Meteorological Conditions During the 1986 Southern California Carbonaceous Species Methods Comparison Study

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to present a summary of meteorological conditions that occurred during the Carbonaceous Species Methods Comparison Study, conducted in the San Gabriel Valley of southern California, between August 11 and 20, 1986. This information is intended as introduction for subsequent articles which describe the results of the study. In southern California, August represents one of the most photochemically favored months of the year, with extremely limited mixing and strong incident solar radiation. During the 1986 methods study, strong temperature inversions and weak sea breezes created stagnant weather conditions. When compared with climatology, this period can be categorized as slightly more conducive to the accumulation of primary and photochemically derived secondary carbon aerosols than typically occurs this time of year.