Collaborative Research: Sustaining The Utqiaġvik Aerosol Record of Decades (STUARD)

北极变暖的速度比地球上任何其他地方都快，海冰迅速减少，因此来自生物(生物)的海雾和气溶胶排放的来源正在发生变化。乌特恰格维克处于这一变化的前沿，毗邻海冰消失最大的地区之一。这些大气气溶胶对气候、环境和居民社区都可能产生深远的影响。由于这一变化主要发生在过去十年中，现在是记录变化并继续数据记录的重要时刻，这将允许对新北极的特征进行描述。关于美洲北极空气中的细颗粒物(或称“气溶胶”)及其性质的最长和最完整的记录是乌恰格维克，美国国家科学基金会、国家海洋和大气管理局和能源部为使这一独特的地点成为大气气溶胶性质变化的区域记录作出了贡献。这项研究将扩展北极气溶胶记录的基线测量，包括延续15年来亚微米无机成分的记录，重新建立10年前收集的有机成分的两年记录，加强硫同位素的化学分析以改进对排放源的解释，持续的颗粒数分布测量，以及重新开始云凝结核测量。重新开始对有机成分的采样提供了与2008-2010年的比较，记录了过去十年中来源的无数变化。对持续的大小分布记录和重新开始云凝结核测量的观测提供了来源的化学记录与对气候和环境的物理影响之间的联系。该项目还将对过去7年收集的无机过滤器和未来5年的无机过滤器进行分析和存档，将无机气溶胶成分记录延长到近30年。除了为广泛的研究提供数据外，一名记者还将在当地新闻媒体上发表文章，以扩大对乌特恰格维克作为北极观测站的历史角色的认识。这一奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

The Arctic is warming faster than any other place on Earth, with sea ice declining rapidly and sources of sea spray and aerosol emissions derived from living organisms (biogenic) are consequently changing. Utqiagvik is at the forefront of this change, abutting one of the largest areas of sea ice loss. These atmospheric aerosols could have far-reaching impacts to both the climate, environment and resident community. Because this change has happened largely in the last decade, now is an important time to document changes and continue a data record that will allow for a characterization of the New Arctic. The longest and most complete record of airborne fine particles (or “aerosol”) and their properties in the American Arctic is that of Utqiagvik, where NSF, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the Department of Energy have contributed to making this unique location serve as a regional record of changes in atmospheric aerosol properties. That record has served as the basis for hundreds of publications on questions from atmospheric chemistry to climate science to ecology and biodiversity conservation, which clearly demonstrate the broad, cross-disciplinary scientific value of these measurements.This research will extend the baseline measurements of this Arctic aerosol record, including a continuation of the 15-year record of submicron inorganic components, re-instituting the 2-year record of organic components collected a decade ago, enhancing the chemical analysis with sulfur isotopes to improve interpretation of emission sources, continuing particle number size distribution measurements, and re-starting cloud condensation nuclei measurements. Re-starting sampling for organic components provides a comparison to that of 2008-2010, documenting the myriad of source changes in the last decade. Observations for continuing size distribution records and re-starting cloud condensation nuclei measurements provides the link from the chemical record of sources to the physical impacts on climate and the environment. This project will also allow analysis and archiving of the last 7 years of inorganic filters that were collected and the next 5 years, extending the inorganic aerosol composition record to almost 30 years. In addition to making the data widely available for a breadth of research, a journalist will publish articles in local news media to broaden the awareness of Utqiagvik’s historic role as an Arctic observatory.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.