Yukari Hara

Lidar network observations of tropospheric aerosols

Observations of tropospheric aerosols (mineral dust, air-pollution aerosols, etc.) and clouds are being conducted using a network of two-wavelength (1064nm, 532nm) polarization (532nm) lidars in the East Asian region. Currently, the lidars are operated continuously at 23 locations in Japan, Korea, China, Mongolia and Thailand. A real-time data processing system was developed for the network, and the data products such as the attenuated backscatter coefficients and the estimated extinction coefficients for non-spherical and spherical aerosols are generated automatically for online network stations. The data are used in the real-time monitoring of Asian dust as well as in the studies of regional air pollution and climate change.

Numerical study of the atmospheric input of anthropogenic total nitrate to the marginal seas in the western North Pacific region

[1] Atmospheric input of anthropogenic total nitrate to marginal seas in the western North Pacific region was simulated using a regional chemical transport model over East Asia based on year-to-year emission estimates during 1980-2003. Seasonal cycles and concentration levels of gas and aerosol were examined using observation data from various studies. The model simulated total nitrate deposition over the East China Sea (ECS) as 140 GgN/yr, which is the same order of the annual river discharge from the Yangtze River. The ratio of dry and wet deposition over ECS was obtained as approximately 6: 4. Total nitrate deposition over ECS corresponds to 3.2% (N base) of total NO x emission in China. The total deposition at present is three times larger than that of 1980, corresponding with increased NO x emissions.

Observation of the simultaneous transport of Asian mineral dust aerosols with anthropogenic pollutants using a POPC during a long‐lasting dust event in late spring 2014

We observed a long-lasting dust event from 25 May to 2 June 2014, using a polarization optical particle counter (POPC). The transport of dust plumes over East Asia was verified on the basis of observations of Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer, a lidar network, and surface synoptic observation stations. Mixing of dust and anthropogenic pollutants was investigated according to the variation in the depolarization ratio as a function of particle size. The nonsphericity of dust particles varied due to the impact of anthropogenic pollutants on their pathway. In the coarse mode, dust particles always had a clear nonspherical configuration, although large amounts of nitrate were also present. Supermicron particles are occasionally present in a spherical configuration, possibly due to the complex mixing of natural dust and anthropogenic particles. Statistically, ~64% of the total nitrate mass was deemed to be transported from outside of Japan due to a trapping effect in the dust plume.

Analysis of dust events in 2008 and 2009 using the lidar network, surface observations and the CFORS model

The Asian dust events in 2008 (May 24–June 4 in 2008) and in 2009 (March 12–25, October 13–26, and December 15–28 in 2009) were analyzed with the lidar network observations, surface observations in China, Korea, Japan, and Mongolia, and with the chemical transport model CFORS. Transport of Asian dust and mixing of dust with air pollution aerosols were studied. The event of May 24 to June 4 in 2008 was a significant event unusually late in the spring dust season. The dust event of March 12–25, 2009 was an interesting example of elevated dust layer, and transport of dust from the elevated dust layer to the ground by the boundary layer activity was observed with the lidars and surface observations in Japan. The concentration of air pollution aerosols was relatively high during the dust event, and the results suggest that vertical structure as well as transport path is important for the mixing of dust and air pollution aerosols. The dust events in October and December 2009 were examples of dust events in autumn and winter. The online mode CFORS reproduced the observation data generally well, except for the event of May 24 to June 4 in 2008. The results of the fourdimensional variational assimilation of the lidar network data reproduced the dust concentration in Korea and Japan reasonably in that event.

Lidar network observation of tropospheric aerosols

This paper presents the results of recent studies on tropospheric aerosols, including Asian dust and forest fire smoke using the NIES Lidar Network, CALIPSO/CALIOP and chemical transport models. The NIES Lidar Network is a network of two-wavelength (532nm, 1064nm) polarization (532nm) lidars in East Asia. Currently the lidars are continuously operated at about 20 locations in Japan, Korea, China, Mongolia, and Thailand, in cooperation with various research institutes and universities. The network is a part of the Asian Dust Network (ADNet), SKYNET, and the GAW Aerosol Lidar Observation Network (GALION). The data from most of the lidar stations are transferred to NIES in realtime and automatically processed to derive the attenuated backscattering coefficients at 532nm and 1064nm, the volume depolarization ratio at 532nm, and the estimated dust and spherical aerosol extinction coefficients at 532nm. The data from the network are used in various research activities on Asian dust, regional air pollution, and the effects of aerosols on climate and the environment. The data are also used for real-time monitoring (for early warning assessment) of Asian dust. The results of recent studies on long-range transport of Asian dust, optical characteristics of forest fire plumes, aerosol climatology, etc. will be described.

