Preprints
https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2025-2755
https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2025-2755
21 Jul 2025
 | 21 Jul 2025
Status: this preprint is open for discussion and under review for Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics (ACP).

Long range transport of Canadian Wildfire smoke to Europe in Fall 2023: aerosol properties and spectral features of smoke particles

Akriti Masoom, Stelios Kazadzis, Robin Lewis Modini, Martin Gysel-Beer, Julian Gröbner, Martine Collaud Coen, Francisco Navas-Guzman, Natalia Kouremeti, Benjamin Tobias Brem, Nora Kristina Nowak, Giovanni Martucci, Maxime Hervo, and Sophie Erb

Abstract. Canadian wildfires in Fall of 2023 were unique regarding the observed aerosol properties using remote sensing and in situ measurements for both short-range and long-range transported plumes across North America and Europe. One of the highlights was the observation of special concave spectral curvature in AOD having maxima at higher wavelengths than the minimum measured wavelength which led to negative values of Ångström exponent in spectral ranges below 500 nm. Along with this, large accumulation mode size distributions with volume median diameters reaching about 800 nm were observed. Another unique observation was the non-monotonic spectral curvature in single scattering albedo (SSA). For most of the stations, SSA increased in the UV-Visible region and/or further remaining either constant or decreasing at longer wavelengths as observed from retrievals from column integrated (AOD) from remote sensing and coefficients from in situ measurements. Additionally, two stations in Canada and one in Europe were found to have a well-defined peak in AOD at 500 nm. These Canadian stations also displayed a non-monotonic spectral SSA with maxima at 675 nm, while the high altitude stations of Europe showed monotonically increasing SSA. Finally, a much higher (approximately 5 times) UV absorption than visible absorption indicated the presence of brown carbon and/or tar balls, which have a strong spectral dependence in imaginary refractive index. The SSA concave spectral curvature denotes the mix of black carbon and non-absorbing particulate matter and influence of particle size, while the AOD concave spectral curvature is attributed to particle size.

Competing interests: At least one of the (co-)authors is a member of the editorial board of Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics.

Publisher's note: Copernicus Publications remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims made in the text, published maps, institutional affiliations, or any other geographical representation in this paper. While Copernicus Publications makes every effort to include appropriate place names, the final responsibility lies with the authors. Views expressed in the text are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher.
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Akriti Masoom, Stelios Kazadzis, Robin Lewis Modini, Martin Gysel-Beer, Julian Gröbner, Martine Collaud Coen, Francisco Navas-Guzman, Natalia Kouremeti, Benjamin Tobias Brem, Nora Kristina Nowak, Giovanni Martucci, Maxime Hervo, and Sophie Erb

Status: open (until 01 Sep 2025)

Comment types: AC – author | RC – referee | CC – community | EC – editor | CEC – chief editor | : Report abuse
  • CC1: 'Comment on Masoom et al. (2025) egusphere-2025-2755', Thomas Eck, 07 Aug 2025 reply
    • AC1: 'Reply on CC1', Akriti Masoom, 23 Aug 2025 reply
  • RC1: 'Comment on egusphere-2025-2755', Anonymous Referee #1, 11 Aug 2025 reply
  • RC2: 'Comment on egusphere-2025-2755', Anonymous Referee #2, 12 Aug 2025 reply
  • RC3: 'Comment on egusphere-2025-2755', Anonymous Referee #3, 18 Aug 2025 reply
Akriti Masoom, Stelios Kazadzis, Robin Lewis Modini, Martin Gysel-Beer, Julian Gröbner, Martine Collaud Coen, Francisco Navas-Guzman, Natalia Kouremeti, Benjamin Tobias Brem, Nora Kristina Nowak, Giovanni Martucci, Maxime Hervo, and Sophie Erb
Akriti Masoom, Stelios Kazadzis, Robin Lewis Modini, Martin Gysel-Beer, Julian Gröbner, Martine Collaud Coen, Francisco Navas-Guzman, Natalia Kouremeti, Benjamin Tobias Brem, Nora Kristina Nowak, Giovanni Martucci, Maxime Hervo, and Sophie Erb

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Short summary
This article aims at providing details on the special aerosol properties observed during 2023 Canadian wildfire plume transport and exploring the synergism between remote sensing and in situ measurements for investigating the cause of the occurrence of the observations of special aerosol properties.
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