Atmospheric carbon dioxide transport over mountainous terrain
Sun, J., & De Wekker, S. F. J. (2012). Atmospheric carbon dioxide transport over mountainous terrain. In K. E. Richards (Ed.), Mountain Ecosystems: Dynamics, Management and Conservation (pp. 101-121). Nova Science Publishers.
We investigated trace gas transport by daytime mountain-induced circulations based on aircraft data collected during the Airborne Carbon in the Mountains Experiment (ACME04) conducted in 2004. Using measurements of traditional meteorology and trace gases associated with ecosystem processes, we fo... Show moreWe investigated trace gas transport by daytime mountain-induced circulations based on aircraft data collected during the Airborne Carbon in the Mountains Experiment (ACME04) conducted in 2004. Using measurements of traditional meteorology and trace gases associated with ecosystem processes, we found evidence of thermally-induced vertical mountain circulations consisting of an upslope flow, a horizontal return flow, and a descending flow along the Front Range of Colorado. Turbulent air was generated by convective buoyancy along the mountain slopes and ridges and by strong shear at the mountain ridge tops. The deep turbulent mixed layer was subsequently advected by the ambient large-scale and return flows across the plains east of the Front Range. The descending flowover the plains increased the atmospheric stability,which reduced the vertical mixing above the convective boundary layer over the plains. The mountain circulation and its interaction with the ambient flow and convective turbulent mixing effectively transported the air with its unique characteristics of the CO2, water vapor, and CO concentrations at the bottom of the atmosphere over the plains to above the convective boundary layer over the plains. This study suggest that mountain-induced circulations can have significant impacts on estimates of the regional ecosystem atmosphere carbon exchange. Show less