Comparison of modelled and measured tracer gas concentrations during the Across North America Tracer Experiment (ANATEX)

Technical Report · Sun Jan 01 04:00:00 EST 1989

OSTI ID:6284137

Clark, T L; Cohn, R D; Seilkop, S K; Draxler, R R; Heffter, J L

The 24-hour surface concentrations of several perfluorocarbon tracer gases measured during the 1987 Across North America Tracer Experiment (ANATEX) provided a unique continental-scale data set with which to evaluate long-range transport and diffusion models. One such model, a multilayer Lagrangian model, was evaluated in the ANATEX Model Evaluation Study (AMES) by comparing distributions and time series of calculated and measured tracer concentrations at bands of sampling sites nearly equidistant from one of the two tracer release sites and by computing spatial differences in the concentration-weighted centroids of 20, 24-hour tracer footprints or composite plumes. The results for this model indicated that it overemphasized the effects of the stronger upper-level winds. In spite of the bias in transport speed, the distributions of the calculated and measured concentrations were quite similar.

• Research Organization: Environmental Protection Agency, Research Triangle Park, NC (USA). Atmospheric Research and Exposure Assessment Lab.
• OSTI ID: 6284137
• Report Number(s): PB-89-136709/XAB; EPA-600/D-88/274
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

500200* -- Environment
Atmospheric-- Chemicals Monitoring & Transport-- (-1989)
54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
AIR POLLUTION
ATMOSPHERIC CIRCULATION
CHEMICAL ANALYSIS
ENVIRONMENTAL TRANSPORT
EVALUATION
FLUORINATED ALIPHATIC HYDROCARBONS
HALOGENATED ALIPHATIC HYDROCARBONS
MASS TRANSFER
MATHEMATICAL MODELS
ORGANIC COMPOUNDS
ORGANIC FLUORINE COMPOUNDS
ORGANIC HALOGEN COMPOUNDS
POLLUTION