Coastal Urban Plume Dynamics Study (CUPiDS)

Nearly 40 % of the U.S. population lives in coastal areas. Most of the large metro areas in the U.S. are located in coastal regions. Coastal counties account from more than $9.5 trillion in goods and services annually. Thus, the unique meteorology of the coastal area, where different properties of land and sea meet, disproportionately affect a larger share of the U.S. population and economy. Local air quality and meteorological conditions are strongly affected by differences in diurnal forcing across the land-sea interface. The land-sea breeze circulation can redistribute pollutants in shallow marine boundary layers, build up pollutants along coast lines and also transport pollutants back to land where they can interact with freshly emitted pollutants. The combination of large emissions, due to large population and economic activities, and unique meteorology of the coastal areas often result in poor air quality.

In order to better understand coastal meteorology and how it affects air quality in the New York City region, the Coastal Urban Plume Dynamics Study (CUPiDS) was conducted from 17 July – 16 August 2023. A total of 31 research flights were conducted during the campaign, which sampled varied meteorological and air quality conditions. An airborne scanning Doppler lidar was deployed on a NOAA Twin Otter aircraft to measure the vertical and horizontal structure of the evolving wind field along the flight track. The aircraft was also equipped with sensors for mapping column amounts of NO₂, formaldehyde, and glyoxal, and in-situ NO, NO₂, NO_y, O₃, CO, CO₂, CH₄, and H₂O to help identify polluted layers, understand ozone formation chemistry in the region, and quantify emissions. The CUPiDS payload was also very well suited for the evaluation of geostationary observations from the recently launched Tropospheric Emissions: Monitoring of Pollution (TEMPO) instrument, which started making its first measurements in August 2023. CUPiDS closely coordinated with the Atmospheric Emissions and Reactions Observed from Megacities to Marine Areas (AEROMMA), the Synergistic TEMPO Air Quality Science (STAQS), and other activities in the New York City area during that time. This presentation will provide an overview of the CUPiDS campaign.