Water-vapor content in the atmosphere over European Russia during the summer 2010 fires

We study the water vapor (WV) content over European Russia (ER) during the period of forest and peatbog fires in July–August 2010 using total column water vapor observations from MODIS instruments (both Aqua and Terra platforms) as well as aerological data and NCEP/NCAR reanalysis. It is found that the spatial distribution of total column water vapor (TCWV) over ER in this period was anomalous, with the WV excess in the north of the territory and its deficit in the south of ER. The relationship between WV variations, atmospheric dynamics and the fire situation is analyzed. Along with the processes of the WV advection and evaporation we evaluate the contribution of pyrogenic emission of WV in spatial-temporal evolution of WV over ER during wildfires. The changes of water vapor at different heights in the troposphere and stratosphere are investigated. The results of a comparative analysis of WV contents during the periods of summertime atmospheric blockings in 1972 and 2010 are also presented. The near-infrared total-column precipitable water MODIS products (L3) are validated by upper-air radiosonde data.     

Spatial variations in the air turbidity factor above the European part of Russia under conditions of abnormal summer of 2010

We analyze spatial variations in the air turbidity factor T obtained from the interpolation of ground-based solar radiometry data within the territory (40°–70° N, 30°–60° E) in summer 2010. The abnormal heat and connected fires of summer 2010 changed the mean values of air turbidity and the character of its spatial variations. As a result, a “tongue” of increased values of the turbidity factor was observed in the south-to-north direction in July, and a closed region of anomalous high T was formed over the territory (48°–55° N, 37°–42° E) to the south of Moscow and partly covered the Moscow region in August. Such a pattern resulted from blockage preventing from ingress of air masses from the west and producing closed air circulation over the European Part of Russia (EPR).     

Investigation of dynamic processes in the period of formation and development of the blocking anticyclone over European Russia in summer 2010

The blocking anticyclone (BA) observed in the summer of 2010 over the European part of Russia led to enormous economical damage, substantially increased the mortality of the population, and had serious negative consequences for human health. Dynamic processes in the troposphere, i.e., wave trains, which could contribute to anticyclone formation and sustenance, are investigated. In order to study these wave trains, three-dimensional Plumb vectors have been calculated and analyzed. It is shown that, in June 2010, three wave trains propagated eastward in the troposphere over the Atlantics. The first two wave trains, having reached Europe, continued to propagate in eastern and southeastern directions. Only the third wave train, upon reaching Europe, continued to propagate toward the northeast and, on June 17–19, entered northwestern Russia. The anticyclone, which started to form on June 18 precisely in this region, subsequently developed into a stable BA observed over European Russia up to mid-August. The propagation direction of the wave trains could change due to the formation of a double structure of the zonal flow in the troposphere. The wave trains are revealed in the middle of June in regions with increased cloudiness over the northwestern part of the Atlantic Ocean and over the northwestern and northern parts of the central United States. Eastwardpropagating wave trains, which could contribute to the intensification of the corresponding BAs that brought anomalously high temperatures to European Russia, were also revealed in July and August of 2010 and 1972. The calculated 10-day backward trajectories are analyzed to determine the character of motions of air particles that penetrated into the anticyclone over the region of Moscow during the 2010 summer in the period of its development.     

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 optical thickness and the total carbon monoxide content over the European Russia territory in the 2010 summer period of mass fires: Interrelation between the variation in pollutants and meteorological parameters

The spatial and temporal variabilities of the aerosol optical thickness (AOT) and the total carbon monoxide content (CO) in the period of development and weakening of mass forest and peatbog fires in the European Russia territory (ERT) in the summer of 2010 are investigated from data of the AOT and CO satellite observations. The intensities of aerosol and CO emissions in the period of mass fires and the ratio of the emission factors of aerosol particles and CO are estimated on the basis of calculations of the smoke and CO masses over the ERT. The interrelation between variations in the levels of the regional pollution by combustion products and the variability of meteorological parameters is investigated. Various aspects of the manifestation of radiation effects of aerosols are discussed. The synchronization of weekly signals of the AOT, CO, and meteorological parameters in the period of mass fires is noted.     

Specific features of the 2010 summer heat formation in the European territory of Russia in the context of general climate changes and climate anomalies

Specific features of the extreme summer heat of 2010 in the European part of Russia are analyzed against the background of global and regional climate changes taking into account antropogenic influences and natural anomalies related, in particular, to the El Niño/La Niña phenomena. The tendencies of the characteristics of the activity of blocking anticyclones (blockings) responsible for the formation of drought regimes and the increase in the fire hazard at midlatitudes are estimated in connection with climate changes.     

