Abstract
In order to better understand the behavior of particulate pollution and atmospheric dynamics in New York City, it is of great importance to analyze the spatial distribution of aerosols. A scanning lidar system allows for horizontal range-resolved observations of aerosol backscatter with high space and time resolution. A challenge to analyzing the lidar returns is to disentangle extinction over the range of the observations to retrieve the backscatter coefficient with distance. This work presents horizontal measurements taken with a scanning eye-safe Micro Pulse Lidar in New York City. The measurements are analyzed using the Slope Method to get an estimate of the range-resolved aerosol backscatter coefficient. The results are presented as backscatter coefficient maps that display the aerosol spatial distribution within the field of view of the scanning pattern deployed. These observations clearly resolve aerosol dynamics and emission sources within the urban areas.
Highlights
Particulate pollution is a great concern in densely populated urban areas, such as New York City, as studies have shown that high exposure to fine particulate matter can be associated with adverse health effects on human respiratory and cardiovascular systems [1,2]
Aerosol spatial distribution maps have been derived by applying the slope method to horizontal measurements taken with an eye-safe scanning micro-pulse lidars (MPL)
Two case studies are shown looking at different regions within New York City
Summary
Particulate pollution is a great concern in densely populated urban areas, such as New York City, as studies have shown that high exposure to fine particulate matter (particulates with a diameter of less than 2.5 μm, known as PM2.5) can be associated with adverse health effects on human respiratory and cardiovascular systems [1,2]. Scanning lidars are required to perform rapid scans with moderate range, which can be achieved with high pulse-energy sources that allow measurements with reduced averaging time. These are usually not eye-safe and must be operated as established by the strict guidelines set forth by the US Federal Aviation Administration, and American National Standards Institute (ANSI) guidelines for Safe Use of Lasers Outdoors [10]. Micro-pulse lidars (MPL) are simple, low cost and more importantly, meet the necessary eye-safety requirements for scanning. MPLs are used in NASA’s Micro-Pulse Lidar Network (MPLNET), which continuously measures boundary layer heights as well as aerosol and cloud vertical structure from multiple sites around the globe [12]
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