Origin of atmospheric aerosols at the Pierre Auger Observatory using studies of air mass trajectories in South America
In: ISSN: 0169-8095 ; Atmospheric Research ; https://hal.in2p3.fr/in2p3-00998925 ; Atmospheric Research, 2014, 149, pp.120-135. ⟨10.1016/j.atmosres.2014.05.021⟩, 2014
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16 pages, 9 figures, accepted in Atmospheric Research journal ; see paper for full list of authors ; The Pierre Auger Observatory is making significant contributions towards understanding the nature and origin of ultra-high energy cosmic rays. One of its main challenges is the monitoring of the atmosphere, both in terms of its state variables and its optical properties. The aim of this work is to analyze aerosol optical depth $\tau_{\rm a}(z)$ values measured from 2004 to 2012 at the observatory, which is located in a remote and relatively unstudied area of the Pampa Amarilla, Argentina. The aerosol optical depth is in average quite low - annual mean $\tau_{\rm a}(3.5~{\rm km})\sim 0.04$ - and shows a seasonal trend with a winter minimum - $\tau_{\rm a}(3.5~{\rm km})\sim 0.03$ -, and a summer maximum - $\tau_{\rm a}(3.5~{\rm km})\sim 0.06$ -, and an unexpected increase from August to September - $\tau_{\rm a}(3.5~{\rm km})\sim 0.055$). We computed backward trajectories for the years 2005 to 2012 to interpret the air mass origin. Winter nights with low aerosol concentrations show air masses originating from the Pacific Ocean. Average concentrations are affected by continental sources (wind-blown dust and urban pollution), while the peak observed in September and October could be linked to biomass burning in the northern part of Argentina or air pollution coming from surrounding urban areas.
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Origin of atmospheric aerosols at the Pierre Auger Observatory using studies of air mass trajectories in South America
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Autor/in / Beteiligte Person: | Aab, A. ; Aublin, J. ; Billoir, P. ; Blanco, M. ; Caccianiga, L. ; Dallier, Richard ; Gaior, R. ; Garcia-Gamez, D. ; Ghia, P.L. ; Lautridou, Pascal ; Letessier-Selvon, A. ; Maller, J. ; Marin, V. ; Martin, Lilian ; Monnier Ragaigne, D. ; Munchmeyer, M. ; Revenu, Benoît ; Settimo, M. ; Torres Machado, D. ; Veberic, D. ; Avenier, M. ; Berat, C. ; Le Coz, S. ; Lebrun, D. ; Louedec, K. ; Montanet, F. ; Stutz, A. ; Tartare, M. ; Samarai, Imen Al ; Deligny, O. ; Lhenry-Yvon, I. ; Martraire, D. ; Salamida, F. ; Suomijärvi, T. ; Laboratoire de Physique Nucléaire et de Hautes Énergies (LPNHE) ; Université Pierre et Marie Curie - Paris 6 (UPMC)-Institut National de Physique Nucléaire et de Physique des Particules du CNRS (IN2P3)-Université Paris Diderot - Paris 7 (UPD7)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS) ; Laboratoire SUBATECH Nantes (SUBATECH) ; Mines Nantes (Mines Nantes)-Université de Nantes (UN)-Institut National de Physique Nucléaire et de Physique des Particules du CNRS (IN2P3)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS) ; Laboratoire de l'Accélérateur Linéaire (LAL) ; Université Paris-Sud - Paris 11 (UP11)-Institut National de Physique Nucléaire et de Physique des Particules du CNRS (IN2P3)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS) ; Laboratoire de Physique Subatomique et de Cosmologie (LPSC) ; Université Joseph Fourier - Grenoble 1 (UJF)-Institut polytechnique de Grenoble - Grenoble Institute of Technology (Grenoble INP )-Institut National de Physique Nucléaire et de Physique des Particules du CNRS (IN2P3)-Institut Polytechnique de Grenoble - Grenoble Institute of Technology-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS) ; Institut de Physique Nucléaire d'Orsay (IPNO) ; PIERRE, AUGER ; European Project: 246806,EC:FP7:PEOPLE,FP7-PEOPLE-2009-IRSES,EPLANET(2011) |
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Zeitschrift: | ISSN: 0169-8095 ; Atmospheric Research ; https://hal.in2p3.fr/in2p3-00998925 ; Atmospheric Research, 2014, 149, pp.120-135. ⟨10.1016/j.atmosres.2014.05.021⟩, 2014 |
Veröffentlichung: | HAL CCSD ; Elsevier, 2014 |
Medientyp: | academicJournal |
ISSN: | 0169-8095 |
DOI: | 10.1016/j.atmosres.2014.05.021 |
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