Aerosol Transportation and its Effects on Climate and Health

This study further investigates the transportation of aerosol, ozone, and their effects on climate and health. Therefore, the study has been undertaken for the NOAA Center for Atmospheric Sciences (NCAS) Project at Jackson State University (JSU) to investigate the interactions of PM 2.5 μm and ozone over coastal stations of Puerto Rico, Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea using EPA’s Air Quality System (AQS). This project is to study the Saharan Air Layer (SAL) outbreaks over the last decade and review its effects on the weather, climate, and also new health issues that are occurring today. Due to the effects of ozone and PM2.5 on health and climate, regularly monitoring aerosol levels is needed to ensure the health. By looking at data collected over the past 5-10 years by MODIS (Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer) and other instruments. The study analyzed the collection of Saharan Dust from the African coast and the air particles over the sea area. The Hybrid Single-Particle Lagrangian Integrated Trajectory (HYSPLIT) model calculated the forward and backward trajectories during the outbreak of dust over the sea. The HYSPLIT models averaged between 10 and 20 meters above the ground level. The Saharan Desert is one of the major sources on Earth of mineral dust that can be lifted up by convection and be transported all around the world by the winds, covering distances of thousands of kilometers. Ozone in the troposphere is a key driver for chemical reactions as well as being a pollutant which has a significant impact on human health and also on crops. The reduction of ozone concentration may be due to the decrease of solar radiation under the fine dusty condition. The reduced solar radiation suppresses the photochemical reactions and can result in low ozone concentration.