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Transport of pollutants from eastern Colorado into the Rocky Mountains via upslope winds

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dc.contributor.authorPiƱa, Aaron J., author
dc.contributor.authorDenning, A. Scott, advisor
dc.contributor.authorSchumacher, Russ S., committee member
dc.contributor.authorHam, Jay, committee member
dc.date.accessioned2007-01-03T06:11:34Z
dc.date.available2007-01-03T06:11:34Z
dc.date.issued2013
dc.description.abstractThe confluence of mountain meteorology and major pollution sources come together to transport pollutants across the Front Range, especially nitrogen species (NH3, NH4+, orgN, NO3-, and HNO3) from agricultural and urban regions, into the Rocky Mountains. The focus of this study was to examine the meteorological conditions in which atmospheric wet deposition of inorganic nitrogen in the Rocky Mountains was anomalously high. We analyzed 19 years (1994-2013) of precipitation and concentrations of wet inorganic nitrogen data from three National Atmospheric Deposition Program (NAPD) sites in the Rocky Mountains: Beaver Meadows (CO19), Loch Vale (CO98), and Niwot Ridge (CO02). Beaver Meadows (2477 m), Loch Vale (3159 m), and Niwot Ridge (3520 m) are all within 40 km but differ in elevation, resulting in different seasonal precipitation composition and totals. The North American Regional Reanalysis (NARR) was used to observe synoptic conditions that influenced two high wet deposition events from August 18-20, 2006 and July 6-8, 2012. Interestingly, anti-cyclones in southern Canada and high precipitable water values associated with monsoonal flow played significant roles in initiating convection that caused high values of wet deposition of inorganic nitrogen in the Rocky Mountains. The Advanced Research WRF model was then used to simulate the meteorology at a high spatial and temporal resolution for the two time periods to examine the contribution of cloud-scale convection to wet nitrogen deposition in the Rocky Mountains. A mesoscale mountain circulation caused by differential heating between mountains slopes and the plains was the main driver of the slow westward transport towards the mountains while cloud-scale convection contributed greatly to the transport of nitrogen along the Colorado Front Range.
dc.format.mediumborn digital
dc.format.mediummasters theses
dc.identifierPina_colostate_0053N_12145.pdf
dc.identifierETDF2013500411ATMS
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/10217/81055
dc.languageEnglish
dc.language.isoeng
dc.publisherColorado State University. Libraries
dc.relation.ispartof2000-2019
dc.rightsCopyright and other restrictions may apply. User is responsible for compliance with all applicable laws. For information about copyright law, please see https://libguides.colostate.edu/copyright.
dc.subjectatmospheric nitrogen deposition
dc.subjectconvective transport
dc.subjectmountain meteorology
dc.subjectnitrogen-loading
dc.subjectupslope winds
dc.subjectRocky Mountains
dc.titleTransport of pollutants from eastern Colorado into the Rocky Mountains via upslope winds
dc.typeText
dcterms.rights.dplaThis Item is protected by copyright and/or related rights (https://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/). You are free to use this Item in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. For other uses you need to obtain permission from the rights-holder(s).
thesis.degree.disciplineAtmospheric Science
thesis.degree.grantorColorado State University
thesis.degree.levelMasters
thesis.degree.nameMaster of Science (M.S.)

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