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Implications of intense biomass burning over Uttarakhand in April–May 2016

Author

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  • Shuchita Srivastava

    (Indian Institute of Remote Sensing)

  • A. Senthil Kumar

    (Indian Institute of Remote Sensing)

Abstract

A widespread forest fire episode occurred over Uttarakhand during April 24–May 2, 2016. This event released large amount of carbon monoxide (CO), nitrogen dioxide (NO2) and aerosols in the pristine environment of Uttarakhand. AIRS observations showed 60–125 ppbv higher CO during fire-impacted period with respect to background CO at 925, 850 and 700 hPa. Spatial distribution of CO and fire hotspots over Uttarakhand showed high level of CO over the region of intense biomass burning specifically. Over Dehradun, rate of increase in daily average surface CO was found to be 45 ppbv/day during fire period. Average background and fire-impacted tropospheric column NO2 were found to be 1.7 × 1015 ± 5.0 × 1014 mol/cm2 and 3.0 × 1015 ± 8.5 × 1014 mol/cm2, respectively. Similarly, average background and fire-impacted aerosol optical depth (AOD) were found to be 0.47 ± 0.25 and 0.90 ± 0.35, respectively, for Terra and 0.44 ± 0.17 and 0.86 ± 0.47, respectively, for Aqua observations. Size- and shape-segregated AOD distributions showed enhancement of medium-to-coarse (radius > 0.35 µm) non-spherical particles due to fire episode. CALIPSO height-resolved aerosol subtyping showed dominance of smoke near Uttarakhand up to 10 km altitude. Interspecies correlations indicated the common sources of near-surface CO, CO aloft, AOD and NO2. A relatively poor correlation between near-surface CO and tropospheric column NO2 might be due to chemical transformation of reactive NO2 within the fire plume. Forward trajectories calculated over fire-affected region at 500 m AGL indicated that fire emissions might have influenced the air quality of southern Nepal and northern Uttar Pradesh/Bihar within lower 3 km.

Suggested Citation

  • Shuchita Srivastava & A. Senthil Kumar, 2020. "Implications of intense biomass burning over Uttarakhand in April–May 2016," Natural Hazards: Journal of the International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, Springer;International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, vol. 101(2), pages 367-383, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:nathaz:v:101:y:2020:i:2:d:10.1007_s11069-020-03877-1
    DOI: 10.1007/s11069-020-03877-1
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