Northern Front Brings In Wildfire Smoke From The Western US Coast To Texas

Dry vegetation and anomalously warm conditions triggered extreme wildfires along the western coast of the United states during summer 2020. The smoke from these wildfires was transported to Texas with the northern frontal system that moved through the region. This study presents the impact of the transported smoke on the aerosol optical properties at different Black and Brown Carbon (BC2) sites at Houston and Galveston, Texas. The BC2 sites captured the transported wildfire smoke starting from late September through early and mid-October. The absorption coefficient reached above 15 Mm-1 at 365 nm while the absorption Ångström exponent (AAE) values exceeded 1.4 during the event. The HYSPLIT backward air mass trajectory analysis combined with the NOAA Hazard Mapping System smoke product also confirmed the transport of smoke from the West Coast to Houston-Galveston area. Previous studies have shown that northern front passage resulted in an increase in both peak and background ozone concentrations in Texas, however, changes in aerosol characteristics have not been studied in detail. Given the expected increase in wildfire intensity in the western coast and transport of the emitted smoke to Texas following the northern frontal passage during summer, understanding the influence of wildfire plumes on urban atmosphere is critical. This presentation will discuss detailed information about the ground-based measurements, including the impacts of smoke and comparisons to remote-sensing products and model results.