Abstract
Plume injection height influences plume transport characteristics, such as range and potential for dilution. We evaluated plume injection height from a predictive wildland fire smoke transport model over the contiguous United States (U.S.) from 2006 to 2008 using satellite-derived information, including plume top heights from the Multi-angle Imaging SpectroRadiometer (MISR) Plume Height Climatology Project and aerosol vertical profiles from the Cloud-Aerosol Lidar with Orthogonal Polarization (CALIOP). While significant geographic variability was found in the comparison between modeled plumes and satellite-detected plumes, modeled plume heights were lower overall. In the eastern U.S., satellite-detected and modeled plume heights were similar (median height 671 and 660 m respectively). Both satellite-derived and modeled plume injection heights were higher in the western U.S. (2345 and 1172 m, respectively). Comparisons of modeled plume injection height to satellite-derived plume height at the fire location (R2 = 0.1) were generally worse than comparisons done downwind of the fire (R2 = 0.22). This suggests that the exact injection height is not as important as placement of the plume in the correct transport layer for transport modeling.
Highlights
During the past decade, there has been an increase in both the number and intensity of wildfires in the western U.S and the wildfire season is expected to lengthen as temperatures warm [1]
This paper describes a study that compared plume height data derived from the Multi-angle Imaging SpectroRadiometer (MISR) onboard Terra and the Cloud-Aerosol Lidar with Orthogonal Polarization (CALIOP)
Plume top height data collected by MISR and CALIOP were compared to the modeled vertical mass distribution for 227 fires and their plumes that occurred from 2006 through 2008 in the contiguous U.S
Summary
There has been an increase in both the number and intensity of wildfires in the western U.S and the wildfire season is expected to lengthen as temperatures warm [1]. Plume injection height is important for modeling wildfire smoke plume transport, footprints, and surface concentrations. A wildfire smoke column may have several plume injection heights and this vertical distribution of plume mass is a key input for dispersion and air quality models. Model results, such as surface concentrations, are sensitive to the amount of plume mass injected at various heights because the associated winds and turbulence directly influence the plume footprint and dilution. Characterizing smoke plumes and their vertical structures is necessary to produce useful local-, regional-, and national-scale smoke predictions
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