Asian dust transport during the last century recorded in Lake Suigetsu sediments

Asian dust has a significant impact on the natural environment. Its variability on multiple timescales modulates the ocean biogeochemistry and climate. We demonstrate that temporal changes in the deposition flux of Aeolian dust recorded in sediments from Lake Suigetsu, central Japan, during the last century exhibit a continuous decreasing trend and a decadal-scale decrease in 1952–1974. The former decreasing trend can be explained by a decrease in the dust storm frequency at source regions due to the warming of Mongolia in the twentieth century, suggesting future decrease of Asian dust transport with further warming in Mongolia. Decadal-scale decrease of Aeolian dust is explained by weaker westerlies in lower latitudes in central Japan, reflecting a weaker Aleutian Low during the corresponding period. Decadal-scale westerly change probably causes north–south shifts of the dominant dust transport path, which affects subarctic northern Pacific Ocean biogeochemistry by changing the micronutrient iron supply.

Retrieval of Aerosol Components Using Multi-Wavelength Mie-Raman Lidar and Comparison with Ground Aerosol Sampling

We verified an algorithm using multi-wavelength Mie-Raman lidar (MMRL) observations to retrieve four aerosol components (black carbon (BC), sea salt (SS), air pollution (AP), and mineral dust (DS)) with in-situ aerosol measurements, and determined the seasonal variation of aerosol components in Fukuoka, in the western region of Japan. PM2.5, PM10, and mass concentrations of BC and SS components are derived from in-situ measurements. MMRL provides the aerosol extinction coefficient (α), particle linear depolarization ratio (δ), backscatter coefficient (β), and lidar ratio (S) at 355 and 532 nm, and the attenuated backscatter coefficient (βatt) at 1064 nm. We retrieved vertical distributions of extinction coefficients at 532 nm for four aerosol components (BC, SS, AP, and DS) using 1α532 + 1β532 + 1βatt,1064 + 1δ532 data of MMRL. The retrieved extinction coefficients of the four aerosol components at 532 nm were converted to mass concentrations using the theoretical computed conversion factor assuming the prescribed size distribution, particle shape, and refractive index for each aerosol component. MMRL and in-situ measurements confirmed that seasonal variation of aerosol optical properties was affected by internal/external mixing of various aerosol components, in addition to hygroscopic growth of water-soluble aerosols. MMRL overestimates BC mass concentration compared to in-situ observation using the pure BC model. This overestimation was reduced drastically by introducing the internal mixture model of BC and water-soluble substances (Core-Gray Shell (CGS) model). This result suggests that considering the internal mixture of BC and water-soluble substances is essential for evaluating BC mass concentration in this area. Systematic overestimation of BC mass concentration was found during summer, even when we applied the CGS model. The observational facts based on in-situ and MMRL measurements suggested that misclassification of AP as CGS particles was due to underestimation of relative humidity (RH) by the numerical model in lidar analysis, as well as mismatching of the optical models of AP and CGS assumed in the retrieval with aerosol properties in the actual atmosphere. The time variation of lidar-derived SS was generally consistent with in-situ measurement; however, we found some overestimation of SS during dust events. The cause of this SS overestimation is mainly due to misclassifying internally mixing DS as SS, implying that to consider internal mixing between DS and water-soluble substances leads to better estimation. The time-variations of PM2.5 and PM10 generally showed good agreement with in-situ measurement although lidar-derived PM2.5 and PM10 overestimated in dust events.

Seasonal variabilities in chemical compounds and acidity of aerosol particles at urban site in the west Pacific

Mass concentrations of chemical compounds in both PM2.5 (particle aerodynamic diameter, Dp < 2.5 μm) and PM2.5-10 (2.5 < Dp < 10 μm), and acidity of aerosol particles were measured at an urban site in western Japan using a continuous dichotomous Aerosol Chemical Speciation Analyzer (ACSA-12) throughout 2014. Mass concentrations of both PM2.5 and sulfate had distinct seasonal variabilities with maxima in spring and winter, mostly due to long-range transport with the prevailing westerly wind. Mass concentration of nitrate in PM2.5 (fNO3) showed an obvious warm-season-low and cold-season-high pattern as a result of both gas-aerosol phase equilibrium processes under high temperature conditions as well as transport. Nitrate in PM2.5-10 (cNO3) increased during long-range transport of dust, implying the great importance of heterogeneous processes at the surface of coarse mode particles. In this study, Δ[H+] (derived from the difference in pH of extract liquid with/without sampling) was used to indicate the acidity of particles. We found that acidity of particles in PM2.5 (fΔH) was mostly positive with a maximum in August because of the large fraction of nitrate and sulfate. Acidity of particles in PM2.5-10 (cΔH) was negative in winter and spring due to presence of alkaline matter from crustal sources. This study highlights the great importance of anthropogenic pollutants on the acidity of particles in the western Pacific Ocean and further impact on the marine environment and climate.