Novel High-resolution Trace Gas Retrievals from Aircraft in Support of Regional Air Quality Modelling
Lead Research Organisation:
University of Manchester
Department Name: Earth Atmospheric and Env Sciences
Abstract
The aim of this fellowship is to provide novel and simultaneous measurements of pollutant trace gas concentrations at high spatial resolution from an airborne infrared spectrometer in support of regional air quality modeling. Poor air quality in urban areas and those downwind of urban plumes has been shown to be detrimental to human health, with reduced life expectancy due to both long-term exposure at background urban pollution levels and short-term exposure to dramatically elevated pollutant levels in acute episodes such as heat waves for example. Those with pre-existing respiratory or cardiovascular disease are most at risk of experiencing a reduced quality of life. The World Health Organisation has reported that airborne particulate matter (also known as aerosol), ozone and nitrogen dioxide gas are the strongest contributors to such health impacts. Such health impacts are further exacerbated by climate change - the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) suggests that tropospheric concentrations of ozone and nitrogen dioxide are expected to increase with rising temperature. This is highlighted by the well-documented heat wave event of Western Europe in August 2003, which saw more than 44000 excess deaths across Europe, many due to heat stress but many also due to acute respiratory problems linked to elevated concentrations of the trace gases discussed above. Despite this important aspect of public health, the atmospheric processes leading to the production of the key pollutants responsible for health impacts remains poorly understood. To develop a strategy for dealing with the problem of poor air quality, such processes need to first be understood both at the city scale and within resulting plumes. Simultaneous measurement of many atmospheric pollutant concentrations at high spatial resolution is key to the accuracy of urban and regional air quality models, which use such concentrations as inputs. This need is currently not met by commonly used emissions inventories and low spatial resolution datasets, such as those currently offered by satellite remote sensing instruments. The ambition of this Fellowship is to meet this important measurement need by providing novel high resolution trace gas measurements for a range of pollutant trace gases pertinent to regional air quality modelling such as nitrogen dioxide, ozone and their reservoirs. Such data will be recorded simultaneously and for the first time from infrared spectra of the atmosphere recorded by the Airborne Research Interferometer Evaluation System (ARIES) instrument onboard the NERC Facility for Airborne Atmospheric Measurement (FAAM) BAe-146 aircraft. To achieve this, the Fellow will use retrieval measurement techniques developed for ARIES as part of this fellowship. In partnership with the UK Met Office, a series of BAe-146 aircraft surveys (20 flying hours) will be conducted over and within the London urban pollution plume to measure pollutant concentrations downwind of the city. The new trace gas data will then be quantitatively compared to air quality model output generated as part of the ongoing Clean Air for London (ClearfLo) measurement and modelling study, which aims to characterise the processes leading to harmful air quality episodes. The results of the comparative study will be used to improve the ClearFlo plume model by understanding sources of bias in the plume model and its inputs. The aircraft surveys proposes as part of this Fellowship will be coordinated to coincide with periods of intensive ground measurement in London as part of ClearFlo in both Summer and Winter 2012. This new high-measurement capability will pave the way for a long-term dataset to support regional and global air quality modeling efforts, with future advances in satellite infrared remote sensing likely to provide synergistic large-scale but lower resolution trace gas concentration data for synchronized studies.
Publications
Allen G
(2019)
The development and trial of an unmanned aerial system for the measurement of methane flux from landfill and greenhouse gas emission hotspots.
in Waste management (New York, N.Y.)
