scholarly journals Baseline uncertainties in biomass burning emission models resulting from spatial error in satellite active fire location data

2009 ◽  
Vol 36 (5) ◽  
Author(s):  
Edward J. Hyer ◽  
Jeffrey S. Reid
2020 ◽  
Vol 20 (2) ◽  
pp. 969-994 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xiaohua Pan ◽  
Charles Ichoku ◽  
Mian Chin ◽  
Huisheng Bian ◽  
Anton Darmenov ◽  
...  

Abstract. Aerosols from biomass burning (BB) emissions are poorly constrained in global and regional models, resulting in a high level of uncertainty in understanding their impacts. In this study, we compared six BB aerosol emission datasets for 2008 globally as well as in 14 regions. The six BB emission datasets are (1) GFED3.1 (Global Fire Emissions Database version 3.1), (2) GFED4s (GFED version 4 with small fires), (3) FINN1.5 (FIre INventory from NCAR version 1.5), (4) GFAS1.2 (Global Fire Assimilation System version 1.2), (5) FEER1.0 (Fire Energetics and Emissions Research version 1.0), and (6) QFED2.4 (Quick Fire Emissions Dataset version 2.4). The global total emission amounts from these six BB emission datasets differed by a factor of 3.8, ranging from 13.76 to 51.93 Tg for organic carbon and from 1.65 to 5.54 Tg for black carbon. In most of the regions, QFED2.4 and FEER1.0, which are based on satellite observations of fire radiative power (FRP) and constrained by aerosol optical depth (AOD) data from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS), yielded higher BB aerosol emissions than the rest by a factor of 2–4. By comparison, the BB aerosol emissions estimated from GFED4s and GFED3.1, which are based on satellite burned-area data, without AOD constraints, were at the low end of the range. In order to examine the sensitivity of model-simulated AOD to the different BB emission datasets, we ingested these six BB emission datasets separately into the same global model, the NASA Goddard Earth Observing System (GEOS) model, and compared the simulated AOD with observed AOD from the AErosol RObotic NETwork (AERONET) and the Multiangle Imaging SpectroRadiometer (MISR) in the 14 regions during 2008. In Southern Hemisphere Africa (SHAF) and South America (SHSA), where aerosols tend to be clearly dominated by smoke in September, the simulated AOD values were underestimated in almost all experiments compared to MISR, except for the QFED2.4 run in SHSA. The model-simulated AOD values based on FEER1.0 and QFED2.4 were the closest to the corresponding AERONET data, being, respectively, about 73 % and 100 % of the AERONET observed AOD at Alta Floresta in SHSA and about 49 % and 46 % at Mongu in SHAF. The simulated AOD based on the other four BB emission datasets accounted for only ∼50 % of the AERONET AOD at Alta Floresta and ∼20 % at Mongu. Overall, during the biomass burning peak seasons, at most of the selected AERONET sites in each region, the AOD values simulated with QFED2.4 were the highest and closest to AERONET and MISR observations, followed closely by FEER1.0. However, the QFED2.4 run tends to overestimate AOD in the region of SHSA, and the QFED2.4 BB emission dataset is tuned with the GEOS model. In contrast, the FEER1.0 BB emission dataset is derived in a more model-independent fashion and is more physically based since its emission coefficients are independently derived at each grid box. Therefore, we recommend the FEER1.0 BB emission dataset for aerosol-focused hindcast experiments in the two biomass-burning-dominated regions in the Southern Hemisphere, SHAF, and SHSA (as well as in other regions but with lower confidence). The differences between these six BB emission datasets are attributable to the approaches and input data used to derive BB emissions, such as whether AOD from satellite observations is used as a constraint, whether the approaches to parameterize the fire activities are based on burned area, FRP, or active fire count, and which set of emission factors is chosen.


2015 ◽  
Vol 15 (8) ◽  
pp. 4339-4355 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. Gonzi ◽  
P. I. Palmer ◽  
R. Paugam ◽  
M. Wooster ◽  
M. N. Deeter

