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Title: Sulfate Aerosol in the Arctic: Source Attribution and Radiative Forcing

Journal Article · · Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1002/2017JD027298· OSTI ID:1423416

Source attribution of Arctic sulfate and its radiative forcing due to aerosol-radiation interactions (RFari) for 2010–2014 are quantified in this study using the Community Earth System Model equipped with an explicit sulfur source-tagging technique. The model roughly reproduces the seasonal pattern of sulfate but has biases in simulating the magnitude of near-surface concentrations and vertical distribution. Regions that have high emissions and/or are near/within the Arctic present relatively large contributions to Arctic sulfate burden, with the largest contribution from sources in East Asia (27%). Seasonal variations of the contribution to Arctic sulfate burden from remote sources are strongly influenced by meteorology. The mean RFari of anthropogenic sulfate offsets one third of the positive top of the atmosphere (TOA) RFari from black carbon. A 20% global reduction in anthropogenic SO2 emissions leads to a net Arctic TOA forcing increase of +0.019W m–2. These results indicate that a joint reduction in BC and SO2 emissions could prevent at least some of the Arctic warming from any future SO2 emission reductions. Furthermore, sulfate RFari efficiency calculations suggest that source regions with short transport pathways and meteorology favoring longer lifetimes are more efficient in influencing the Arctic sulfate RFari. Based on Arctic climate sensitivity factors, about 0.19 K of the Arctic surface temperature cooling is attributed to anthropogenic sulfate, with –0.05 K of that from sources in East Asia, relative to preindustrial conditions.

Research Organization:
Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE Office of Science (SC), Biological and Environmental Research (BER); National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)
Grant/Contract Number:
AC05-76RL01830; NNH15AZ64I
OSTI ID:
1423416
Alternate ID(s):
OSTI ID: 1419909
Report Number(s):
PNNL-SA-126892; 453040180; KP1703010
Journal Information:
Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres, Vol. 123, Issue 3; ISSN 2169-897X
Publisher:
American Geophysical UnionCopyright Statement
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English
Citation Metrics:
Cited by: 34 works
Citation information provided by
Web of Science

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Cited By (6)

Climatic Responses to Future Trans‐Arctic Shipping journal September 2018
Organic coating on sulfate and soot particles during late summer in the Svalbard Archipelago journal January 2019
Dimethyl sulfide and its role in aerosol formation and growth in the Arctic summer – a modelling study journal January 2019
Variability, timescales, and nonlinearity in climate responses to black carbon emissions journal January 2019
The impact of recent changes in Asian anthropogenic emissions of SO2 on sulfate loading in the upper troposphere and lower stratosphere and the associated radiative changes journal January 2019
Interannual variability and trends of combustion aerosol and dust in major continental outflows revealed by MODIS retrievals and CAM5 simulations during 2003–2017 journal January 2020

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