Assessing temporal and spatial variations in atmospheric dust over Saudi Arabia through satellite, radiometric, and station data

Yu, Yan; Notaro, Michael; Liu, Zhengyu; Калашникова, О. В.; Alkolibi, Fahad; Fadda, Eyad; Bakhrjy, Fawzieh

doi:10.1002/2013jd020677

Cited by 80 publications

(84 citation statements)

References 29 publications

(46 reference statements)

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“…The previous results are consistent with those of Yu et al (2013), who showed that the dust storms over Saudi Arabia exhibit a marked seasonality, peaking in early spring and summer across southwestern Saudi Arabia.…”

Section: Seasonal Variationsupporting

confidence: 91%

“…In addition, Yu et al (2013) indicated that the dust in the western area of the Arabian Peninsula is influenced by the wind speed and direction.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Because dust storms are a frequent phenomenon in Saudi Arabia, it is important to study their spatial and temporal distribution (Alharbi et al, 2013;Yu et al, 2013). Moreover, the identification and analysis of the weather types in the dust cases are important for understanding the characteristics of regional dust.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Seasonal variability and synoptic characteristics of dust cases over southwestern Saudi Arabia

Mashat

Alamoudi

Awad

et al. 2017

Intl Journal of Climatology

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ABSTRACT:The synoptic characteristics and statistical variability of seasonal dust over southwestern Saudi Arabia are studied for the period from 1979 to 2006 using the aerosol index (AI) from the Total Ozone Mapping Spectrometer (TOMS) satellite, dust observations from surface stations, and meteorological data from the National Center for Environmental Prediction and the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCEP/NCAR) reanalysis data set.The seasonal AI distribution indicates that approximately 80% of each year was dusty and that most of the dust occurred during hot months. In addition, the surface observations of the dust types show that the stations with the largest number of dust observations throughout the year were close to the desert, except during the summer, when the stations near the Red Sea had the largest number of dust observations.The synoptic forces that influenced the dust cases were the relative positions of high-pressure systems (Azores or Siberian) and low-pressure systems (Sudan or Indian), alongside their interactions. The relative positions of the atmospheric systems are highly pronounced at a pressure level of 850 hPa; at this pressure, the systems are oriented from north (anticyclonic system) to south (cyclonic system), turn anticlockwise to become oriented from west (anticyclonic system) to east (cyclonic system) during the summer, and then turn clockwise during the winter. Moreover, the interaction of the atmospheric systems influences the wind pattern of the seasonal composition over the southern Arabian Peninsula, which produces an anticyclonic wind pattern during winter, a cyclonic wind pattern during spring, a northerly/northwesterly wind pattern during summer and an anticyclonic wind pattern during autumn.The dust sources changed because of the relative positions of these atmospheric systems, in which the 'Toker Gap' Sudan was the summer/autumn dust source, and the 'central and eastern' Arabian Peninsula was the winter/spring dust source.

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Section: Seasonal Variationsupporting

confidence: 91%

“…In addition, Yu et al (2013) indicated that the dust in the western area of the Arabian Peninsula is influenced by the wind speed and direction.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Seasonal variability and synoptic characteristics of dust cases over southwestern Saudi Arabia

Mashat

Alamoudi

Awad

et al. 2017

Intl Journal of Climatology

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“…The low-level dust particles are partly from local dust sources while the higher altitude dust could be transported from distal sources and chemically transformed, i.e., aged. As was pointed out by Yu et al (2013) the differences between the deposition and AOD time series can in part be attributed to modifications of the natural dust aerosol by anthropogenic activities, including petrochemical and other large industries along the Red Sea coast, as well as by entrainment of construction and road dust. However, the substantial contamination of dust by anthropogenic species and sea salt is not likely in this area, as was suggested by both observational Brindley et al, 2015) and modeling studies (Kalenderski and Stenchikov, 2016).…”

