Measuring Regional Atmospheric CO2 Concentrations in the Lower Troposphere with a Non-Dispersive Infrared Analyzer Mounted on a UAV, Ogata Village, Akita, Japan

Takashi Chiba,Makoto Inoue,Yumi Haga,Isamu Morino,Takeshi Nagayoshi,Osamu Kiguchi,Hirokazu Madokoro

doi:10.3390/atmos10090487

Takashi Chiba, Makoto Inoue + Show 5 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.3390/atmos10090487

Copy DOI

Abstract

We have developed a simple measuring system prototype that uses an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) and a non-dispersive infrared (NDIR) analyzer to detect regional carbon dioxide (CO2) concentrations and obtain vertical CO2 distributions. Here, we report CO2 measurement results for the lower troposphere above Ogata Village, Akita Prefecture, Japan (about 40° N, 140° E, approximately −1 m amsl), obtained with this UAV system. The actual flight observations were conducted at 500, 400, 300, 200, 100, and 10 m above the ground, at least once a month during the daytime from February 2018 to February 2019. The raw CO2 values from the NDIR were calibrated by two different CO2 standard gases and high-purity nitrogen (N2) gas (as a CO2 zero gas; 0 ppm). During the observation period, the maximum CO2 concentration was measured in February 2019 and the minimum in August 2018. In all seasons, CO2 concentrations became higher as the flight altitude was increased. The monthly pattern of observed CO2 changes is similar to that generally observed in the Northern Hemisphere as well as to surface CO2 changes simulated by an atmospheric transport model of the Japan Meteorological Agency. It is highly probable that these changes reflect the vegetation distribution around the study area.

Highlights

Increases in greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide (CO2 ) in the atmosphere have contributed to rising global air temperatures in recent years
To and efficiently measure the regional CO2 concentrations in the atmosphere, we developed a simple measuring system prototype that uses a unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) and an non-dispersive infrared (NDIR), and we applied this system to obtain the CO2 concentrations at 500, 400, 300, 200, 100, and 10 m above the ground in Ogata Village, Akita Prefecture, Japan, from February 2018 to February 2019
Comparison with CO2 simulation results by the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) showed that the system made it possible to conveniently determine vertical CO2 concentration profiles and seasonal changes in CO2 concentrations

Summary

Introduction

Increases in greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide (CO2 ) in the atmosphere have contributed to rising global air temperatures in recent years. Before the Industrial Revolution, the CO2 concentration in Earth’s atmosphere was approximately 280 ppm, and it has been gradually but steadily increasing since [1,2]. The CO2 concentration has increased by about 1–2 ppm per year since the 1950s; the global annual mean CO2 concentration exceeded 400 ppm in 2015 [3]. Accurate estimation of the carbon balance between ecosystem absorption and emission from ground surfaces (e.g., green carbon) and clarification of the relationship between atmospheric concentrations and topographic features and land use are necessary [4,5]. Global CO2 observations using satellite remote sensing have been conducted with the Infrared Atmospheric Sounding Interferometer (IASI) [6], Atmosphere 2019, 10, 487; doi:10.3390/atmos10090487 www.mdpi.com/journal/atmosphere

Methods

Results

Conclusion