The Use of Federal Reference Sensors, Satellite-Based Instrument Measurements, and Low-Cost Sensors for Temporal and Spatial Analysis of Air Quality in South Carolina

ABI ROBERTS, Christopher Post, Andrew Metcalf, Clemson University

     Abstract Number: 508
     Working Group: Remote and Regional Atmospheric Aerosol

Abstract
Air quality is influenced by a combination of pollutants, particulate matter (PM) being one of the main constituents. PM in the United States is monitored by networks managed at state, local, and tribal levels. Due to the expense of the equipment used for monitoring air quality at a regulatory level, these reference monitors can be sparsely distributed. Ways for increasing the density of coverage of measurements is with satellite-based instruments and low-cost sensors (LCS). While more accessible to both researchers and the public, both have barriers precluding their use in regulatory assessment. Satellite-based instruments measure the extinction of light in the atmosphere that is used to estimate surface-level concentrations of PM. The relationship between PM concentration and light scattering and absorption is highly dependent on the composition, shape, and size of particles in an area, often unknown or uncertain properties. Barriers to the use of LCS are related to their reliability and accuracy, which is influenced by environmental factors such as temperature and relative humidity.

In this talk, ongoing work to link LCS with satellite-based measurements of PM and reference monitors will be discussed. We have previously evaluated a LCS sensor pack developed at Clemson University during a 5-month deployment that we plan to use as part of a dense, LCS network in South Carolina. This talk will examine historical spatial and temporal trends of aerosols in the region, using data collected from the MODIS instrument on the Aqua and Terra satellite compared with surface measurements from reference methods in the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control (SC DHEC) network. Comparisons to the 5-month deployment will also be presented. Finally, this work will be used to inform future studies using a LCS network for ground-based measurements to validate satellite remote sensing of surface-level PM concentrations.