Study of a Saharan Dust Intrusion into the Atmosphere of Colombia

Authors

  • Juan Felipe Mendez Universidad de los Andes
  • Laura Catalina Pinto Herrera Universidad de los Andes
  • Luis Carlos Belalcázar Cerón Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Bogotá

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.22395/rium.v17n32a1

Keywords:

A frican d ust, l ong-range t ransport, a ir q uality, r emote sensing.

Abstract

The Sahara Desert is one of the main sources of particulate matter (PM) in the world. This PM has the ability to affect air quality thousands of miles from the source. The intrusions of this dust in the Caribbean are well documented; however, no intrusions of this pollutant have been reported in large Colombian cities. This article analyses and determines the possible relationship between the emissions of dust from the Sahara, and an episode of high pollution that occurred in Bogotá and Medellín at the end of June 2014. The data recorded by the air quality networks of Bogotá and Medellín, the dust column mass density of the Merra-2 project, and the results of the NMMB/BSC-Dust model were used. The origins and trajectories of air masses were tracked by implementing HYSPLIT. The aerosol subtype was obtained from the CALIOP-CALIPSO sensor.

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Author Biographies

Juan Felipe Mendez, Universidad de los Andes

Estudiante de Maestría en Ingeniería Ambiental, Universidad de los Andes, Bogotá, Colombia. E-mail: jf.mendez@uniandes.edu.co 

Laura Catalina Pinto Herrera, Universidad de los Andes

Estudiante de Maestría en Ingeniería Ambiental, Universidad de los Andes, Bogotá, Colombia. E-mail: lc.pinto@uniandes.edu.co

Luis Carlos Belalcázar Cerón, Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Bogotá

Post Ph.D.  Modelación de Procesos Ambientales. .Grupo de Investigación Calidad del Aire (GICA), Departamento Ingeniería Química y ambiental, Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Bogotá, Colombia. E-mail: lcbelalcazarc@unal.edu.co

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Published

2018-07-04

How to Cite

Mendez, J. F., Pinto Herrera, L. C., & Belalcázar Cerón, L. C. (2018). Study of a Saharan Dust Intrusion into the Atmosphere of Colombia. Revista Ingenierías Universidad De Medellín, 17(32), 17–34. https://doi.org/10.22395/rium.v17n32a1