Abstract. We use observations of active fire area and fire radiative power (FRP) from the NASA Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometers (MODIS), together with a parameterized plume rise model, to estimate biomass burning injection heights during 2006. We use these injection heights in the GEOS-Chem (Goddard Earth Observing System Chemistry) atmospheric chemistry transport model to vertically distribute biomass burning emissions of carbon monoxide (CO) and to study the resulting atmospheric distribution. For 2006, we use over half a million FRP and fire area observations as input to the plume rise model. We find that convective heat fluxes and active fire area typically lie in the range of 1–100 kW m−2 and 0.001–100 ha, respectively, although in rare circumstances the convective heat flux can exceed 500 kW m−2. The resulting injection heights have a skewed probability distribution with approximately 80% of the injections remaining within the local boundary layer (BL), with occasional injection height exceeding 8 km. We do not find a strong correlation between the FRP-inferred surface convective heat flux and the resulting injection height, with environmental conditions often acting as a barrier to rapid vertical mixing even where the convective heat flux and active fire area are large. We also do not find a robust relationship between the underlying burnt vegetation type and the injection height. We find that CO columns calculated using the MODIS-inferred injection height (MODIS-INJ) are typically −9 to +6% different to the control calculation in which emissions are emitted into the BL, with differences typically largest over the point of emission. After applying MOPITT (Measurement of Pollution in the Troposphere) v5 scene-dependent averaging kernels we find that we are much less sensitive to our choice of injection height profile. The differences between the MOPITT and the model CO columns (max bias ~ 50%), due largely to uncertainties in emission inventories, are much larger than those introduced by the injection heights. We show that including a realistic diurnal variation in FRP (peaking in the afternoon) or accounting for subgrid-scale emission errors does not alter our main conclusions. Finally, we use a Bayesian maximum a posteriori approach constrained by MOPITT CO profiles to estimate the CO emissions but because of the inherent bias between model and MOPITT we find little impact on the resulting emission estimates. Studying the role of pyroconvection in the distribution of gases and particles in the atmosphere using global MOPITT CO observations (or any current spaceborne measurement of the atmosphere) is still associated with large errors, with the exception of a small subset of large fires and favourable environmental conditions, which will consequently lead to a bias in any analysis on a global scale.


2002 ◽  
Vol 2 (4) ◽  
pp. 1159-1179 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. G. Schultz

Abstract. Biomass burning has long been recognised as an important source of trace gases and aerosols in the atmosphere. The burning of vegetation has a repeating seasonal pattern, but the intensity of burning and the exact localisation of fires vary considerably from year to year. Recent studies have demonstrated the high interannual variability of the emissions that are associated with biomass burning. In this paper we present a methodology using active fire counts from the Along-Track Scanning Radiometer (ATSR) sensor on board the ERS-2 satellite to estimate the seasonal and interannual variability of global biomass burning emissions in the time period 1996--2000. From the ATSR data, we compute relative scaling factors of burning intensity for each month, which are then applied to a standard inventory for carbon monoxide emissions from biomass burning. The new, time-resolved inventory is evaluated using the few existing multi-year burned area observations on continental scales.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jyoti U. Devkota

Abstract Active fires illuminated on the earth surface are caught by the satellite. These fires are created by various sources such as vegetation fires, gas flares, biomass burning, volcanoes, and industrial sites such as steel mills. Near real time active fire data is collected using remote sensing techniques of satellites. Amount of active fires in an area is a proxy indicator of aerosols, green houses gases and trace gases. Here the behavior of active fires over a period of one year in Nepal, Bhutan and Srilanka are studied using spatial statistics. This study is based on data acquired through remote sensing of data acquisition platform, NASA’s MODIS. Spatial statistics is used here to study the incidence of active fires with respect to geographical location. The behavior of parameters of various autoregressive models like Spatial Durban Model, Spatial Lag Model, Spatial Error Model, Manski Model and Kelegian Prucha Model are minutely analyzed. The best model with highest pseudo R2 is selected. The spatial behavior of the fire radiative power for three countries is also predicted using spatial interpolation and kriging. So the burning potential of vegetations in unsampled areas is envisaged by thus predicting FRP. Such studies give a country wise perspective to the behavior of fire; this is with reference to south Asia. They are of great importance for countries of developing world which lack a strong backbone of good quality official records. Through the statistical analyses of data collected by such platforms, important information can be indirectly assessed.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rose Marie Miller ◽  
Greg M. McFarquhar ◽  
Robert M. Rauber ◽  
Joseph R. O'Brien ◽  
Siddhant Gupta ◽  
...  

Abstract. During the three years of the ObseRvations of Aerosols above CLouds and their intEractionS (ORACLES) campaign, the NASA Orion P-3 was equipped with a 2D-Stereo (2D-S) probe that imaged particles with maximum dimension (D) ranging from 10 < D < 1280 µm. The 2D-S recorded supermicron-sized aerosol particles (SAPs) outside of clouds within biomass burning plumes during flights over the Southeast Atlantic off Africa’s coast. Numerous SAPs with 10 < D < 1520 µm were observed in 2017 and 2018 at altitudes between 1230 m and 3500 m, 1000 km from the coastline mostly between 7–11° S. No SAPs were observed in 2016 as flights were conducted further south and further from the coastline. Number concentrations of black carbon (rBC) measured by a single particle soot photometer ranged from 200 to 1200 cm−3 when SAPs were observed. Transmission electron microscopy images of submicron particulates, collected on Holey carbon grid filters, revealed particles with potassium salts, black carbon and organics while energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy spectra detected potassium, a tracer for biomass burning, indicating that the submicron particles originated from biomass burning in addition to black carbon. NOAA Hybrid Single-Particle Lagrangian Integrated Trajectory (HYSPLIT) three-day back trajectories show a source in northern Angola for times when large SAPs were observed. Fire Information for Resource Management System Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) 6 active fire maps showed extensive biomass burning at these locations. Given the back trajectories, the high number concentrations of rBC, and the presence of elemental tracers indicative of biomass burning, it is hypothesized that the SAPs imaged by the 2D-S are examples of unburned plant material previously seen in biomass burning smoke close to the source.


