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Air pollution studies in the Norwegian Arctic
Author(s) -
Joranger E.,
Ottar B.
Publication year - 1984
Publication title -
geophysical research letters
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.007
H-Index - 273
eISSN - 1944-8007
pISSN - 0094-8276
DOI - 10.1029/gl011i005p00365
Subject(s) - environmental science , arctic , aerosol , troposphere , air pollution , atmospheric sciences , norwegian , pollution , homogeneous , climatology , pollutant , meteorology , oceanography , geography , geology , chemistry , ecology , linguistics , philosophy , organic chemistry , biology , physics , thermodynamics
Measurements of sulfur pollutants at stations in the Norwegian Arctic, 1977‐1983, show persistent annual variations with maximum values in the winter season. These are mostly due to low‐level transport of polluted air from industrial areas in northern USSR. The pulsating character of the air pollution episodes is related to the synoptic scale pressure variations. Aircraft measurements in March 1983 show the presence of thin stratified layers of polluted air at elevated tropospheric levels. In summer the Arctic air is generally very clean, and elevated concentrations are mainly due to a direct transfer from source areas in northwestern Europe across the Norwegian Sea. The aircraft measurements show that the Arctic aerosol has a narrow and very homogeneous size distribution, indicating a stable aerosol that is not subject to chemical reactions and further growth.