Allen G
(2014)
Atmospheric composition and thermodynamic retrievals from the ARIES airborne TIR-FTS system - Part 2: Validation and results from aircraft campaigns
in Atmospheric Measurement Techniques
Allen G
(2016)
Biogeochemistry: Rebalancing the global methane budget.
in Nature
Belcher S
(2015)
Meteorology, Air Quality, and Health in London: The ClearfLo Project
in Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society
Cain M
(2017)
A cautionary tale: A study of a methane enhancement over the North Sea
in Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres
Esteve A
(2014)
A study on the sensitivities of simulated aerosol optical properties to composition and size distribution using airborne measurements
in Atmospheric Environment
France JL
(2016)
Measurements of d13C in CH4 and using particle dispersion modeling to characterize sources of Arctic methane within an air mass.
in Journal of geophysical research. Atmospheres : JGR
Fukasawa Satoru
(2013)
A family of plane curves with two or more Galois points in positive characteristic
in arXiv e-prints
Grant Allen (Author)
(2013)
Methane: The Unnatural Gas
in Science in Parliament -Harlow then London-
Illingworth S
(2014)
Measurement of boundary layer ozone concentrations on-board a Skywalker unmanned aerial vehicle
in Atmospheric Science Letters
Illingworth S
(2014)
Atmospheric composition and thermodynamic retrievals from the ARIES airborne FTS system - Part 1: Technical aspects and simulated capability
in Atmospheric Measurement Techniques
Jones B
(2014)
Airborne measurements of HC(O)OH in the European Arctic: A winter - summer comparison
in Atmospheric Environment
Kudzotsa I
(2016)
Aerosol indirect effects on glaciated clouds. Part I: Model description
in Quarterly Journal of the Royal Meteorological Society
Lee J
(2018)
Flow rate and source reservoir identification from airborne chemical sampling of the uncontrolled Elgin platform gas release
in Atmospheric Measurement Techniques
Myhre C
(2016)
Extensive release of methane from Arctic seabed west of Svalbard during summer 2014 does not influence the atmosphere
in Geophysical Research Letters
O'Shea S
(2014)
Area fluxes of carbon dioxide, methane, and carbon monoxide derived from airborne measurements around Greater London: A case study during summer 2012
in Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres
O'Shea S
(2014)
Methane and carbon dioxide fluxes and their regional scalability for the European Arctic wetlands during the MAMM project in summer 2012
in Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics
Palmer P
(2018)
A measurement-based verification framework for UK greenhouse gas emissions: an overview of the Greenhouse gAs Uk and Global Emissions (GAUGE) project
in Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics
Pisso I
(2016)
Constraints on oceanic methane emissions west of Svalbard from atmospheric in situ measurements and Lagrangian transport modeling.
in Journal of geophysical research. Atmospheres : JGR
Pitt J
(2016)
The development and evaluation of airborne in situ N<sub>2</sub>O and CH<sub>4</sub> sampling using a quantum cascade laser absorption spectrometer (QCLAS)
in Atmospheric Measurement Techniques
Zamponi Nicola
(2013)
Global existence analysis for degenerate energy-transport models for semiconductors
in arXiv e-prints
Description | During the FAAM aircraft study as part of this Fellowship, the first ever infrared retrievals of trace gas information from aircraft in the UK have been performed. The combination of remotely sensed and in situ data have been used to diagnose pollution gradients and greenhouse gas fluxes across (and from) London and to estimate the mass of pollutant gases added in the London urban environment from measurements upwind and downwind. This novel technique is now being used to characterise the potential for satellite utility in mass budget calculations on the regional and national scale. Most importantly, mass budgets calculated in this way could be used to demonstrate that exceedences of UK air quality limits may not always be due to emissions within the UK, and that such exceedences may be predominantly due to inflow of polluted air from outside of the UK. Furthermore, remote sensing during the Elgin gas leak in March 2012 has yielded data that has been used to estimate methane leak rates, helping to inform decision-making to reopen the gas field. The Fellowship has led to 24 papers which build directly on the research and skills developed between 2011-2014 and over £800k of follow-on funding from NERC, BEIS, and the UK Environment Agency. |
