Лесные пожары как источник черного углерода в Арк­тике летом 2022 г.

Abstract

The assessment of aerosol pollution of the atmosphere in the high-latitude regions of the Arctic is among the most important environmental and climate problems. In the summer of 2022, due to abnormal temperatures and a lack of precipitation, the wildfire areas in the Western Siberia and European part of the Russian Federation reached record levels. At the polar aerosol station of the Moscow State University “Island Bely” (the Kara Sea), continuous aethalometric measurements of the short-lived climatic tracer namely black carbon are carried out. In August 2022, seven episodes of pollution were recorded, significantly exceeding the background typical for the Arctic summer. An analysis of the aerosol absorption capacity in a wide range of solar radiation revealed a significant effect of wildfire plumes on the aerosol composition of the Arctic atmosphere. The distribution of high concentrations of black carbon depending on the wind direction and speed pointed to the southern direction, Yamal Peninsula, as a source of high pollution. Regional distribution of black carbon sources calculated by the method of assigning air mass transfer trajectories to measured concentrations on Bely Island identifies the regions of the Western Siberia, the northern and central regions of the European part of Russia, the steppe regions of the East European Plain, and the Southern Urals. Wildfires from identified source regions impacted significantly the composition of the climatically active aerosol component of the atmosphere.