Publication Date:
2013-08-13
Description:
The Himalayas is located at the southern edge of the Tibetan Plateau, and it acts as a natural barrier for the transport of atmospheric aerosols, e.g. from the polluted regions of South Asia to the main body of the Tibetan Plateau. In this study, we investigate the seasonal and diurnal variations of aerosol optical properties measured at the three Aerosol Robotic Network (AERONET) sites over the southern (Pokhara station and EVK2-CNR station in Nepal) and northern (Qomolangma (Mt. Everest) station for Atmospheric and Environmental Observation and Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences (QOMS_CAS) in Tibet, China) slopes of the Himalayas. While observations at QOMS_CAS and EVK2-CNR can generally be representative of a remote background atmosphere, Pokhara is an urban site with much higher aerosol load due to the influence of local anthropogenic activities. The annual mean of aerosol optical depth (AOD) during the investigated period was 0.06 at QOMS_CAS, 0.04 at EVK2-CNR and 0.51 at Pokhara, respectively. Seasonal variations of aerosols are profoundly affected by large scale atmospheric circulation. Vegetation fires, peaking during April in the Himalayan region and northern India, contribute to a growing fine mode AOD at 500 nm at the three stations. Dust transported to these sites results in an increase of coarse mode AOD during the monsoon season at the three sites. Meanwhile, coarse mode AOD at EVK2-CNR is higher than QOMS_CAS from July to September, indicating the Himalayas blocks the coarse particles carried by the southwest winds. The precipitation scavenging effect is obvious at Pokhara, which can significantly reduce the aerosol load during the monsoon season. Unlike the seasonal variations, diurnal variations are mainly influenced by meso-scale systems and local topography. In general, precipitation can lead to a decrease of the aerosol load and the average particle size at each station. AOD changes in a short time with the emission rate near the emission source at Pokhara, while does not at the other two stations in remote regions. AOD increases during daytime due to the valley winds at EVK2-CNR, while this diurnal variation of AOD is absent at the other two stations. The surface heating influences the local convection, which further controls the vertical aerosol exchange and the diffusion rate of pollutions to the surrounding areas. The Himalayas blocks most of the coarse particles across the mountains. Fine and coarse mode particles are mixed to make atmospheric composition more complex on the southern slope in spring, which leads to the greater inter-annual difference in diurnal cycles of Ångström exponent (AE) at EVK2-CNR than that at QOMS_CAS.
Electronic ISSN:
1680-7375
Topics:
Geosciences
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