Exploitation Route | The developments in this fellowship have already been taken forward into several standard and large NERC grant proposals (e.g. GAUGE, CANMAM, BIOCOOL, QUANT, UASAS etc) to continue scientific work on air quality, the measurement and quantification of greenhouse gas fluxes, and numerical weather prediction. In addition, the development of a drone sampling/sensing capability was part of a follow-on project with the Environment Agency to provide a new way of regulatory monitoring of landfill gas emissions. This work also formed part of a policy guidance note and a published Agency feasibility study and field trial, We are also working with DECC and BGS in the UK to measure baseline concentrations of greenhouse gases and air quality tracers in selected prospective fracking sites in Yorks and Lancs to provide a statistical dataset to compare with any potential emissions during various phases of operational drilling. Dr. Allen conducted 26 television (and live news) broadcasts, 3 documentary interviews and 4 radio interviews, related to this work between 2012-2014. Outreach work includes talks for RMETS and a series of podcasts with 700+ listeners (http://thebarometer.podbean.com/) |
Sectors | Agriculture, Food and Drink,Creative Economy,Electronics,Energy,Environment,Government, Democracy and Justice,Transport |
URL | https://www.research.manchester.ac.uk/portal/Grant.Allen.html |
Description | Key findings resulting from this Fellowship concern new methodologies and instrumentation for the measurement of trace gases all over the world, including the Arctic and more widely (e.g. hotspot areas like landfills and fracking sites). My papers and conference presentations on regional scalability of flux calculations (from local to regional scales) are already providing global leadership on how to apply methodologies in analogous environments (e.g. boreal Canada and Siberia). These outcomes led to a successful NERC large grant application (closing the global methane budget) to enhance the scientific narrative on global and regional methane fluxes. Together with synergistic activity on other NERC projects (i.e. the MAMM and GAUGE programmes), we have also developed drone aircraft measurement techniques that we are currently operating in ongoing projects with the UK Environment Agency for regulatory monitoring of fugitve emissions of methane. This also resulted in a policy guidance note and faesibility study by Dr Allen that has been published by the Agency. Dr Allen was also invited to be a reviewer on the DECC Mackay and Stone report on the potential for fugitive emissions from fracking in the UK, and this has led to guidance on new monitoring techniques for fugitive methane assessment and Dr Allen is working with DECC and BGS in the UK on a baseline methane monitoring study ahead of operations for statistical analysis using transport models and local flux methods. |
First Year Of Impact | 2013 |
Sector | Creative Economy,Energy,Environment,Government, Democracy and Justice |
Impact Types | Societal,Economic,Policy & public services |
Description | Reviewer of Mackay & Stone report (DECC, 2013) |
Geographic Reach | National |
Policy Influence Type | Citation in other policy documents |
Impact | As a reviewer, my comments helped to shape the final version of this influential report. |
URL | https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/237330/MacKay_Stone_shale_... |
Description | Greenhouse gAs Uk and Global Emissions (GAUGE) |
Amount | £333,169 (GBP) |
Funding ID | NE/K00221X/1 |
Organisation | Natural Environment Research Council |
Sector | Public |
Country | United Kingdom |
Start | 01/2013 |
End | 07/2017 |
Description | Strategic Programme |
Amount | £5,000,000 (GBP) |
Funding ID | NE/N015835/1 |
Organisation | Natural Environment Research Council |
Sector | Public |
Country | United Kingdom |
Start | 04/2016 |
End | 04/2020 |
Description | Technology Proof Of Concept |
Amount | £101,803 (GBP) |
Funding ID | NE/P003737/1 |
Organisation | Natural Environment Research Council |
Sector | Public |
Country | United Kingdom |
Start | 05/2016 |
End | 06/2017 |
Title | Kriging of aircraft sampling for Langrangian flux calculation |
Description | New methods for Kriging of aircraft sampling to enable Langrangian flux calculation, e.g. for regional-scale emissions of greenhouse gases |
Type Of Material | Improvements to research infrastructure |
Year Produced | 2014 |
Provided To Others? | Yes |
Impact | Regulatory reporting of greenhouse gas emissions for the UK. Air quality monitoring, modelling and prediction. |
Title | ARIES retrievals |
Description | Retrievals of trace gas concetration profiles calculated from infrared spectra recorded by FTIR on the FAAM aircraft |
Type Of Material | Database/Collection of data |
Year Produced | 2013 |
Provided To Others? | Yes |
