Tracking Air Pollution from Peak to Valley: OH Reactivity Campaign Launches at Monte Cimone

To investigate air pollution in Italy, the ICE-3 team from Forschungszentrum Jülich and the atmospheric measurements team from CNR-ISAC Bologna are conducting joint measurements on top of Monte Cimone. The one-month campaign investigates outflows from the polluted Po Valley and the clean Tyrrhenian Sea.

From mid-June to mid-July, an air quality campaign is taking place at the Laboratorio “O. Vittori” on Monte Cimone in Italy. This campaign, named “Investigation of OH reactivity in a remote environment”, is part of the ITINERIS-ACTRIS Pilot Access Call, which funded the deployment of an OH reactivity and a formaldehyde instrument from Forschungszentrum Jülich at the measurement site. These measurements will complement the VOCUS and GC measurements of organic and inorganic compounds, carbon monoxide, and nitrogen oxides, which are being carried out by the CNR-ISAC team within ACTRIS ERIC and ICOS ERIC.

 

 

During the campaign, air masses from the Tyrrhenian Sea and from the heavily polluted Po Valley are expected to be sampled. Comparing the OH reactivity with gas-phase measurements will improve our understanding of air quality in these regions.

Last week, the ICE-3 team from Forschungszentrum Jülich visited the measurement site and, with the highly appreciated support of the CNR-ISAC and Italian Air Force (CAMM) teams, installed the OH reactivity and formaldehyde instruments, marking the beginning of the campaign. The ICE-3 and CNR-ISAC teams are excited about working together on this project and are looking forward to analysing the data!