media advisory August 9, 2005
Heather Emmons, DRI PIO, heather.emmons@dri.edu, (775) 673-7313,
(702) 743-3435 (cell)
Dr. Dave DuBois, Assistant Research Air Quality Scientist, (702)
862-5468
All DRI News Releases available at: http://news.dri.edu/
DRI scientists deploy new tethered helium balloons
to aid probe of Las Vegas air quality
 |
 |
 |
| DRI scientists test the tethered helium-filled balloon in a trial
run at a Las Vegas park |
Drs. Dave DuBois (l) and Mark Green examine
a readout during a test of the new
tethersonde system |
Reporters and Editors,
Please Note
WHO: Desert
Research Institute and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
(NOAA) in cooperation with the Clark County Department of Air Quality and Environmental
Management (DAQEM) and the U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency
WHAT: Conducting an upper-atmospheric air quality
study to investigate sources of ozone and factors leading to increased levels
in the Las Vegas Valley using a new tethersonde system, or tethered
helium-filled balloons
WHERE: Jean Airport
WHEN: Wed., Aug. 10, in collaboration with the Clark County DAQEM's ozone
sampling media event with glider planes. DRI scientist Dr. Dave DuBois
will be launching a balloon at 8 a.m. and will be available to speak with media
beforehand, during or after the launches.
HOW: The Jean Airport portion of the study on Wednesday will utilize
a newly acquired tethersonde system consisting of meteorological sensor packages
suspended below a large, tethered helium-filled balloon, which provides the lift
to raise the instruments up to 3000 meters above ground level. The system
gives the research meteorologist a detailed profile of the atmospheric boundary
layer by raising and lowering the tethersondes to measure atmospheric conditions
over time at multiple levels. The tetherline is controlled by a winch to
raise or lower the instruments as they collect continuous vertical measurements
of wind speed and direction, temperature, relative humidity and ozone level. It
is suspected that on occasion, high levels of ozone in the upper atmosphere are
vertically mixed to the ground level in the Las Vegas area thus resulting in
higher ozone pollution. This system will aid DRI and NOAA researchers in
understanding the vertical air-mixing process and identifying the source of ozone.
The overall study incorporates an extensive array of atmospheric testing equipment,
including one radar (radio detection and ranging)
wind profiler and four SODAR (sonic detection and ranging)
systems, which were deployed at the beginning of the 2005 ozone season. The
radar wind profiler was set up in the central portion of the Las Vegas Valley
and collocated with a "mini-SODAR" to improve definition of wind patterns at
lower levels (less than 150 meters). To aid in defining ozone-transport
pathways in an out of the area, the other three SODARs were placed in Jean, Nev.
(southwest of Las Vegas), the Las Vegas Motor Speedway (northeast of Las Vegas)
and at the Floyd Lamb State Park in the northwestern portion of Las Vegas.
BACKGROUND ABOUT THE STUDY: It's no surprise that ozone
pollution in urban Las Vegas has become a major focus for local governmental
air-quality agencies, since the EPA officially designated the city non-compliant
for ozone in Sept., 2004. To remediate high episodes of local ozone, the
Clark County DAQEM and the EPA have turned to Desert Research Institute scientists
through its Cooperative Institute for Atmospheric Sciences and Terrestrial Applications,
or CIASTA, to conduct an upper-atmospheric air quality study to investigate the
sources of ozone and factors leading to increased levels in the Las Vegas Valley. An
interdisciplinary research collaboration among NOAA and educational institutions
within the Nevada System of Higher Education, CIASTA consists of research meteorologists
and air quality scientists well-experienced in sleuthing for air-quality troublemakers.
Ozone occurs naturally in the upper atmosphere and protects the earth from ultraviolet
rays. At ground level, however, ozone is a constituent of smog caused when
sunlight, hot temperatures and various pollutants combine in a complex chemical
reaction. Even in low concentrations, ground-level ozone may irritate the
human respiratory system and inflame the lining of the lungs. Based on
national ambient air quality standards--established by the EPA--Las Vegas and
several surrounding areas have been designated non-attainment for the 8-hour
average ozone level.
Ozone seasons vary around the United States, but in Clark County, ozone usually
registers the highest between May and August. The study period for this
project correlates with the typical Clark County ozone season with the project
beginning in May 2005 and concluding in August 2005. Drs. Mark Green and
Dave DuBois--co-principal investigators with DRI--and researchers with NOAA's
Las Vegas-based Air Resources Laboratory are collaborating on this air-quality
study. A major goal is to expand knowledge of upper-air wind patterns and
illuminate transport processes that carry ozone into, around and out of the Las
Vegas area.
Upper-air measurements have indicated that elevated levels of ozone in the Las
Vegas area may be resulting partially from wind currents carrying ozone to Nevada
from southern California. DRI and NOAA researchers are aiming to define
the effect that this process exerts on ozone levels in urban Las Vegas. In
the analysis and evaluation stages of the study, air-emissions, atmospheric chemistry
and meteorological data will be combined to establish robust conceptual models. These
models, in turn, will be used to evaluate measures for reducing ozone levels
in metropolitan Las Vegas.
ABOUT DRI: A nonprofit, statewide division of the Nevada System of Higher
Education, DRI pursues a full-time program of basic and applied environmental
research on a local, national, and international scale. Nearly 500 full- and
part-time scientists, technicians, and support staff conduct more than 300 research
projects at DRI annually. DRI generates $45 million in total revenue consisting
predominately of competitively won research contracts and grants. The State of Nevada provides
critical funding in support of DRI's administration, operations and maintenance,
through the Nevada System of Higher Education's budget. While DRI’s portion
of the NSHE budget is less than 1 percent, the institute leverages these funds
to enhance its competitiveness.
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