Abstract
Lead content, enrichment factors, and isotopic composition (208Pb/206Pb and 207Pb/206Pb) measured in atmospheric particulate matter (PM10) samples collected for nine years at Ny-Ålesund (Svalbard islands, Norwegian Arctic) during spring and summer are presented and discussed. The possible source areas (PSA) for particulate inferred from Pb isotope ratio values were compared to cluster analysis of back-trajectories. Results show that anthropogenic Pb dominates over natural crustal Pb, with a recurring higher influence in spring, compared to summer. Crustal Pb accounted for 5–16% of the measured Pb concentration. Anthropogenic Pb was affected by (i) a Central Asian PSA with Pb isotope signature compatible with ores smelted in the Rudny Altai region, at the Russian and Kazakhstan border, which accounted for 85% of the anthropogenic Pb concentration, and (ii) a weaker North American PSA, contributing for the remaining 15%. Central Asian PSA exerted an influence on 71–86% of spring samples, without any significant interannual variation. On the contrary, 59–87% of summer samples were influenced by the North American PSA, with higher contributions during 2015 and 2018. Back-trajectory analysis agreed on the seasonal difference in PSA and highlighted a possible increased influence for North American air masses during summer 2010 and 2018, but not for summer 2015.
Highlights
It comprises 331 Pb concentration and Pb isotope ratio values spread over a period of 9 years, from 2010 to 2018
The estimated crustal contribution is relatively small, this finding refines the results reported for PM10 samples collected at Ny-Ålesund from 2010 to 2014, for which, as a result of the relatively small dataset analyzed, the contribution from natural sources appeared negligible [23]
Pb concentration and isotope ratio values measured in PM10 collected at Ny-Ålesund from 2010 to 2018 fall within well-defined ranges and show a recurring seasonal trend
Summary
The global climatic variations occurring in the last decades have a substantial impact on the polar areas, in the Arctic. Besides its function as a carrier of contaminants, atmospheric aerosol plays a significant role in the evolution of local and global climate, interacting with the solar radiation and influencing the balance of the energy fluxes in the atmosphere and the characteristics of clouds (e.g., [9,10]). A deep comprehension of pollutants’ transport mechanisms to the Arctic can provide significant insights into climate change effects, requiring a long-term assessment of their sources, transport pathways, and seasonal variations [9]
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