Section: Aeronet and Visibility Measurementsmentioning

confidence: 97%

Physical and chemical properties of deposited airborne particulates over the Arabian Red Sea coastal plain

et al. 2017

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Abstract. Mineral dust is the most abundant aerosol, having a profound impact on the global energy budget. This research continues our previous studies performed on surface soils in the Arabian Peninsula, focusing on the mineralogical, physical and chemical composition of dust deposits from the atmosphere at the Arabian Red Sea coast. For this purpose, aerosols deposited from the atmosphere are collected during 2015 at six sites on the campus of the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) situated on the Red Sea coastal plain of Saudi Arabia and subjected to the same chemical and mineralogical analysis we conducted on soil samples. Frisbee deposition samplers with foam inserts were used to collect dust and other deposits, for the period December 2014 to December 2015. The average deposition rate measured at KAUST for this period was 14 g m −2 per month, with lowest values in winter and increased deposition rates in August to October. The particle size distributions provide assessments of < 10 and < 2.5 µm dust deposition rates, and it is suggested that these represent proxies for PM 10 (coarse) and PM 2.5 (fine) particle size fractions in the dust deposits.X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis of a subset of samples confirms variable amounts of quartz, feldspars, micas, and halite, with lesser amounts of gypsum, calcite, dolomite, hematite, and amphibole. Freeze-dried samples were resuspended onto the Teflon ® filters for elemental analysis by X-ray fluorescence (XRF), while splits from each sample were analyzed for water-soluble cations and anions by ion chromatography. The dust deposits along the Red Sea coast are considered to be a mixture of dust emissions from local soils and soils imported from distal dust sources. Airborne mineral concentrations are greatest at or close to dust sources, compared to those through medium-and long-range transport. It is not possible to identify the exact origin of deposition samples from the mineralogical and chemical results alone. These aerosol data are the first of their kind from the Red Sea region. They will help assess their potential nutrient input into the Red Sea, as well the impact on human health, industry, and solar panel efficiency. These data will also support dust modeling in this important dust belt source area by better quantifying dust mass balance and optical properties of airborne dust particles.

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“…However, this region has received little attention so far; it is lacking field campaigns and has few in situ observations. Some of the studies conducted for the Arabian Peninsula include dust storm trajectories analysis , impact of the March 2009 dust storm (Maghrabi et al, 2011) and assessment of the remotely sensed and groundbased aerosol optical depth (AOD, τ ) measurements consistency (Yu et al, 2013). Osborne et al (2011), Slingo et al (2006) and Otto et al (2007) have considered diurnal effects of dust.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Diurnal cycle of the dust instantaneous direct radiative forcing over the Arabian Peninsula

et al. 2015

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Abstract. In this study we attempted to better quantify radiative effects of dust over the Arabian Peninsula and their dependence on input parameters. For this purpose we have developed a stand-alone column radiation transport model coupled with the Mie, T-matrix and geometric optics calculations and driven by reanalysis meteorological fields and atmospheric composition. Numerical experiments were carried out for a wide range of aerosol optical depths, including extreme values developed during the dust storm on 18-20 March 2012. Comprehensive ground-based observations and satellite retrievals were used to estimate aerosol optical properties, validate calculations and carry out radiation closure. The broadband surface albedo, fluxes at the bottom and top of the atmosphere as well as instantaneous dust radiative forcing were estimated both from the model and observations. Diurnal cycle of the shortwave instantaneous dust direct radiative forcing was studied for a range of aerosol and surface characteristics representative of the Arabian Peninsula. Mechanisms and parameters responsible for diurnal variability of the radiative forcing were evaluated. We found that intrinsic variability of the surface albedo and its dependence on atmospheric conditions, along with anisotropic aerosol scattering, are mostly responsible for diurnal effects.

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Assessing temporal and spatial variations in atmospheric dust over Saudi Arabia through satellite, radiometric, and station data

Cited by 80 publications

References 29 publications

Seasonal variability and synoptic characteristics of dust cases over southwestern Saudi Arabia

Seasonal variability and synoptic characteristics of dust cases over southwestern Saudi Arabia

Physical and chemical properties of deposited airborne particulates over the Arabian Red Sea coastal plain

Diurnal cycle of the dust instantaneous direct radiative forcing over the Arabian Peninsula

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