Monday, September 11, 2006, in EN 6060 at 11:00 a.m.
Studies of Aerosol Physical Properties in the Marine Boundary Layer
Tymon Zielinski
Abstract: In the marine boundary layer aerosols comprise a mixture of components, each varying in number, size distribution and composition. The two major components to aerosols in the marine environment are: continental and locally generated sea-spray droplets and therefore, they include both natural and anthropogenic material which may be transported vast distances. Over the global oceans the concentrations and fluxes of atmospheric particulates produced at the sea surface by the action of the wind, or carried out from the continents with the wind, are of interest due to their significant impact upon various important atmospheric processes.
The contribution of these particles to moisture and energy exchange processes at the sea surface, to the global salt flux, their role in cloud droplet formation processes and their influence both upon the maritime atmospheric radiation balance and propagation at visible and infra-red wavelengths are areas of practical and research focus. The thorough understanding of such phenomena is essential to accurate assessments of many processes and for the development of coupled ocean-atmosphere models.
In this seminar I will focus on the determination of the vertical structure of aerosol physical and optical properties in two types of environments, the coastal zone and the