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    Relationships between submicrometer particulate air pollution and air mass history in Beijing, China, 2004–2006
    (München : European Geopyhsical Union, 2008) Wehner, B.; Birmili, W.; Ditas, F.; Wu, Z.; Hu, M.; Liu, X.; Mao, J.; Sugimoto, N.; Wiedensohler, A.
    The Chinese capital Beijing is one of the global megacities where the effects of rapid economic growth have led to complex air pollution problems that are not well understood. In this study, ambient particle number size distributions in Beijing between 2004 and 2006 are analysed as a function of regional meteorological transport. An essential result is that the particle size distribution in Beijing depends to large extent on the history of the synoptic scale air masses. A first approach based on manual back trajectory classification yielded differences in particulate matter mass concentration by a factor of two between four different air mass categories, including three main wind directions plus the case of stagnant air masses. A back trajectory cluster analysis refined these results, yielding a total of six trajectory clusters. Besides the large scale wind direction, the transportation speed of an air mass was found to play an essential role on the PM concentrations in Beijing. Slow-moving air masses were shown to be associated with an effective accumulation of surface-based anthropogenic emissions due to both, an increased residence time over densely populated land, and their higher degree of vertical stability. For the six back trajectory clusters, differences in PM1 mass concentrations by a factor of 3.5, in the mean air mass speed by a factor of 6, and in atmospheric visibility by a factor of 4 were found. The main conclusion is that the air quality in Beijing is not only degraded by anthropogenic aerosol sources from within the megacity, but also by sources across the entire Northwest China plain depending on the meteorological situation.
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    Instrumentation and Measurement Strategy for the NOAA SENEX Aircraft Campaign as Part of the Southeast Atmosphere Study 2013
    (Katlenburg-Lindau : Copernicus, 2016) Warneke, C.; Trainer, M.; de Gouw, J.A.; Parrish, D.D.; Fahey, D.W.; Ravishankara, A.R.; Middlebrook, A.M.; Brock, C.A.; Roberts, J.M.; Brown, S.S.; Neuman, J.A.; Lerner, B.M.; Lack, D.; Law, D.; Hübler, G.; Pollack, I.; Sjostedt, S.; Ryerson, T.B.; Gilman, J B; Liao, J.; Holloway, J.; Peischl, J.; Nowak, J.B.; Aikin, K.; Min, K.-E.; Washenfelder, R.A.; Graus, M.G.; Richardson, M.; Markovic, M.Z.; Wagner, N.L.; Welti, A.; Veres, P.R.; Edwards, P.; Schwarz, J.P.; Gordon, T.; Dube, W.P.; McKeen, S.; Brioude, J.; Ahmadov, R.; Bougiatioti, A.; Lin, J.J.; Nenes, A.; Wolfe, G.M.; Hanisco, T.F.; Lee, B.H.; Lopez-Hilfiker, F.D.; Thornton, J.A.; Keutsch, F.N.; Kaiser, J.; Mao, J.; Hatch, C.
    Natural emissions of ozone-and-aerosol-precursor gases such as isoprene and monoterpenes are high in the southeast of the US. In addition, anthropogenic emissions are significant in the Southeast US and summertime photochemistry is rapid. The NOAA-led SENEX (Southeast Nexus) aircraft campaign was one of the major components of the Southeast Atmosphere Study (SAS) and was focused on studying the interactions between biogenic and anthropogenic emissions to form secondary pollutants. During SENEX, the NOAA WP-3D aircraft conducted 20 research flights between 27 May and 10 July 2013 based out of Smyrna, TN. Here we describe the experimental approach, the science goals and early results of the NOAA SENEX campaign. The aircraft, its capabilities and standard measurements are described. The instrument payload is summarized including detection limits, accuracy, precision and time resolutions for all gas-and-aerosol phase instruments. The inter-comparisons of compounds measured with multiple instruments on the NOAA WP-3D are presented and were all within the stated uncertainties, except two of the three NO2 measurements. The SENEX flights included day- and nighttime flights in the Southeast as well as flights over areas with intense shale gas extraction (Marcellus, Fayetteville and Haynesville shale). We present one example flight on 16 June 2013, which was a daytime flight over the Atlanta region, where several crosswind transects of plumes from the city and nearby point sources, such as power plants, paper mills and landfills, were flown. The area around Atlanta has large biogenic isoprene emissions, which provided an excellent case for studying the interactions between biogenic and anthropogenic emissions. In this example flight, chemistry in and outside the Atlanta plumes was observed for several hours after emission. The analysis of this flight showcases the strategies implemented to answer some of the main SENEX science questions.