Visibility, aerosol optical depth, and low-visibility events in Bangkok during the dry season and associated local weather and synoptic patterns

Abstract

Visibility and aerosol optical depth (AOD) characterization, and their relationship with PM₁₀ and local and synoptic meteorology, were studied for January-March in 2014 and 2015 over Bangkok. Visibility degradation intensifies in the dry season as compared to the wet season due to increase in PM₁₀ and unfavorable meteorological conditions. The average visibility is lower in January and February as compared to the other months. Relatively higher AOD in March despite lower PM₁₀ is attributed to the synergetic effect of moderate relative humidity, secondary aerosols, elevated aerosol layer due to summertime convection, and biomass burning. Larger variability in visibility and PM₁₀ in winter months is due to more synoptic weather fluctuations while AOD shows similar variability for all months attributed partly to fires. Higher PM₁₀ and moderate-to-high relative humidity cause lower visibility in the morning while it improves in afternoon as PM₁₀ and relative humidity decrease. AOD is higher in the afternoon as compared to that in the morning and evening as it is less sensitive to diurnal change in aerosols and meteorology at the surface level. Visibility and AOD relationships with PM₁₀ are dependent on relative humidity. Weaker winds lead to lower visibility, higher PM₁₀, and higher AOD irrespective of wind direction. Stronger winds improve visibility and decrease PM₁₀ for all directions while AOD is higher for all directions except eastern and northeastern. The back-trajectory results show that the transport of pollutant and moist air is coupled with the synoptic weather and influence visibility and AOD. Two low-visibility events were investigated. The first event is potentially caused by the combined effect of local emissions and their accumulation due to stagnant weather conditions, secondary aerosols, and forest fires in the nearby regions. The second event can be attributed to the local emission and fires in the nearby area with hygroscopic growth of aerosols due to moist air from the Gulf of Thailand. Based on these findings, some policy implications have also been given.

Keywords: AOD; Hygroscopic growth; Low-visibility events; Sun–photometer; Synergetic effect.