Radon-222 in boundary layer and free tropospheric continental outflow events at three ACE-Asia sites

Wlodek Zahorowski; Scott Chambers; Tao Wang; Chang-Hee Kang; Itsushi Uno; Steven Poon; Sung-Nam Oh; Sylvester Werczynski; Jiyoung Kim; Ann Henderson-Sellers

Original Research Papers

Radon-222 in boundary layer and free tropospheric continental outflow events at three ACE-Asia sites

Authors

Wlodek Zahorowski
Scott Chambers
Tao Wang
Chang-Hee Kang
Itsushi Uno
Steven Poon
Sung-Nam Oh
Sylvester Werczynski
Jiyoung Kim
Ann Henderson-Sellers

Abstract

A 1-year record of hourly atmospheric radon-222 concentration observations at three ACE-Asia network sites—Hok Tsui (Hong Kong), Gosan (Jeju Island) and Mauna Loa Observatory (Hawaii)—is presented and discussed. The observations include the spring 2001 ACE-Asia intensive operation period. Site locations were chosen for the experimental characterization of both boundary layer (Hok Tsui, Gosan) and free tropospheric (Mauna Loa) continental outflow to the Pacific. A significant seasonal variability in background radon concentration is quantified at each site with the ratios of winter maximum to summer minimum background of 96, 15 and 3 for Hok Tsui, Gosan and Mauna Loa, respectively. Only during summer were background radon concentrations directly comparable with unperturbed marine values (~20 mBq m−3). The variability in radon signal was characterized at each site on diurnal to seasonal timescales. The seasonal variability in fetch regions for air masses experiencing the greatest and smallest terrestrial influence was characterized using 10-day back trajectories of air masses corresponding to radon concentrations higher (lower) than the 90th (10th) percentile value. The trajectory analyses for Hok Tsui and Gosan, as well as a direct analysis of the experimental results, further supports the previously postulated existence of a strong spatial heterogeneity in the radon source strength in East Asia. Back trajectories of free tropospheric air masses reaching Mauna Loa indicated source regions deep within the Asian continent primarily between 20 and 40°N. This fetch region is different from that influencing the Hok Tsui and Gosan sites. The radon concentration of air masses reaching Mauna Loa was shown to vary seasonally as well as with latitude of the predominant fetch region. Possible mechanisms of this phenomenon have been identified and include (a) seasonal variation in the radon source, (b) seasonal variation in the strength, frequency and/or efficiency of mechanisms that lift boundary layer air to the mid troposphere and (c) seasonal variation in the latitudinal axis of convection.

