Atmospheric Mineral Dust - Properties and Source Markers

Schuetz, L.

doi:10.1007/978-94-009-0995-3_15

Cited by 28 publications

(20 citation statements)

References 19 publications

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“…While variations in the lithogenic concentrations may be interpreted as supporting a direct-drought related cause for increased dust, there are other mechanisms that could affect the same results. For example, small shifts in the large-scale wind system or in the dust sources in northern Africa could result in very large changes in dust transport and deposition into the ocean [Schuetz, 1989;Prospero, 1990Prospero, , 1996. The seasonal pattern of the wind regime affecting our CB trap site remains almost constant from year to year, but the amount of winds with continental provenance shows significant differences (Figure 2).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 97%

“…[22] The wetter rainy season of 1988/1989 might have promoted the development of significant amounts of pollen in summer 1989, and, as a possible consequence of the decrease in soil erosion, caused a reduction in the flux of lithogenics in 1989/1990. Nicholson et al [1998 observed that the northern border of the vegetation in the Sahel moved northward in 1988/1989, as precipitation increased, thus demonstrating that shifts in the desert boundary and rainfall pattern are closely coupled.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The dust plume, mainly originating within the arid region of Northern Africa, is a rather continuous phenomenon [Schuetz, 1980[Schuetz, , 1989, with large day-to-day and seasonal changes in its location and density [Prospero, 1996;Stegmann and Tindale, 1999]. Daily fluctuations in dust concentrations are mainly subject to winds associated with the large-scale meteorological situation, while the longer-term changes are related to climatological factors.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Daily fluctuations in dust concentrations are mainly subject to winds associated with the large-scale meteorological situation, while the longer-term changes are related to climatological factors. Dust input can be interpreted as supporting a direct drought-related cause, but other mechanisms could also affect the same result [Schuetz, 1989;Prospero, 1990].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…[4] The survey of the wind-carried material from its source till its final deposition at the seafloor off northwest Africa contributes to the comprehension of the land-ocean-atmosphere relationships [Schuetz, 1989]. A straightforward interpretation is commonly difficult to obtain because amounts of terrigenous material are dependent on so many factors such as aridity, dust mobilization, and wind direction and intensity.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Temporal variability of fluxes of eolian‐transported freshwater diatoms, phytoliths, and pollen grains off Cape Blanc as reflection of land‐atmosphere‐ocean interactions in northwest Africa

Romero

2003

J. Geophys. Res.

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Fluxes of airborne freshwater diatoms (FD), phytoliths (PH), and pollen grains (PO) collected with sediment traps off Cape Blanc, northwest Africa, from 1988 till 1991 are presented. Both continental rainfall variations and wind mean strength and direction play a key role in the temporal fluctuations of the fluxes of eolian traces in the pelagic realm. Drier conditions in Northern Africa in 1987 could have preceded the high lithogenic input and moderate FD flux in 1988. The PH peak in summer 1988 was probably caused by increased wind velocity. Wetter rainy seasons of 1988/89 might have promoted a significant pollen production in summer 1989, and FD in late 1989 and early 1990, as well as contributed to the reduction of the lithogenic flux in 1989/90. Decreased fluxes of FD, PH and PO, and higher contribution of the 6–11 μm lithogenic fraction in 1991 would mainly reflect minor intensity and decreased amount of continental trade winds. Air‐mass backward trajectories confirm that the Saharan Air Layer is predominantly involved in the spring/summer transport. Trade winds play a decisive role in the fall/winter months, but also contribute to the transport during late spring/summer. Origin of wind trajectories does not support a direct relationship between transporting wind‐layers and material source areas in Northern Africa. High winter fluxes of eolian tracers and high amount of trade winds with continental origin in summer warn against a simplistic interpretation of the seasonal eolian signal preserved in the sediments off Cape Blanc, and the wind layer involved in its transport.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 97%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%