2009 ◽  
Vol 9 (20) ◽  
pp. 7901-7911 ◽  
Author(s):  
C.-Y. Lin ◽  
H.-m. Hsu ◽  
Y. H. Lee ◽  
C. H. Kuo ◽  
Y.-F. Sheng ◽  
...  

Abstract. Biomass burning in the Indochina Peninsula (Indochina) is one of the important ozone sources in the low troposphere over East Asia in springtime. Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) data show that 20 000 or more active fire detections occurred annually in spring only from 2000 to 2007. In our tracer modeling study, we identify a new mechanism transporting the tracer over Indochina that is significantly different from the vertical transport mechanism over the equatorial areas such as Indonesia and Malaysia. Simulation results demonstrate that the leeside troughs over Indochina play a dominant role in the uplift of the tracer below 3 km, and that the strong westerlies prevailing above 3 km transport the tracer. These fundamental mechanisms have a major impact on the air quality downwind from Indochina over East Asia. The climatological importance of such a leeside trough is also discussed.


Atmosphere ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 55 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yaasiin Oozeer ◽  
Andy Chan ◽  
Jun Wang ◽  
Jeffrey S. Reid ◽  
Santo V. Salinas ◽  
...  

One of the worst haze events to ever hit Peninsular Malaysia occurred in June 2013 due to smoke from Riau, Central Sumatra. While biomass-burning in the region is common, the early occurrence of a haze episode of this magnitude was uncharacteristic of the seasonality of extreme fire events, which usually occur between August and October in the Maritime Continent (MC). This study aims to investigate the phenomenology of the June 2013 haze event and its underlying meteorological forcing agents. The aerosol and meteorological environment during the event is examined using the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) active fire hotspot detections and aerosol optical thickness retrievals, satellite-based precipitation retrievals, and meteorological indices. These datasets are then supported by a WRF-Chem simulation to provide a comprehensive picture of the event’s meteorology and aerosol transport phenomenology. While extreme fire events are more characteristic of El Nino years, the MODIS fire count over the MC in June for the years 2001–2015 was highest in 2013 when neutral El Nino/Southern Oscillation (ENSO) conditions prevailed. Although, the mean daily precipitation for June 2013 was below average for June 2003–2015. An early active tropical cyclone (TC) season occurred in 2013, and results show that the combined induced subsidence and flow enhancement due to TC Bebinca and the dry phases of a strong Madden–Julian Oscillation (MJO) event contributed to the event intensification. Results also show that Bebinca induced a decrease in surface relative humidity of at least 10% over Riau, where fire hotspots were concentrated.


2008 ◽  
Vol 8 (14) ◽  
pp. 3951-3961 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. H. Mari ◽  
G. Cailley ◽  
L. Corre ◽  
M. Saunois ◽  
J. L. Attié ◽  
...  

Abstract. The Lagrangian particle dispersion model FLEXPART coupled with daily active fire products provided by the MODIS instrument was used to forecast the intrusions of the southern hemispheric fire plumes in the Northern Hemisphere during the AMMA (African Monsoon Multidisciplinary Analysis) fourth airborne campaign from 25 July to 31 August 2006 (Special Operation Period SOP2_a2). The imprint of the biomass burning plumes over the Gulf of Guinea showed a well marked intraseasonal variability which is controlled by the position and strength of the southern hemispheric African Easterly Jet (AEJ-S). Three different periods were identified which correspond to active and break phases of the AEJ-S: 25 July–2 August (active phase), 3 August–8 August (break phase) and 9 August–31 August (active phase). During the AEJ-S active phases, the advection of the biomass burning plumes out over the Atlantic ocean was efficient in the mid-troposphere. During the AEJ-S break phases, pollutants emitted by fires were trapped over the continent where they accumulated. The continental circulation increased the possibility for the biomass burning plumes to reach the convective regions located further north. As a consequence, biomass burning plumes were found in the upper troposphere over the Gulf of Guinea during the AEJ-S break phase. Observational evidences from the ozonesounding network at Cotonou and the carbon monoxide measured by MOPITT confirmed the alternation of the AEJ-S phases with low ozone and CO in the mid-troposphere over the Gulf of Guinea during the break phase.


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