Year: 2005

Volume: 57 Issue: 2

Page/Article: 124-140

DOI: 10.3402/tellusb.v57i2.16776

Submitted on Mar 4, 2004

Accepted on Aug 30, 2004

Published on Jan 1, 2005

Peer Reviewed

CC BY 4.0

References

Akimoto , H. , Mulcai , H. , Nishilcawa , M. , Murano , K. , Hatakeyama , S. and co-authors. 1996. Long-range transport of ozone in the East Asian Pacific rim region . J. Geophys. Res . 101 ( D1 ), 1999-2010 .
Andreae , M. O. , Berresheim , H. , Andreae , T. W. , Kritz , M. A. , Bates , T. S. and co-authors. 1988. Vertical distribution of dimethylsulfide, sulfur dioxide, aerosol ions, and radon over the northeast Pacific Ocean. J. Atmos. Chem. 6, 149 – 173.
Balkanslci , Y. J. , Jacob , D. J. , Arimoto , R. and Kritz , M. A . 1992 . Dis-tribution of 222Ril over the North Pacific: implications for continental influences . J. Atmos. Chem . 14 , 353 – 374 .
Board , A. S. , Fuelberg , H. E. , Gregory , G. L. , Heikes , B. G. , Schulz , M. G. et al., 1999 . Chemical characteristics of air from differing source regions during the Pacific Exploratory Mission-Tropics A (PEM-Tropics A) . J. Geophys. Res. 104(D13) , 16 181-16 196 .
Bodhaine , B. A . 1983 . Aerosol measurements at four background sites . J. Geophys. Res . 88 , 10 753-10 768 .
Bodhaine , B. A . 1996. Aerosol measurements during the Mauna Loa Photochemistry Experiment 2. J. Geophys. Res . 101 ( D9 ), 14757-14 765.
Bodhaine , B. A. , Mendonca , B. G. , Harris , J. M. and Miller , J. M . 1981 . Seasonal variations in aerosols and atmospheric transmission at Mauna Loa Observatory . J. Geophys. Res . 86 ( C8 ), 7395 – 7398 .
Climate Change , 2001 . The Scientific Basis Contribution of Working Group I to the Third Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) . (eds J. T. Houghton , Y. Ding , D. J. Griggs , M. Noguer , P. J. van der Linden et al.). Cambridge University Press , Cambridge .
Conen , F. and Robertson , L. B . 2002 . Latitudinal distribution of radon-222 flux from continents . Tellus , 54B , 127 – 133 .
Crawford , J. , Davis , D. , Chen , G. , Bradshaw , J. D. , Sandholm , S. T. et al. 1997 . An assessment of ozone photochemistry in the extratropical western North Pacific: impact of continental outflow during the late winter/early spring . J. Geophys. Res. 102(D23) , 28 469-28 487 .
Cuff , A. D. , Fisch , G. , Malhi , Y. and Nobre , C. A . 1997 . The influence of the atmospheric boundary layer on carbon dioxide concentrations over a tropical forest . Agric. Forest. Meteorol 85 , 149 – 158 .
Debaje , S. B. , Vernelcar , K. G. and Ramachandran , T. V . 1996 . Study of atmospheric radon-222 concentrations at Pune . Indian J. Environ. Prot ., 16 ( 10 ), 755 – 760 .
Dentener , F. , Feichter , J. and Jeuken , A . 1999 . Simulation of the transport of²²²Rn using on-line and off-line global models at different horizontal resolutions: a detailed comparison with measurements . Taus , 51B , 573 – 602 .
Dibb , J. E. , Talbot , R. W. , Klemm , K. I. , Gregory , G. L. , Singh , H. B. et al. 1996 . Asian influence over the western North Pacific during the fall season: Inferences from 210Pb, soluble ionic species and ozone. J . Geophys. Res . 101 ( D1 ), 1779 – 1792 .
Dibb , J. E. , Talbot , R. W. , Lefer , B. L. , Scheuer , E. , Gregory , G. L. et al. 1997 . Distributions of beryllium 7 and lead 210, and solu-ble aerosol-associated ionic species over the western Pacific PEM-West B, February-March 1994 . J. Geophys. Res. 102(D23) , 28 287-28 302 .
Dörr , H. and Münnich , K. O . 1990 . 222Ril flux and soil air concentration profiles in West Germany. Soil 222Ril as a tracer for gas transport in the unsaturated soil zone . Tellus 42B , 20 – 28 .
