Preprints
https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2022-18
https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2022-18
28 Feb 2022
 | 28 Feb 2022

Reduced surface fine dust under droughts over the southeastern United States during summertime: observations and CMIP6 model simulations

Wei Li and Yuxuan Wang

Abstract. Drought is an extreme hydroclimate event that has been shown to cause the increase of surface fine dust near source regions, while the drought-dust relationship in regions predominantly influenced by long-range transported dust such as the southeastern US (SEUS) has received less attention. Using long-term surface fine dust observations, weekly US Drought Monitor (USDM), and monthly Standardized Precipitation-Evapotranspiration Index (SPEI), this study unmasks spatial disparity in drought-dust relationships where the SEUS stands out as being abnormous in that it shows a decrease in surface dust concentrations during drought in contrast to the expected increase in dust found in other contiguous US (CONUS) regions. Surface fine dust was found to decrease by ~0.5 µg/m3 with a unit decrease of SPEI in the SEUS, as opposed to an increase of ~0.15 µg/m3 in the west. The anomalies of elemental ratios, satellite aerosol optical depth (AOD), and dust extinction coefficients suggest that both the emissions and trans-Atlantic transport of African dust are weakened when the SEUS is under droughts. Through the teleconnection patterns of negative North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO), a lower than normal and more northeastward displacement of the Bermuda High (BH) was present during SEUS droughts which resulted in less dust being transported into the SEUS. At the same time, enhanced precipitation in Sahel associated with the northward shift of the Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ) leads to lower dust emissions therein. Of the four selected models participating in the sixth phase of the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project (CMIP6), GISS-E2-1-G was found to perform the best in capturing the drought-dust sensitivity in the SEUS. This study reveals the mechanism of how regional-scale droughts influence aerosol abundance through changing long-range transport of dust.

Journal article(s) based on this preprint

17 Jun 2022
Reduced surface fine dust under droughts over the southeastern United States during summertime: observations and CMIP6 model simulations
Wei Li and Yuxuan Wang
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 22, 7843–7859, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-7843-2022,https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-7843-2022, 2022
Short summary

Wei Li and Yuxuan Wang

Interactive discussion

Status: closed

Comment types: AC – author | RC – referee | CC – community | EC – editor | CEC – chief editor | : Report abuse
  • RC1: 'Review of “Reduced surface fine dust under droughts over the southeastern United States during summertime: observations and CMIP6 model simulations”', Anonymous Referee #1, 05 Apr 2022
  • RC2: 'Comment on egusphere-2022-18', Anonymous Referee #2, 08 Apr 2022
  • AC1: 'Responses to Reviews', Wei Li, 17 May 2022

Interactive discussion

Status: closed

Comment types: AC – author | RC – referee | CC – community | EC – editor | CEC – chief editor | : Report abuse
  • RC1: 'Review of “Reduced surface fine dust under droughts over the southeastern United States during summertime: observations and CMIP6 model simulations”', Anonymous Referee #1, 05 Apr 2022
  • RC2: 'Comment on egusphere-2022-18', Anonymous Referee #2, 08 Apr 2022
  • AC1: 'Responses to Reviews', Wei Li, 17 May 2022

Peer review completion

AR: Author's response | RR: Referee report | ED: Editor decision | EF: Editorial file upload
AR by Wei Li on behalf of the Authors (19 May 2022)  Author's response   Author's tracked changes   Manuscript 
ED: Publish as is (29 May 2022) by Roya Bahreini
AR by Wei Li on behalf of the Authors (03 Jun 2022)  Author's response   Manuscript 

Journal article(s) based on this preprint

17 Jun 2022
Reduced surface fine dust under droughts over the southeastern United States during summertime: observations and CMIP6 model simulations
Wei Li and Yuxuan Wang
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 22, 7843–7859, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-7843-2022,https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-22-7843-2022, 2022
Short summary

Wei Li and Yuxuan Wang

Wei Li and Yuxuan Wang

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The requested preprint has a corresponding peer-reviewed final revised paper. You are encouraged to refer to the final revised version.

Short summary
Fine dust is an important component of PM2.5 and can be largely modulated by droughts. Opposite to the increase of dust in the southwest US where the major dust sources are located, dust in the southeast is affected more by the long-range transport from Africa and decreases under droughts. Both the transport and emissions of African dust are weakened when the southeast US is under droughts, which reveals how regional-scale droughts can influence aerosol abundance through long-range transport.