Detecting and mapping dust emission hotspots in South Khorasan, Central Eurasia

Title : Detecting and mapping dust emission hotspots in South Khorasan, Central Eurasia

Abstract:

Atmospheric dust has a significant impact on air quality and human health. Based on visibility, dust events are defined as dusty days and dust storms. South Khorasan, which lies between the Karakum Desert and the Sistan Plain, is affected by dust, and many dusty days have been reported in this area. However, studies on the spread of dust have yet to be conducted. In this study, dusty days and dust storms were determined for six synoptic stations (Birjand, Boshrooyeh, Ferdows, Ghaen, Nehbandan and Tabas) from 2002 to 2018. HYSPLIT model is used to track dust trajectories to determine the main paths from Central Asia and the Middle East. In this study, HYSPLIT is used to analyze dust sources and transport pathways, highlighting the importance of wind patterns and visibility data for classifying dust events. The result shows that dust particles reached South Khorasan from the west of Iran in spring and winter and from the northeast of Iran in summer and autumn. It has been reported that in Nehbandan and in summer most of the dust storms rise from Karakum and move to the plain of Sistan. The most dusty places are in the northeast and south of South Khorasan. These places are the main entrances and exits for dust in South Khorasan. Finally, the dust in South Khorasan is also influenced by the change of seasons. Some of the dust from the Karakum Desert enters South Khorasan, and much of the dust stirred up in South Khorasan moves towards the Sistan Plain. Finally, if we want to talk about the movement of particles in South Khorasan, Central Eurasia, we can say that the dust enters South Khorasan mainly from the west in spring and winter and mainly from the east in summer and fall. The forward trails also mainly coincide with the backward trails. For example, in winter and spring, the particles entered the province from the west, and according to the forward tracks, the particles moved eastward from stations within the South Khorasan.

Biography:

Amir Ebrahimi studied Environmental Science and Engineering at University of Birjand, Iran. In 2018, he participated as a pilot student in the GEONETC program under the supervision of the European Union. He is working on remote sensing and GIS with Python. In his previous research, he has worked on the effects of climate on biodiversity and land cover and he is writing papers on deep learning models that can be used for climate change and downscaling of climate variables. He is currently studying the relationship between dust patterns and climate in central Eurasia using AI algorithms and works as a supervisor in EIA projects.