Large-Scale Smoke Haze over the European Part of Russia and Belorus in July 2016

Izvestiya, Atmospheric and Oceanic Physics - The smoke haze over the European part of Russia (EPR) and Belorus in July 2016 has been studied with the use of aerosol optical thickness (AOT) data...     

Variations of the aerosol concentration and chemical composition over the arid steppe zone of Southern Russia in summer

Variations in the surface aerosol over the arid steppe zone of Southern Russia have been measured. The parameters of atmospheric aerosol (mass concentration, both dispersed and elemental compositions) and meteorological parameters were measured in Tsimlaynsk raion (Rostov oblast). The chemical composition of aerosol particles in the atmospheric surface layer has been determined, and the coefficients of enrichment of elements with respect to clarkes in the Earth’s crust have been calculated. It is shown that, in summer, arid aerosols are transported from both alkaline and sandy soils of Kalmykia to the air basin over the observation zone. Aerosol particles in the surface air layer over this region have been found to contain the products of combustion of oil, coal, and ethylized fuel. These combustion products make a small contribution to the total mass concentration of atmospheric aerosol; however, they are most hazardous to the health of people because of their sizes and heavy-metal contents. A high concentration of submicron sulfur-containing aerosol particles of chemocondensation nature has been recorded. Sources of aerosol of both natural and anthropogenic origins in southern Russia are discussed.     

Gaseous admixtures in the atmosphere over Moscow during the 2010 summer

In the summer of 2010, the Moscow megacity during two months was within the zone of action of a blocking anticyclone. The accumulation of pollutants in a closed air mass sharply changed the surface air quality. At the end of July-the first half of August, the extreme situation became even more complicated, because the air from regions of turf and grass fires came into Moscow. According to measurement data of the Moscow IAP RAS station, the maximal hourly mean concentrations of chemically active gases NO, NO₂, CO, O₃, and SO₂ were 175.9, 217.4, 15.8, 134.2, and 15.2 ppb, respectively. For NO₂ and CO, these values are largest over the entire decadal period of observations at the station and many times exceed the MPC level (see table). The concentrations of greenhouse gases CO₂, CH₄, and nonmethane hydrocarbons also sharply increased. Analysis of the variability of gas contents in the surface air and in the atmospheric boundary layer showed a close relation between extreme changes in the atmospheric composition and its vertical stratification.     

Connections of Precipitable Water Vapor and Total Ozone Anomalies over European Russia with the North Atlantic Oscillation: Specific Features of Summer 2010

Based on the measurements of precipitable water vapor (PWV) and total column ozone (TCO) from the MODIS satellite instruments (Aqua/Terra platforms), the connections between the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) and the anomalies in PWV and TCO over European Russia (ER) in summer 2010 are analyzed. It is found that the PWV (TCO) anomalies over the northern ER in summer 2010 positively (negatively) correlated with the NAO, and the local correlations reached 0.68 (–0.55). The physical mechanisms of the correlations are discussed. A comparative analysis of the relationships between the NAO and the regional PWV and TCO anomalies over ER during the summer seasons of 2000–2015 is carried out.     

Estimation of probable contribution of global warming to the genesis of abnormally hot summers in the European part of Russia

Temperature records for the Russian territory in summer 2010 are presented. The potential role that the current global warming plays in the formation of abnormally hot summers in the European part of Russia is discussed. Although the main reason for the extreme heat wave in 2010 was a quasi-stationary anticyclone blocking westerlies, global warming could also contribute to the observed temperature extremums adversely affecting the biota.     

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.     

Effect of nutrient amendments on the summer phytoplankton dynamics on the Bering Sea shelf under experimental conditions