Impact | Flux calculations for London, the Arctic and the UK for emissions reporting, academic beneficiaries etc. |
Title | FAAM data |
Description | Geolocated trace gas concentrations from the FAAM FGGA instrument and Manchester Aerodyne QCL instrument and other core datasets. |
Type Of Material | Database/Collection of data |
Year Produced | 2012 |
Provided To Others? | Yes |
Impact | Improved modelling of the atmosphere, air quality modelling and prediction. Numerical weather prediction improvements. Policy advice to the UK Environment Agency. |
Title | Manchester Airborne Retrieval Scheme (MARS) |
Description | Algorithm and model for the retrieval of trace gases from aircraft-measured infrared spectra by the Met Office ARIES FTIR instrument. |
Type Of Material | Computer model/algorithm |
Year Produced | 2014 |
Provided To Others? | Yes |
Impact | Air quality monitoring improvements, numerical weather prediction improvements, emissions monitoring and reporting |
Description | British Geological Survey |
Organisation | British Geological Survey |
Country | United Kingdom |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | Work Package lead of atmospheric composition deliverable to an environmental baseline assessment prior to potential shale gas production in the UK |
Collaborator Contribution | Part of a broader project tasked with a full environmental baseline assessment. BGS have provided eddy covariance monitoring instrumentation to our measurement site at Blackpool and provide knowledge exchange on broader environmental assessment, e.g. seismic and ground water assessments and monitoring. |
Impact | Project website (above). Contributions to public inquiry evidence. Multi-disciplinary - atmospheric science, geology, seismology, hydrology, satellite remote sensing, public health. |
Start Year | 2014 |
Description | Environment Agency - UAV GHGs for Landfill flux |
Organisation | Environment Agency |
Country | United Kingdom |
Sector | Public |
PI Contribution | Designed, built and operated a drone for greenhouse gas (CO2 an CH4) sampling in support of regulatory monitoring of GHG flux from UK landfills. |
Collaborator Contribution | Funding and guidance on development for regulatory uses and commercial roll-out to environmental consultancies. |
Impact | Allen, G., Pitt, J., Hollingsworth, P., Mead, I., Kabbabe, K., Roberts, G., Percival, C.: Measuring landfill methane emissions using unmanned aerial systems, Environment Agency, ISBN 978-1-84911-367-0, SC140015/R, 2015 Allen, G., Feasibility of aerial measurements of methane emissions from landfills, Environment Agency, ISBN 978-1-84911-329-8, SC130034/R |
Start Year | 2016 |
Description | IASI Satellite working group collaboration |
Organisation | University of Paris |
Country | France |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | Visit and work-plan/publications with Dr. Cathy Clerbaux, University of Paris, to work on IASI satellite validation using new remote sensing measurements retrieved during Dr. Allen's Fellowship activity. |
Start Year | 2013 |
Description | UK Met Office |
Organisation | Meteorological Office UK |
Country | United Kingdom |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | Collaboration with the Observation-based Research Group at the Met Office to conduct synsergistic flight sampling for NWP and Air Quality model validation. 10 hours FAAM flying contributed in kind by the Met Office (nominal value £70000) |
Start Year | 2011 |
Title | Manchester Airborne Retrieval Scheme (MARS) |
Description | Retrieval package for the calculation of trace gas concentrations from infrared spectra measured by aircraft |
Type Of Technology | Physical Model/Kit |
Year Produced | 2014 |
Impact | New measurements of atmospheric composition for air qualuty monitoring, regulatory reporting and numerical weather prediction. |
Company Name | Ground Gas Solutions Ltd |
Description | Solutions and measruement of gases emanating from the ground |
Impact | We are working with GGS to improve methodologies and instrumentation for landfill gas measurement. |
Website | http://ground-gassolutions.co.uk/ |
Description | BBC News at 10 - science feature on airborne air quality work during Summer Olympics |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A press release, press conference or response to a media enquiry/interview |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Media (as a channel to the public) |
Results and Impact | David Shukman (BBC science editor) interview Dr. Allen for a 3-minute science feature on the airborne air quality measurement work conduced as part of this Fellowship for the News at 10, airing 7 August 2012. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2012 |