AAAR 35th Annual Conference October 17 - October 21, 2016 Oregon Convention Center Portland, Oregon, USA
Abstract View
Red Tide Bioplume Assessment during BOAS Campaign: Understanding Bioaerosols Abundance and Cloud Lifecycle
ARNALDO NEGRON-MARTY, Natasha DeLeon-Rodriguez, Natasha Hodas, Matthew Coggon, Kelvin Bates, Samantha M. Waters, Armin Sorooshian, Haflidi Jonsson, John Seinfeld, Richard Flagan, Kostas Konstantinidis, Athanasios Nenes, Georgia Institute of Technology
Abstract Number: 559 Working Group: Bioaerosols
Abstract Air-Sea interactions involve the emission of particles by the sea-spray, which can release primary biological atmospheric particles (PBAP) and abiotic particles to the marine boundary layer. During bloom periods (high biological activity events) the organic fraction of the marine aerosol contributes up to 63% to the sub-micron aerosol mass and it could be a substantial marine biota contribution to cloud formation (O’Dowd CD et al., 2004). The PBAP source is highly uncertain, and depends on meteorological (e.g., wind, UV radiation, temperature) and ecosystem parameters. Particularly uncertain is the distribution and type of PBAP emissions from blooms during their growth and dissipation phases (Prather et al., 2013). Also, is unknown on how the life cycle of phytoplankton will affect the group of microorganisms emitted to the boundary layer and its possible effect in cloud formation. In this study a (Wideband Integrated Bioaerosol Sensors) WIBS-4 and SpinCon II, a wetted-wall sampler, were integrated in a Twin-Otter aircraft to collect bioaerosols samples over the marine environment in the California Coast. Additionally, a cloud condensation nuclei counter (CCNc) was onboard of the aircraft to study the CCN activity of atmospheric particles. WIBS-4 data was used to quantify the abundance of fluorescent biological atmospheric particles (FBAP) and SpinCon II samples were post-processed by flow cytometry (FCM) to quantify the total biological atmospheric particles (TBAP). Several flights were performed over the Red Tide bloom under different meteorological conditions and at different altitudes. WIBS-4 results show a day-to-day variability in the FBAP concentration over the Red Tide. Also, it shows higher concentrations of FBAP in the free troposphere than in the marine boundary layer. The data will be compared to CCNc results to understand the possible influence of the Red Tide bloom in the cloud droplet concentrations, given that previous results with bacteria isolates suggest bioaerosols could activate at cloud relevant supersaturations.