a regional character and they are determined mainly by the dynamics of the synoptical processes of air-mass exchange. The chemical composition of obtained samples was determined using the method of atomic absorption spectrometry. The measurement results obtained in June 2009 revealed an increase in the content of anthropogenic elements in the atmosphere over Moscow when compared to their content in the atmosphere over the background zone. In Moscow, during the summer fires of 2010, the concentration of sulfur exceeded its concentration in June 2009 by an order of magnitude, and the concentrations of Na, Mg, Al, Si, K, Ca, and Fe increased several times. The mean mass concentration of aerosol amounted to 917 μg/m³ in August 2010 and 50–70 μg/m³ in June 2009.     

The effect of meteorology on air pollution in Moscow during the summer episodes of 2010

Relations between short-term variations in the concentrations of aerosol (PM₁₀) and carbon monoxide (CO) and meteorological characteristics are considered for the episodes of severe atmospheric pollution in the region of Moscow in the summer of 2010. The assumption is made and substantiated that the observed (in late June) severe aerosol pollution of the atmosphere over Moscow was caused by air masses arrived from soil-drought regions of southern Russia. In August, during the episodes of advection of forest-fire products, the maximum surface concentrations of pollutants were observed in Moscow mainly at 11:00–12:00 under a convective burst into the atmospheric boundary layer and at night in the presence of local wind-velocity maxima or low-level jet streams within the inversion layer. On the basis of results from an analysis of these air-pollution episodes before and after fires, it is concluded that the shearing instability of wind velocity favors the surface-air purification under ordinary conditions and an increase in the surface concentrations of pollutants during their advection (long-range transport, natural-fire plumes, etc.). It is shown that the pollution of the air basin over the megapolis with biomass-combustion products in 2010 led to an increase in the thermal stability of the atmospheric surface layer and in the duration of radiation inversions, as well as to an attenuation of the processes of purification in the urban heat island.     

Modeling radiative forcing by background aerosol on the basis of measurement data

The solar radiation flux incident on the land surface and aerosol radiative forcing are calculated from measurements carried out under clear skies during the summers of 2004 and 2005 at the Zvenigorod Scientific Station (ZSS) of the A.M. Obukhov Institute of Atmospheric Physics, Russian Academy of Sciences. In these calculations, the following five models of aerosol optical parameters are used: a standard model of continental aerosol, a semiempirical model based on measurement data, and three models obtained from calculations on the basis of the Mie scattering theory for the mean size distribution of aerosol particles (which is retrieved from aureole measurements). A study of the sensitivity of the flux and forcing to the choice of aerosol model has shown that the relative error related to the model choice is not large (<5%) for the incident radiation flux and reaches 120% for aerosol forcing at the atmospheric upper boundary. The aerosol radiative forcing at the atmospheric upper boundary is also estimated and, according to our calculations, varies from −15 to −2 W/m². The use (in calculations) of the values of the albedo of single-scattering and the factor of scattering-indicatrix asymmetry at a wavelength of 550 nm, which were obtained for each of the observation periods, has made it possible to significantly refine the value of aerosol radiative forcing (compared to that calculated for the means of these parameters over all the periods). An even more accurate determination of aerosol radiative forcing is possible only when data on the size-distribution of aerosol particles and their chemical composition for a certain situation under analysis are available. As a result of this study, two models of the optical parameters of background aerosol have been proposed for use in radiation calculations: a semiempirical model and a mean model obtained from the calculations based on the theory of scattering. Both models use the values of the albedo of single scattering and the factor of asymmetry (at a wavelength of 550 nm) retrieved from the measurements for each of the observation periods.     

山东气溶胶光学厚度时空分布及其与地面大气污染物质量浓度的相关性分析

基于卫星的气溶胶光学厚度(aerosol optical thickness,AOT)是研究大气污染程度及时空变化的重要参考,由于大气污染物排放特征、地理和气候背景不同,不同区域AOT的时空分布及其与地面大气污染物质量浓度的相关性存在一定的差异.选取了2017年7月-2020年7月山东89个国家环境空气质量监测站数据、...     

Current changes of the lower troposphere temperature in the Moscow region

Modern climatic changes for 1991–2013 in the lower 4-km layer of the atmosphere in the Moscow region are discussed based on long-term measurements using radiosondes in Dolgoprudny near Moscow and sensors installed on a high mast in Obninsk and on a television tower in Ostankino in Moscow. It is shown that at the end of the 20th century and the beginning of the 21st century the mean-annual air temperature at all heights from 2 to 4000 m increased by an average of 0.1°C per year. In recent years, the warming has slowed. Over the last two decades, long-term changes were multidirectional, depending on the season: warming in May–December, cooling in January–February, and no statistically significant changes in March and April. The probable reason for the temperature decrease in the middle of the cold period is changes in the large-scale atmospheric circulation during recent years (the negative phase of the North Atlantic Oscillation in early 2010s). In recent years, the Moscow region climate continentality has increased because of warming in summer and cooling in winter, despite the secular decreasing trend, which was noted before. Mean daily and annual warming rates in Dolgoprudny were higher than in Obninsk. The probable reason is the northward construction expansion and the strengthening of the Moscow heat island. The highest annual temperature amplitude is recorded at heights of 200–300 m.     

