Evaluation of WRF-Chemistry air quality simulations for NEAQS2004

The 2004 New England Air Quality Study (NEAQS) was an intensive effort to investigate the chemical and meteorological factors that contribute to poor air quality in the costal New England region. The campaign combined efforts of numerous educational institutions as well as federal, state, and local agencies. Observational data were collected from an extensive network of ground sites, from the NOAA research vessel Ronald H. Brown, and from several aircraft. Although many of the ground stations routinely collect data year-round, the period of most intensive measurements was from 15 July through 15 August 2004. In addition, real-time weather and air quality forecasts were provided by the NOAA Forecast Systems Laboratory (FSL). The Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) chemistry model (WRF-Chem) was used to provide the air quality forecasts. This study will examine results obtained from real time forecasts and retrospective simulations using the WRF-Chem model. The presentation will focus on the ability of the numerical model to accurately reproduce the diurnal weather and air quality evolution observed by the various platforms located across the New England region.