Draxler , R. R. and Hess , G. D . 1997 . Description of the HYSPLIT_4 modeling system . NOAA Technical Memorandum ERL ARL-224 (re-vised 2004). Air Resources Laboratory , Silver Spring , MD .
Draxler , R. R. and Hess , G. D . 1998. An overview of the HYS-PLIT 4 modelling system for trajectories, dispersion and depo-sition. Aust. Meteorol. Mag. 47 , 295 – 308. (Further information regarding NOAA ARL's model HYSPLIT 4 is available from http://www.arl.noaa.gov/ready/hysplit4.html)
Gao , Y. , Arimoto , R. , Thou , M. Y. , Merrill , J. T. and Duce , R. A . 1992 . Relationships between the dust concentrations over eastern Asia and the remote north Pacific . J. Geophys. Res . 97 ( D9 ), 9867 – 9872 .
Giannakopoulos , C. , Chipperfield , M. P. , Law , K. S. , Plantevin , P.-H. , Pyle , J. A. et al. 2000 . A three-dimensional modelling study of the correlations of 210Pb with HNO3 and peroxyacetylnitrate (PAN) at remote oceanic sites . J. Geophys. Res . 105 ( D2 ), 1947 – 1956 .
Giannakopoulos , C. , Chipperfield , M. P. , Law , K. S. and Pyle , J. A . 1999 . Validation and intercomparison of wet and dry deposition schemes using 210fp •11 . a toglobal three-dimensional off-line chemical transport model. J. Geophys. Res. 104(D19) , 23 761-23 784 .
Gras , J. L. and Whittlestone , S . 1992 . Radon and CN: complementary tracers of polluted air masses at coastal and island sites . J. Radioanal. Nucl Chem . 161 ( 1 ), 293 – 306 .
Gregory , G. L. , Merrill , J. T. , Shipham , M. C. , Blake , D. R. , Sachse , G. W. and co-authors. 1997. Chemical characteristics of tropospheric air over the Pacific Ocean as measured during PEM-West B: rela-tionship to Asian outflow and trajectory history. J. Geophys. Res . 102 ( D23 ), 28 275-28 285.
Guelle , W. , Ballcanslci , Y. J. , Dibb , J. E. , Schulz , M. and Dulac , E 1998a. Wet deposition in a global size-dependent aerosol transport model. 2. Influence of the scavenging scheme on 210Pb vertical profiles, surface concentrations, and deposition. J. Geophys. Res . 103 ( D22 ), 28 875 – 28891
Guelle , W. , Ballcanslci , Y. J. , Schulz , M. , Dulac , F. and Monfray , P . 1998b . Wet deposition in a global size-dependent aerosol transport model . 1. Comparison of a 1 year 210Pb simulation with ground measurements. J. Geophys. Res. 103(D10) , 11 429-11 445 .
Harris , J. M. and Kahl , J. D . 1990 . A descriptive atmospheric transport climatology for the Mauna Loa Observatory, using clustered trajecto-ries . J. Geophys. Res. 95(D9) , 13 651-13 667 .
Hattori , T. and Ichiji , T . 1998 . Estimates of seasonal variations of 222Ril from different origins by using the correlation between 222Ril and 212Pb concentrations in air . In: Radon and Thoron in the Human Envi-ronment (eds A. Katase and M. Shimo). World Scientific Publishing , Singapore , 246 – 251 .
Holmes , J. and Zoller , W . 1996 . The elemental signature of transported Asian dust at Mauna Loa observatory . Tellus 48B , 83 – 92 .
Huebert , B. J. , Bates , T. , Russell , P. B. , Shi , G. , Kim , Y. J. et al., 2003 . An overview of ACE-Asia: strategies for quantifying the relationships between Asian aerosols and their climatic impacts . J. Geophys. Res . 108 ( D23 ), 8633 – 8633 .
Iida , T. , Yamada , K. , Hashiguchi , Y. , Moriizumi , J. , Nagao , I. et al., 2000. Measurements of atmospheric radon concentrations at various locations in east Asia. In: Distribution and Speciation of Radionu-clides in the Environment (edsJ. Inaba, S. Hisamatsu and Y. Ohtsuka). Roklcasho, Aomori, Japan, 123 – 132
Jacob , D. J. and Prather , M. J . 1990 . Radon-222 as a test of con-vective transport in a general circulation model . Tellus 42B , 118 – 134 .
