Synergy use of satellite remote sensing and in-situ monitoring data for air pollution impacts on urban climate

The increase of urban atmospheric pollution due to particulate matters (PM) in different fraction sizes affects seriously not only human health and environment, but also city climate directly and indirectly. In the last decades, with the economic development and the increased emissions from industrial, traffic and domestic pollutants, the urban atmospheric pollution with remarkable high PM2.5 (particulate matters with aerodynamic diameter less than 2.5 μm) and PM10 (particulate matters with aerodynamic diameter less than 10 μm) concentration levels became serious in the metropolitan area of Bucharest in Romania. Both active as well as satellite remote sensing are key applications in global change science and urban climatology. The aerosol parameters can be measured directly in situ or derived from satellite remote sensing observations. All these methods are important and complementary. The current study presents a spatiotemporal analysis of the aerosol concentrations in relation with climate parameters in two size fractions (PM10 and PM2.5) in Bucharest metropolitan area. Daily average particle matters concentrations PM10 and PM2.5 for Bucharest metropolitan area have been provided by 8 monitoring stations belonging to air pollution network of Environmental Protection Agency. The C005 (version 5.1) Level 2 and Level 3 Terra and Aqua MODIS AOD550 time-series satellite data for period 01/01/2011- 31/12/2012 have been also used. Meteorological variables (air temperature, relative humidity, sea level atmospheric pressure) have been provided by in-situ measurements. Both in-situ monitoring data as well as MODIS Terra/Aqua time-series satellite data for 2011-2012 period provided useful tools for particle matter PM2.5 and PM10 monitoring.