Satellite-Based Air Pollution Potential Climatology over India

摘要

Air pollution potential indicates the ability of the atmosphere to disperse the pollutants depends on mixing height and wind speed. This parameter is essential for air dispersion modeling, mitigating air pollution, i.e., reducing harmful effects on human health, and potential site selection for establishing new industries. Five-year (2015-2019) mean monthly, seasonal, and annual maps of ventilation coefficient (VC) and air pollution potential index (APPI) were prepared for the first time for India using the inputs from daily data of planetary boundary layer height (PBLH) derived using CrIS onboard SOUMI-NPP satellite and wind speed from ERA-5. Climatology of VC and APPI over 14 cities in India was also analyzed. Below medium to very low pollution potential (VC: 6000 to 10,000 m(2)/s) has been observed at the east coast of Andhra Pradesh and Tamilnadu (TN) during the winter and most of western India and New Delhi during the summer monsoon. During pre-monsoon, western Gujarat, southwest of Rajasthan, and parts of Indo-Gangetic Plains show below medium to low pollution potential. Below medium pollution potential is observed at the east coast of TN during the post-monsoon season. Annual averages of VC and APPI suggest east coastal TN and western Gujarat consistently are below medium to very low pollution potential zone, indicating their suitability for setting up new industries. Annual average VC shows the cities with increasing pollution potential as Mumbai, Chennai, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Patna, Jaisalmer, Jodhpur, Varanasi, Kolkata, Kanpur, Lucknow, New Delhi, Nagpur, and Rourkela. This information is helpful to the regulatory authorities to prioritize the air pollution mitigation measures in different cities. This study has the potential to be extended to prepare global maps of APPI to identify ventilation corridors (regions with very low pollution potential) that will reduce air pollution and its effects on human health, the environment, and the climate at large.