Jacob , D. J. , Prather , M. J. , Rasch , P. J. , Shia , R.-L. , Ballcanski , Y. J. et al., 1997 . Evaluation and intercomparison of global atmospheric transport models using 222Ril and other short lived tracers . J. Geophys. Res . 102 ( D5 ), 5953 – 5970 .
Jaffe , D. , Mahura , A. , Kelley , J. , Atkins , J. , Novelli , P. C. et al. 1997 . Impact of Asian emissions on the remote North Pacific atmosphere: Interpretation of CO data from Shemya, Guam, Midway and Mauna Loa . J. Geophys. Res. 102(D23) , 28 627-28 635 .
Jin , Y. , Iida , T. , Ikebe , Y. , Wang , Z. and Abe , S . 1998 . A sub-nationwide survey of outdoor and indoor 222Ril concentrations in China by passive method . In: Radon and Thoron in the Human Environment (eds A. Katase and M. Shimo). World Scientific Publishing , Singapore , 246 – 251 .
Johnson , J . 2001. Atmospheric Chemistry data from R/V Ronald H. Brown during the ACE-Asia 10P, 2001, http://saga.pmel.noaa.gov/ aceasia/rhb_data/index.html.
Kajii , Y. , Alcimoto , H. , Komazalci , Y. , Tanaka , S. , Mukai , H. et al. 1997 . Long-range transport of ozone, carbon monoxide, and acidic trace gases at Oki Island, Japan, during PEM-West B/PEACAMPOT B campaign . J. Geophys. Res. 102(D23) , 28 637-28 649 .
Kritz , M. A . 1990 . The China Clipper-fast advective transport of radon-rich air from the Asian boundary layer to the upper troposphere near California . Tellus 42B , 46 – 61 .
Kritz , M. A. , Rosner , S. W. , Kelly , K. K. , Loewenstein , M. and Chan , K. R . 1993 . Radon measurements in the lower tropical stratosphere: evidence for rapid vertical transport and dehydration of tropospheric air . J. Geophys. Res . 98 ( D5 ), 8725 – 8736 .
Lambert , G. , Polian , G. , Sanak , J. , Ardouin , B. , Buisson , A. and co-authors. 1982. Cycle du radon et de ses descendants: applica-done etude desechanges troposphere-stratosphere. Ann. Geophys. 38, 497 – 531.
Lambert , G. , Polian , G. and Taupin , D . 1970 . Existence of periodicity in radon concentrations and in the large scale distribution at lower altitudes between 40° and 70°S . J. Geophys. Res . 75 , 2341 – 2345 .
Larson , R. E. and Hoppel , W. A . 1973 . Radon 222 measurements below 4 km as related to atmospheric convection . Pure Appl Geophys . 105 , 900 – 906 .
Lee , H. N. and Feichter , J . 1995 . An intercomparison of wet precipitation scavenging schemes and emission rates of 222Ril for the simulation of global transport and deposition of 210Pb . J. Geophys. Res. 100(D11) , 23 253-23 270 .
Li , Y. and Chang , J . 1996 . A three-dimensional global episodic tracer transport model . 1: Evaluation of its transport processes by radon 222 simulations. J. Geophys. Res . 101 , 25 931-25 947 .
Littmann , T . 1991 . Dust storm frequency in Asia: climatic control and variability . Int. J. Climatol 11 , 393 – 412 .
Liu , T. S . 1985 . Loess and the Environment . China Ocean Press , Beijing , 215 .
Martin , B. D. , Fuelberg , H. E. , Blake , N. J. , Crawford , J. H. , Logan , J. A. and co-authors. 2003. Long-range transport of Asian out-flow to the equatorial Pacific. J. Geophys. Res . 108 ( D2 ), 8322 https://doi.org/10.1029/2001JDO01418 , 2002. [printed 108(D2), 2003] .
Mendonca , B. G . 1969 . Local wind circulation on the slopes of Mauna Loa . J. Appl Meteorol 8 , 533 – 541 .
Merrill , J. T . 1990 . Atmospheric long range transport to the Pacific Ocean . Chem. Oceanogr 10 , 15 – 49 .
Merrill , J. T . 1996 . Trajectory results and interpretation for PEM-West A . J. Geophys. Res . 101 ( D1 ), 1679 – 1690 .
