Radiative Forcing and Climate Response Due to Black Carbon in Snow and Ice

The radiative forcing and climate response due to black carbon（BC） in snow and/or ice were investigated by integrating observed effects of BC on snow/ice albedo into an atmospheric general circulation model（BCC AGCM2.0.1） developed by the National Climate Center（NCC） of the China Meteorological Administration（CMA）.The results show that the global annual mean surface radiative forcing due to BC in snow/ice is ＋0.042 W m 2,with maximum forcing found over the Tibetan Plateau and regional mean forcing exceeding ＋2.8 W m 2.The global annual mean surface temperature increased 0.071 C due to BC in snow/ice.Positive surface radiative forcing was clearly shown in winter and spring and increased the surface temperature of snow/ice in the Northern Hemisphere.The surface temperatures of snow-covered areas of Eurasia and North America in winter（spring） increased by 0.83 C（0.6 C） and 0.83 C（0.46 C）,respectively.Snowmelt rates also increased greatly,leading to earlier snowmelt and peak runoff times.With the rise of surface temperatures in the Arctic,more water vapor could be released into the atmosphere,allowing easier cloud formation,which could lead to higher thermal emittance in the Arctic.However,the total cloud forcing could decrease due to increasing cloud cover,which will offset some of the positive feedback mechanism of the clouds.

Investigation on emission factors of particulate matter and gaseous pollutants from crop residue burning

Emission factors of particulate matter （PM）, element carbon （EC）, organic carbon （OC）, SO2, NOx, CO, CO2, and ten ions （Na^＋, NH4^＋, K^＋, Mg^2＋, Ca^2＋, Fˉ, Clˉ, NO2ˉ, NO3ˉ, SO42ˉ） were estimated from the domestic burning of four types of commonly produced crop residues in rural China： rice straw, wheat straw, corn stover, and cotton stalk, which were collected from the representative regions across China. A combustion tower was designed to simulate the cooking conditions under which the peasants burned their crop residues in rural China, to measure the emission factors. Results showed that wheat straw had the highest emission factor for the total PM （8.75 g/kg） among the four crop residues, whereas, corn stover and wheat straw have the highest emission factor for EC （0.95 g/kg） and OC （3.46 g/kg）, respectively. Corn stover also presents as having the highest emission factors of NO, NOx, and CO2, whereas, wheat straw, rice straw, and cotton stalk had the highest emission factors of NO2, SO2, and CO, respectively. The water-soluble ions, K^＋ and Clˉ, had the highest emission factors from all the crops. Wheat straw had a relatively higher emission factor of cation species and Fˉ, Clˉ, NO2ˉ than other residues.

Modeling Study of Aerosol Indirect Effectson Global Climate with an AGCM

Aerosol indirect effects （AIEs） on global climate were quantitatively investigated by introducing aerosol–cloud interaction parameterizations for water stratus clouds into an AGCM （BCC AGCM2.0.1）, which was developed by the National Climate Center of the China Meteorological Administration. The study yielded a global annual mean of -1.14 W m^-2 for the first indirect radiative forcing （IRF）, with an obvious seasonal change. In summer, large forcing mainly occurred in mid to high latitudes of the Northern Hemisphere, whereas in winter, large values were found at 60°S. The second indirect effect led to global annual mean changes in net shortwave flux of -1.03 W m^-2 at the top of the atmosphere （TOA）, which was relatively significant in mid-latitude regions of both hemispheres. The total AIE reduced the global annual means of net shortwave flux at the TOA and of surface temperature by 1.93 W m^-2 and 0.12 K, respectively. Change in surface temperature induced by the total AIE was clearly larger in the Northern Hemisphere （-0.23 K） than in the Southern Hemisphere, where changes were negligible. The interhemispheric asymmetry in surface cooling resulted in significant differences in changes of the interhemispheric annual mean precipitation rate, which could lead to a tendency for the ITCZ to broaden. The total AIE decreased the global annual mean precipitation rate by 0.055 mm df^-1.

Assessing Heat-related Mortality Risks in Beijing,China

Objective To obtain the exposure-response relationship for temperature and mortality, and assess the risk of heat-related premature death. Methods A statistical model was developed using a Poisson generalized linear regression model with Beijing mortality and temperature data from October 1st, 2006 to September 30th, 2008. We calculated the exposure-response relationship for temperature and mortality in the central city, and inner suburban and outer suburban regions. Based on this relationship, a health risk model was used to assess the risk of heat-related premature death in the summer （June to August） of 2009. Results The population in the outer suburbs had the highest temperature-related mortality risk. People in the central city had a mid-range risk, while people in the inner suburbs had the lowest risk. Risk assessment predicted that the number of heat-related premature deaths in the summer of 2009 was 1581. The city areas of Chaoyang and Haidian districts had the highest number of premature deaths. The number of premature deaths in the southern areas of Beijing （Fangshan, Fengtai, Daxing, and Tongzhou districts） was in the mid-range. Conclusion Ambient temperature significantly affects human mortality in Beijing. People in the city and outer suburban area have a higher temperature-related mortality risk than people in the inner suburban area. This may be explained by a temperature-related vulnerability. Key words： Temperature; Mortality; Premature death; Health risk; Generalized linear regression model; Climate change

