Collaborative Research: RUI--Lake Breeze Influence on Ozone Transport as Captured by an Unmanned Aircraft System

该研究项目寻求对密歇根湖附近大片土地和水域的空气污染物暴露的新认识，方法是在接近地表400英尺的高度使用无人驾驶航空系统（UAS）测量湖泊附近的气象变量和臭氧。密歇根湖沿岸的社区几十年来一直受到空气质量差的负面影响。主要的污染物是臭氧，臭氧是由城市活动、充足的阳光和平稳稳定的大气层产生的空气中的排放物促进的大气化学反应形成的。密歇根湖产生了自己的当地气象。当来自周围陆地的暖空气流过相对较冷的水面时，空气流可以将城市排放物输送到湖泊上方很长一段距离，污染物浓度很高。同时，城市排放物可以向上输送到加热的地表，形成大的臭氧浓度的空间变化。因此，具有不同污染物浓度和化学反应的空气运动会影响湖泊周围地区的空气质量。实地测量将提供空中空气质量测量，这超出了在固定地面监测站进行的传统测量，并利用载人飞机在以前实地活动的较高高度进行空中测量。这些测量是改善五大湖地区空气质量预报模型捕捉近地表特征的理想选择。参与这项研究的无人机系统将是一个C-Astral Bramor固定翼无人机系统，船上装有气象传感器包。飞行UAS的具体目标是：a）表征密歇根湖沿岸海岸环流开始和沿着垂直变化的湖风特征，B）捕获湖风锋区内从近海到岸上的会聚区/细尺度环流随时间的发展或移动，以及c）监测臭氧梯度，低海拔海岸线受海洋影响的逆温随时间变化的化学循环模式特征。利用无人机系统进行预先编程的数据收集任务，将使科学家能够阐明湖风环流区域的污染物传输，以了解小规模环流与更广泛的空气质量影响之间的联系。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并被认为值得通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估来支持。

The research project seeks new understanding of the exposure to air pollutants across large areas of land and water near Lake Michigan by taking measurements of meteorological variables and ozone near the lake with an unmanned aerial system (UAS) at altitudes near the surface up to 400 feet. Communities at the shorelines of Lake Michigan have been negatively impacted by poor air quality for decades. The main pollutant of concern is ozone formed from atmospheric chemical reactions promoted by airborne emissions from urban activities, ample sunlight, and the smooth stable atmosphere. Lake Michigan generates its own local meteorology. When the warm air from the surrounding land flows over the relatively cold water, the air flow can transport urban emissions over the lake for a long distance with high pollutant concentration. Meanwhile the urban emission can be transported upward over the heated land surface, forming large spatial variations of ozone concentration. Consequently, air movements with different pollutant concentrations and chemical reactions can impact air quality in the area surrounding the lake. The field measurement will provide airborne air-quality measurements beyond the traditional measurement at fixed ground monitoring stations and airborne measurements with manned aircraft at higher altitudes from previous field campaigns. These measurements are ideal for improving air quality forecast models in the Great Lakes region for capturing near-surface features. The UAS involved in this study will be a C-Astral Bramor fixed-wing unmanned aerial system with a meteorological sensor package on board. The specific objectives of flying the UAS are to a) characterize lake-breeze characteristics of near shore circulation onset and vertical variations along the shoreline of Lake Michigan, b) capture the development or movement of convergence zones/fine scale circulations within a lake-breeze frontal region from offshore to onshore over time, and c) monitor ozone gradients, characteristics of chemical circulation patterns within marine-influenced inversions at the shoreline over time at low altitudes. The use of the UAS to fly pre-programed data collection missions would allow scientists to elucidate pollutant transport in the region of lake-breeze circulation for understanding connections between small scale circulations with broader air quality repercussions.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.