Atmospheric Transport of Black Carbon to the Russian Arctic from Different Sources: Winter and Summer 2000–2016

Abstract

Satellite data on black carbon (BC) emissions into the atmosphere are used to derive model estimates of the of BC concentrations in the surface atmosphere for four regions of the Russian Arctic: on the Kola Peninsula, in Arkhangelsk oblast, and on the territories of Nenets and Gydan nature reserves in winter and summer 2000–2016. The long-range atmospheric BC transport is analyzed using the authors’ methodology for calculating the function of sensitivity to potential sources of submicron aerosol based on the statistics of back trajectories of air mass transport. On the whole, the contributions of anthropogenic sources to BC content in air in each region considered here predominate over the contributions of wildfires. The BC concentration in surface air is maximal over the Nenets Nature Reserve and over the Pechora Sea basin, where the main sources of this admixture all year round are flares from associated gas combustion in the nearest Russia biggest oil and gas provinces. We present the average, median, and maximal BC concentrations in the surface air in winter and summer, calculated from interannual variations in this index, caused by the differences in air mass circulations, carrying this admixture, as well as from spatial and interannual variations in BC emissions from fires.