Variation Characteristics of Ambient NMHCs at Shangdianzi and Lin’an Regional GAW Sites

In order to study the variation characteristics of concentration of the atmospheric non-methane hydrocarbons （NMHCs） in background area of China, the atmospheric concentrations of NMHCs were measured at Lin＇an （LA） regional GAW （Global Atmosphere Watch） Station （30°25＇N, 119°44＇E; 132.0 m ASL） and Shangdianzi （SDZ） regional GAW Station （40°19＇N, 117°07＇E; 286.5 m ASL） with the sorbent sorption/thermal desorption/gas chromatographic method. Totally 145 samples were collected during the period of October 2003 and July 2004. Among the 52 NMHC species of C2-C10 detected there were 26 alkanes, 17 alkenes, and 9 aromatics. The average concentrations of total NMHCs （TNMHCs） at LA and SDZ were （238.5±126.0） ×10^-9C and （278.7±185.5）×10^-9C, respectively. The results showed the ambient concentrations of TNMHCs at LA regional GAW Station increased notably over the last decade. The compositions of NMHCs at SDZ and LA were relatively similar. The proportions of alkanes, alkenes, and aromatics for SDZ and LA were in ranges of （27.3±4.0）%, （10.3±3.5）%, and （62.5±4.8）%, respectively, with features of vehicle exhaust emissions. The concentrations of NMHCs at the two sites showed obvious diurnal and seasonal variations. The TNMHC concentrations in October-November were high at the two sites, and relatively low in April and July. The diurnal variation patterns at the sites were different. The high TNMHC concentrations at SDZ normally appeared in evening and night, but appeared in morning at LA. The TNMHCs concentrations at the two sites were significantly influenced by the meteorological condition. The high TNMHC concentration associated with the local wind from the urban areas or traffic in upper reaches.

Study on wavy distribution of rainfall associated with typhoon Matsa (2005)

An analysis is made to investigate the structure features of the extensive heavy rainfall left by typhoon Matsa, after its landfall in China's Mainland in August 2005, based on a range of observational results, including surface intensive observation data, TBB data from China's FY-2 satellite, and NCEP 1°×1° reanalysis data. The study tries to explore the interaction between atmospheric waves, 3-D atmospheric structures, and typhoon rainbands. Observational facts, diagnostic analysis, and atmospheric wave theory are used to look into the formation mechanism of distant typhoon rainbands. Results show that (1) Matsa rainbands have the features of noticeable wave train distribution and long distance propaga-tion; (2) the typhoon rainbands extend as far as 2000 km northwardly from the typhoon center, with a wavelength of 500―1000 km and a wave period of 12―24 h; (3) the wave structure of Matsa rainbands is closely associated with the corresponding wave variation of the ambient 3-D atmospheric structures, including disturbance vorticity, divergence field, vertical motion field, water vapor flux divergence field, etc. (4) both observational facts and theoretical analysis show that the northward extending typhoon rainbands are associated with the mixed effects of atmospheric inertia wave and internal gravity wave; (5) only under proper atmospheric stratification and vertical wavenumber of gravity wave, can a ty-phoon stimulate such a wave being able to reach such a distance, and result in extending wavy rain-bands.

Significant downward trend of SO_2 observed from 2005 to 2010 at a background station in the Yangtze Delta region,China

SO2 is an important gas in atmosphere with great environmental and climate implications.SO2 emission in China has been receiving great attention as the economy grows and the amount of coal consumption has increased in the past few decades.SO2 has been observed from July 2005 to June 2010 at Linan WMO GAW regional station(30.3 °N,119.73 °E,138 m a.s.l.) located in the Yangtze Delta region in eastern China.These observation data are analyzed to understand the trend of regional SO2 background concentration.Strict quality controls are conducted to ensure the temporal comparability of the data.Significant downward trend with ?2.4 ppb/yr(P < 0.0001) of surface SO2 is observed from 2005 to 2010,especially after 2008.The average concentration of SO2 from July 2005 to June 2008 is 14.2±3.1 ppb,which is slightly higher than the mean values of 13.5±5.1 ppb during 1999?2000 and is two folds of the average value(7.1±3.1 ppb) from July 2008 to June 2010.More than 50% of the SO2 has been cut down after 2008 in the Yangtze Delta region due to the implementation of stricter emission control measures.The peak SO2 concentration appears around 10 o'clock in the morning after 2009 while appears at night before 2009.These diurnal variations of SO2 might indicate that after 2009,more SO2 is from the vertical exchange process than from the local accumulation.