Search results for "Saharan dust"
showing 10 items of 12 documents
ATR–FTIR Spectral Analysis and Soluble Components of PM10 And PM2.5 Particulate Matter over the Urban Area of Palermo (Italy) during Normal Days and …
2019
Several epidemiological studies have shown a close relationship between the mass of particulate matter (PM) and its effects on human health. This study reports the identification of inorganic and organic components by attenuated total reflectance-Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (ATR-FTIR) analysis in PM10 and PM2.5 filters collected from three air quality monitoring stations in the city of Palermo (Sicily, Italy) during non-Saharan dust events and Saharan events. It also provides information on the abundance and types of water-soluble species. ATR-FTIR analysis identified sulfate, ammonium, nitrate, and carbonate matter characterized by vibrational frequencies at 603, 615, 670, and …
Aerosol columnar properties retrieved from CIMEL radiometers during VELETA 2002
2008
During the 2002 summer, the VELETA 2002 field campaign has been carried out at the Sierra Nevada Massif, close to Granada in South-Eastern Spain. During the campaign, CIMEL CE-318 robotic radiometer has been one of the key instruments in the characterization of the atmospheric aerosol columnar properties. This kind of radiometers have been operated at Motril, a coastal location at sea level, Pitres (1200 m a.s.l.), located in the South slope of Sierra Nevada Massif, Las Sabinas (2200m a.s.l.), located on the north slope of the mountain range, and Armilla (680m a.s.l.), located in the valley. The principal feature of the locations is that they provide a strong altitudinal gradient. This work…
EARLINET observations of the 14-22-may long-range dust transport event during SAMUM 2006: validation of results from dust transport modelling
2009
We observed a long-range transport event of mineral dust from North Africa to South Europe during the Saharan Mineral Dust Experiment (SAMUM) 2006. Geometrical and optical properties of that dust plume were determined with Sun photometer of the Aerosol Robotic Network (AERONET) and Raman lidar near the North African source region, and with Sun photometers of AERONET and lidars of the European Aerosol Research Lidar Network (EARLINET) in the far field in Europe. Extinction-to-backscatter ratios of the dust plume over Morocco and Southern Europe do not differ. Ångstr¨om exponents increase with distance from Morocco. We simulated the transport, and geometrical and optical properties of the dus…
Depolarization�ratio profiling at several wavelengths in pure Saharan dust during SAMUM 2006
2009
Vertical profiles of the linear particle depolarization ratio of pure dust clouds were measured during the Saharan Mineral Dust Experiment (SAMUM) at Ouarzazate, Morocco (30.9°N, –6.9°E), close to source regions in May–June 2006, with four lidar systems at four wavelengths (355, 532, 710 and 1064 nm). The intercomparison of the lidar systems is accompanied by a discussion of the different calibration methods, including a new, advanced method, and a detailed error analysis. Over the whole SAMUM periode pure dust layers show a mean linear particle depolarization ratio at 532 nm of 0.31, in the range between 0.27 and 0.35, with a mean Ångström exponent (AE, 440–870 nm) of 0.18 (range 0.04–0.34…
Regional Saharan dust modelling during the SAMUM 2006 campaign
2011
The regional dust model system LM-MUSCAT-DES was developed in the framework of the SAMUM project. Using the unique comprehensive data set of near-source dust properties during the 2006 SAMUM field campaign, the performance of the model system is evaluated for two time periods in May and June 2006. Dust optical thicknesses, number size distributions and the position of the maximum dust extinction in the vertical profiles agree well with the observations. However, the spatio-temporal evolution of the dust plumes is not always reproduced due to inaccuracies in the dust source placement by the model. While simulated winds and dust distributions are well matched for dust events caused by dry syn…
Extreme, wintertime Saharan dust intrusion in the Iberian Peninsula: Lidar monitoring and evaluation of dust forecast models during the February 2017…
2019
The research leading to these results has received funding from the H2020 program from the European Union (grant agreement no. 654109, 778349) and also from the Spanish Ministry of Industry, Economy and Competitiviness (MINECO, ref. CGL2013-45410-R, CGL2016-81092-R, CGL2017-85344-R, TEC2015-63832-P), the Spanish Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities (ref. CGL2017-90884-REDT); the CommSensLab "Maria de Maeztu" Unity of Excellence (ref. MDM-2016-0600) financed by the Spanish Agencia Estatal de Investigación. Co-funding was also provided by the European Union through the European Regional Development Fund (ref. POCI-01-0145-FEDER-007690, ALT20-03-0145-FEDER-000004, ALT20-03-0145-FED…
Possible impacts of volcanic ash emissions of Mount Etna on the primary productivity in the oligotrophic Mediterranean Sea: Results from nutrient-rel…
2013
Atmospheric deposition of volcanic ash has recently been recognized as an important nutrient source into the surface ocean. Mount Etna (Italy), one of the world's most active volcanoes, is located in the oligotrophic Mediterranean Sea (MedSea). Despite the active volcanism on Mount Etna, the biogeochemical impacts of volcanic ash fallouts on the marine primary productivity (MPP) remain largely unknown. Here we present the results of seawater nutrient release experiments with volcanic ash samples from Mount Etna that have been collected during different eruptive episodes between 2001 and 2007. Our results show that volcanic ash from Mount Etna releases significant amounts of fixed-N (35-855 …
Vertical profiling of Saharan dust with Raman lidars and airborne HSRL in southern Morocco during SAMUM
2009
Three groundâÂ�Â�based Raman lidars and an airborne highâÂ�Â�spectralâÂ�Â�resolution lidar (HSRL) were operated during SAMUM 2006 in southern Morocco to measure height profiles of the volume extinction coefficient, the extinctionâÂ�Â�toâÂ�Â�backscatter ratio, and the depolarization ratio of dust particles in the Saharan dust layer at several wavelengths. Aerosol Robotic Network (AERONET) Sun photometer observations and radiosounding of meteorological parameters complemented the groundâÂ�Â�based activities at the SAMUM station of Ouarzazate. Four case studies are presented. Two case studies deal with the comparison of observations of the three groundâÂ�Â�based lidars during a heavy du…
Dust mobilization and transport in the northern Sahara during SAMUM 2006 – a meteorological overview
2009
The SAMUM field campaign in southern Morocco in May/June 2006 provides valuable data to study the emission, and the horizontal and vertical transports of mineral dust in the Northern Sahara. Radiosonde and lidar observations show differential advection of air masses with different characteristics during stable nighttime conditions and up to 5-km deep vertical mixing in the strongly convective boundary layer during the day. Lagrangian and synoptic analyses of selected dust periods point to a topographic channel from western Tunisia to central Algeria as a dust source region. Significant emission events are related to cold surges from the Mediterranean in association with eastward passing upp…
Do Saharan Dust Days Carry a Risk of Hospitalization From Respiratory Diseases for Citizens of the Canary Islands (Spain)?
2021
Background: Saharan dust meets the Canary Islands at the beginning of its westward path across the North Atlantic, exceeding the European daily levels for PM10; for this reason, their two provincial capital cities, constitute optimal sites where to evaluate the health effects of this natural event. Objectives: To assess the short-term association between Saharan Dust Days (SDDs) and respiratory morbidity in the two capital cities. Methods: We carried out a time-series analysis with daily emergency hospital admissions due to all respiratory system diseases, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and asthma between 2001 and 2005, assessing the independent effect of SDDs, defined accordi…