Experiments on nutrient and iron amendments were performed with phytoplankton on the eastern shelf of the Bering Sea in June 2000 and August 2001. The nutrient amendments (NO₃, NH₄, SiO₄, NO₃ + SiO₄, NH₄ + SiO₄, and Fe + NO₃) increasing their initial concentrations by ～20 μM were put into test bottles 10 l in volume each. With iron addition (Fe or Fe + NO₃), its concentration increased by 5 nM. The experiments performed showed that the main nutrient that limited the phytoplankton development was nitrogen. Regardless of the composition of the dominant algae in the background community, the amendments caused massive development of diatoms. The intense growth was characteristic for diatoms of both the spring and spring-summer assemblages. At high abundances of Phaeocystis pouchetii or of the coccolithophore Emiliania huxleyi in the natural water, nitrogen-containing amendments caused an intense growth of these species, along with the massive development of diatoms. In the case of the diatom prevalence in the initial sample, the intensities of the utilization of NO₃ and NH₄ in combination with SiO₄ in the course of the experiment were 1.7 and 3 times as high as their intensities with no silicon amendments. Likewise, NO₃ + SiO₄ and NH₄ + SiO₄ mixed amendments caused an increase in the silicon assimilation by a factor of 4–5 as compared to pure silicon amendments. During one of the experimental series in which both diatoms and Phaeocystis pouchetii actively developed, virtually complete nitrogen utilization (90–99.8%) in 4–5 days was observed for both the NO₃ and NH₄. The addition of silicon and iron only caused no significant growth of the phytoplankton abundance. It was assumed that the destruction of the seasonal thermocline and the supply of nutrients into the surface layer as a result of strong wind forcing might cause a phytoplankton bloom in the summer time and result in the much pronounced qualitative and quantitative spatial heterogeneity of the phytoplankton characteristic of the eastern shelf of the Bering Sea.     

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.     

Hydrographic observations in the Irish Sea during the unusually hot summer of 1975

Data on the surface and depth distributions of salinity, temperature and dissolved inorganic nutrients were obtained during a survey of the Irish Sea in late August and early September, 1975. The observations followed one of the warmest summers of the century. Nutrient concentrations in the surface waters were low and their distributions patchy. Significant concentrations of dissolved inorganic nitrogen were present only in deep waters overlaid by strong density gradients.Surface temperature distributions showed large and widespread positive anomalies compared with the seasonal norm. The greatest anomalies occurred in regions of intense stratification. Despite shallow depths and strong tidal streams, the above-average seasonal heat input induced significant stratification in waters off the west coast of the British Isles.     

Microbial communities in the coastal surface waters of Zolotoi Rog Bay under the conditions of strong anthropogenic pollution

Using the example of Zolotoi Rog Bay, which is strongly affected by anthropogenic pollution, it was shown that organic pollution essentially influences the structure of the microbial community, causing changes not only in the quantitative but also in the qualitative parameters such as the morphology, the type of metabolism, and the physiological activity of the microorganisms. We noted a zonation in the development and distribution of bacterioplankton, including the heterotrophic microflora in Zolotoi Rog Bay, which is caused by the high density of bacteria at the sites of organic matter supply and their low density in other areas examined, which are less influenced by the sewage. Special ecotrophic groups of microorganisms that are capable of utilizing the organic substratum entering the environment due to the anthropogenic impact become dominating in the heterotrophic microbial biocoenoses.     

Observations of the Atmospheric Composition over Russia: TROICA Experiments

Izvestiya, Atmospheric and Oceanic Physics - Results obtained in the course of unique observations (as part of the TROICA project) of the composition and state of the atmosphere over Russia have...     

Studying of biogenic volatile organic compounds in the atmosphere over Russia

The volatile organic compounds (VOCs) emitted from vegetation into the atmosphere play an important role in atmospheric chemistry and participate in the formation and growth of aerosol particles that affect the atmospheric radiation balance and the earth’s climate. A number of VOCs, such as isoprene, monoterpene, methylvinylketone, and methacrolein, whose surface concentrations were measured between Moscow and Vladivostok in the course of the Transcontinental Observations into the Chemistry of the Atmosphere (TROICA-12) experiment in July–August 2008, are considered. For the first time in Russia, a PTR-MS proton mass-spectrometer was used to measure the VOC concentrations. The continuous series of VOC concentrations in the atmosphere over the Trans-Siberian Railway were obtained, and the characteristic features of their variations were determined. The spatial distribution of the concentrations of biogenic VOC was compared with a map of Russia’s forests. It was found that the maximum concentrations of isoprene between Moscow and Vladivostok correspond to the zones of broad-leaved forests in the Far East and Primorskii Krai, and the maximum concentrations of monoterpene correspond to coniferous forests in Siberia. The obvious correlation between the concentrations of isoprene and the total concentration of methylvinylketone and methacrolein was revealed.     

Water properties and flow over the deep Bering Sea basin, summer 1991

Observational data from a joint U.S.-Russian cruise over the deep Bering Sea basin in August 1991 are analysed and discussed. The low-salinity surface water and warm subsurface water associated with the Alaskan Stream were not present in the Bering Sea. The surface geostrophic flow indicated a weak northward flow of mixed (relatively cold) water through western Near Strait. Some of this water eventually flowed into the Kamchatka Current, and the rest flowed southward through Amchitka Pass. Thus there was lack of a strong Alaskan tream inflow through Near Strait, plus a weak Kamchatka Current.