Merrill , J. T. , Uematsu , M. and Bleck , R . 1989 . Meteorological analysis of long range transport of mineral aerosols over the North Pacific . J. Geophys. Res . 94 ( D6 ), 8584 – 8598 .
Nakaya , U. , Sugaya , J. and Shoda , M . 1957 . Report of the Mauna Loa expedition in the winter of 1956-57. J. Fac. Sci. Ser 1-7, Hokkaido Univ ., 5 , 1 – 36 .
Perry , K. D. , Cahill , T. A. , Schnell , R. C. and Harris , J. M . 1999 . Long-range transport of anthropogenic aerosols to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration baseline station at Mauna Loa Observa-tory, Hawaii . J. Geophys. Res. 104(D15) , 18 521-18 533 .
Pochanart , P. , Hirokawa , J. , Kajii , Y. and Akimoto , H . 1999 . Influence of regional-scale anthropogenic activity in northeast Asia on seasonal variations of surface ozone and carbon monoxide observed at Oki, Japan . J. Geophys. Res . 104 ( D3 ), 3621 – 3631 .
Schery , S. D. and Wasiolek , M. A . 1998 . Modeling radon flux from the earth's surface . In: Radon and Thoron in the Human Environment (eds A. Katase and M. Shimo). World Scientific Publishing , Singapore , 207 – 217 .
Schery , S. D. , Whittlestone , S. , Hart , K. P. and Hill , S. E . 1989 . The flux of radon and thoron from Australian soils . J. Geophys. Res . 94 , 8567 – 8576 .
Talbot , R.W. , Dibb , J. E. , Lefer , B. L. , Bradshaw , J. D. , Sandholm , S. T. and co-authors. 1997. Chemical characteristics of continental outflow from Asia to the troposphere over the western Pacific Ocean during February-March 1994: results from PEM-West B. J. Geophys. Res . 102(1)23), 28 255-28 274.
Thomas , J. W. and LeClare , P. C . 1970 . A study of the two-filter method for radon-222 . Health Phys . 18 , 113 – 122 .
Turelcian , K. K. , Nozalci , Y. and Benninger , L. K . 1977 . Geochemistry of atmospheric radon and radon products . Ann. Rev. Earth Planet. Sci . 5 , 227 – 255 .
Ussler , W. , Chanton , J. P. , Kelly , C. A. and Martens , C. S . 1994 . Radon-222 tracing of soil and forest canopy trace gas exchange in an open canopy forest . J. Geophys. Res . 99 , 1953 – 1963 .
Wang , T. , Lam , K. S. , Chan , L. Y. , Carroll , M. A. and Lee , A. S. Y . 1997 . Trace gas measurements in coastal Hong Kong during the PEM-WEST (B) . J. Geophys. Res . 102 , 28 575-28 588 .
Wang , T. , Ding , A. J. , Blake , D. R. , Zahorowski , W. , Poon , C. N. and Li , Y. S . 2003 . Chemical characterization of the boundary layer outflow of air pollution to Hong Kong during February-April 2001 . J. Geophys. Res . 108 , D20 8787 – 8801 , https://doi.org/10.1029/2002JD003272 .
Whittlestone , S. and Zahorowski , W . 1998 . Baseline radon detectors for shipboard use: development and deployment in the first Aerosol Characterisation Experiment (ACE 1). I Geophys. Res . 103 , 16743-16 751 .
Wilkening , M. H. and Clements , W. E . 1975 . Radon 222 from the ocean surface . J. Geophys. Res . 80 , 3828 – 3830 .
Xu , N. , Wei , F. S. , Ten, E. J. and Chen, L. Q. 1993. Evaluation of in-digenous concentrations of uranium and thorium in soils of China . Commun. Soil Sci. Plant Anal ., 24 , 1795– 1803 .
Yamanishi , H. , Iida , T. , Ikebe , Y. , Abe , S. and Hata , T . 1991 . Measure-ments of regional distribution of radon-222 concentration . J. Nucl. Sci. Tech. Tokyo , 28 ( 4 ), 331 – 338 .
Zahorowski , W. and Whittlestone , S . 1999. Radon database 1987-1996: a review. In: Baseline Atmospheric Program (Australia) 1996, (eds J. L. Gras, N. Derek, N. W. Tindale and A. L. Dick). Bureau of Meteorology and CSIRO Atmospheric Research, Melbourne, 71 – 80
Zhang , D. E . 1984 . Synoptic-climate studies of dust fall in China since historic times . Zhongguo Keacue Bji XXVII , 825 – 836 .