Mobile and scanning LIDAR measurements in coastal and interior British Columbia

摘要

A mobile scanning lidar facility called RASCAL (Rapid Acquisition SCanning Aerosol Lidar) was involved in a measurement campaign in the interior British Columbia and coastal areas, including the Gulf Islands. RASCAL was part of a tandem of highly specialized vehicles providing mobile measurements using dual-wavelength scanning lidar technology and a sophisticated high temporal resolution chemistry package providing real-time in-situ measurements. The synergistic approach allowed detailed measurements of the complex three-dimensional structure of the atmosphere and coincident detailed chemistry observations of the constituents near the ground. One of the measurement sites, included the town of Golden, B.C., a small town nestled between the Purcell Mountains on the west and the Rocky Mountains on the east. The poor air quality in Golden is attributed to local industrial, residential (wood smoke) and vehicular sources as well as the steep mountains rising on both sides, and the absence of wind. These factors provide a unique airshed for air quality observations which include the complex re-circulation of pollutants due to upslope and downslope flows. In addition the springtime months of March and April provide an opportunity to measure the long-range transport of trans-Pacific pollutants that impact the coastal areas of British Columbia frequently and sometimes even penetrate to the borders of Ontario and Quebec. Lidar measurements near Vancouver, Whistler and Saturna Island show the extent and nature of these trans-Pacific plumes.