On the Parameterization of Aerosol Fluxes to the Great Lakes

Abstract

Simulations of the flux of pollutants into the Great Lakes from the atmosphere have usually been based on parameterization procedures that have tended to hide several apparently important phenomena. In the case of dry deposition, solubility, wind speed, and atmospheric stability appear to be critical factors. Including these factors in the special case of highly soluble gases results in predicted deposition velocities that range from an average of 1.5 cm s −1 in winter to about 0.5 cm s −1 in summer. A similar but probably somewhat weaker seasonal dependence should be expected in the cases of particles and partially-soluble gases. Wet deposition by other than convective rainfall is largely unstudied, however, the case of snowfall in particular should be expected to be considerably different; thus a seasonal variation of wet deposition might also be anticipated.