A Tale of African Dust: Cross-Oceanic Transport and Climatic Impact

A Tale of African Dust: Cross-Oceanic Transport and Climatic Impact

Aerosols are believed to partially counteract greenhouse warming effects and can also cause harm to human health, although the detailed mechanisms are not fully understood. A major reason for this is the lack of knowledge of the composition, origin and evolution of these aerosols. In order to better understand these issues, field research was carried out at Ragged Point, Barbados, during the summer of 2010. The sampling site is the eastern most point in the Caribbean region and the first land contact for dust aerosols that originate in Africa and travel transatlantic to the Caribbean and Floridian regions. Aerosol samples were collected using two types of samplers over the period of eighteen days in July and August of 2010. They were transported to and stored in the laboratory at NSU under freezing conditions for analysis. Multiple analytical instruments are used to characterize the inorganic and organic species present in these aerosols. This study also investigates the meteorological trajectories of the aerosols over the sampling period with regards to their origins and evolution pathways. Some preliminary results, along with the field sampling processes, are presented.