11:15 AM - 11:30 AM
[ACG34-07] Investigative Study of Black Carbon Aerosol Concentration Variation at Indian Research Station – Bharati, Antarctica
Keywords:Aerosol, Black Carbon, Antarctica , Climate Change, Radiative Forcing
Earth’s atmosphere has been deeply impacted because of the disturbance in its heat budget caused by radiative forcing, and one of the prime contributors is black carbon (BC). Aeolian processes transport it to a long-range and it reaches the coasts and inlands of Antarctica. To achieve the Sustainable Development Goals of United Nations, it becomes very crucial to monitor the concentration variations of BC in the pristine and sensitive environment of Antarctic continent over a long-term to study the implication of aerosol and the variability in its concentration. For measurement of the BC aerosol, an AE-33 aethalometer of Magee Scientific is operational on a regular basis since starting of austral summer of the year 2018-19 at the Indian Antarctic Station Bharati which is located at 69o 24.41’S & 76o11.71’E. The Antarctic summer season marks the increased activity at Bharati and neighboring stations Zhongshan, Progress and Law Base summer station. Additional to it, at least three supply vessels in the close vicinity of aerosol observatory contribute to an increased concentration level of BC. This work highlights the changes in the BC concentration, particularly the diurnal and seasonal variations. Emphasis has been given to understand the effects of local anthropogenic activities in the Larsemann Hills area during the austral summer season. Also, the long-range transport from patagonia region was studied and solar zenith angle was considered in the search for the prominent driver behind shooting concentrations of Black Carbon. Radiative Forcing has been estimated at a temporal scale encompassing Austral Summer and Austral Winters.