SeaWiFS遥感资料分析中国海域气溶胶光学厚度的季节变化和分布特征

通过与地基气溶胶观测数据的对比,确认了SeaWiFS气溶胶光学厚度产品用于研究中国海域气溶胶分布和变化特征的有效性。在此基础上,分析了中国海域气溶胶光学厚度的季节变化和地理分布特征。研究结果表明,中国东部海域平均气溶胶光学厚度存在以中纬度为中心的纬向分布;受沙尘、季风气候的影响,中国海域气溶胶光学厚度存在季节变化,不同海区有不同的季节变化和分布特征。渤海、黄海及东海有类似的变化特征,春季都受到沙尘气溶胶的影响,使中国东部海域气溶胶光学厚度普遍高于0.160,且对东海的影响最大;夏、秋季逐渐减小,冬季有所回升。南海气溶胶光学厚度均值为0.150,随时间变化不明显,但地理分布变化显著;受季风气候的影响,从春季到冬季,气溶胶光学厚度高值中心从高纬海域向低纬海域转移,范围也逐渐扩大。冬季南海大部分海域气溶胶光学厚度都达到0.160以上,是整个中国海域冬季气溶胶光学厚度最大的海区。气溶胶光学厚度的季节变化和地理分布特征为研究中国海区域气候变化和海洋生态提供了依据。     

Some features of seasonal variations in the methane content in the atmosphere over northern Eurasia

The climatic trends and basic features of seasonal variations in and anomalies of the concentration of methane in the atmospheric surface layer are considered on the basis of the current notion of the processes that form the global field of methane in the Earth’s atmosphere. Measurement data on the surface concentration of methane, which were obtained in Moscow and at a number of observation stations in Europe and Siberia in the fall-winter period of the first decade of the 21st century, have been analyzed. It is shown that, in the anomalously warm winter months of 2006/2007, the concentration of methane in the atmosphere over Moscow was higher than in the previous and following years. The excess concentration of methane amounted to 10% in March 2007, which is higher than the mean range of seasonal variations in the monthly mean concentration of surface methane. A comparison between the data obtained in Moscow and the data obtained at three stations of the NOAA global monitoring network and at three Russian Hydrometeorological Research Center stations shows the high spatial variability of the methane concentration in the atmosphere over northern Eurasia. The complex and multifactor processes that determine the content of methane in the atmospheric surface layer result in noticeable spatial and interannual deviations from the mean seasonal cycle of its concentration, which can manifest themselves on both regional and global scales. It is possible that the resumed increase in the content of methane in the Earth’s atmosphere recorded in 2007 (after its relative stabilization in the early 2000s) at the global monitoring network was also caused, to some extent, by the anomalously warm winter of 2006–2007 in northern Europe and western Siberia.     

黄海、东海上空春季气溶胶光学特性观测分析

2003年春季国家卫星海洋应用中心等几家单位在黄海和东海海区进行了为期40 d的二类水体信息测量试验,试验中使用手持太阳辐射计对海区上空大气光学特性进行了观测,并获得了大量晴空天气条件下的大气光学数据.利用本次试验获取的测量数据得到了黄海、东海海区春季的大气气溶胶光学特性,其中包括气溶胶光学厚度和气溶胶粒子谱分布.采用Langley方法对测量得到的太阳直射辐射量进行处理得到了海区上空气溶胶光学厚度,利用得到的气溶胶光学厚度来反演气溶胶粒子谱分布.反演结果表明无云情况下黄海、东海上空的气溶胶光学厚度在0.2~0.4左右,且气溶胶粒子谱分布的变化趋势也很接近;海区上空霾层较厚时测量得到的气溶胶光学厚度明显增大,最大接近0.8;气溶胶粒子谱分布的变化趋势发生了明显的变化.     

Influence of a high aerosol concentration on the thermal structure of the atmospheric boundary layer

The influence of increased concentrations of submicron aerosol produced by forest fires on thermal characteristics of the atmospheric boundary layer (ABL) in Moscow and its remote vicinity (the town of Zvenigorod) are analyzed on the basis of regular remote measurements of the ABL temperature profile with the use of MTP-5 profilers. In the air basin of a large city, additional aerosol and accompanying pollutants in early morning hours (at small heights of the Sun) most frequently did not cause substantial changes in the ABL thermal structure. In the locality remote from the megalopolis (Zvenigorod), the atmospheric pollution by aerosol led to noticeable changes in the ABL thermal characteristics. Especially strong changes were observed in the daytime, during the maximum supply of solar radiation. In morning hours, the heating rate of the lower 100-m layer of the polluted air exceeded the heating rate of a relatively pure air by more than one degree. In higher layers, the differences between the rates of temperature changes in a relatively clean atmosphere and in an atmosphere polluted by aerosol (in the suburb) were insignificant.