Sharp increase in Saharan dust intrusions over the western Euro-Mediterranean in February–March 2020–2022 and associated atmospheric circulation

  1. Cuevas-Agulló, Emilio 12
  2. Barriopedro, David 4
  3. García, Rosa Delia 19
  4. Alonso-Pérez, Silvia 78
  5. González-Alemán, Juan Jesús 3
  6. Werner, Ernest 11
  7. Suárez, David 10
  8. Bustos, Juan José 1
  9. García-Castrillo, Gerardo 11
  10. García, Omaira 1
  11. Barreto, África 1
  12. Basart, Sara 56
  1. 1 Izaña Atmospheric Research Center (IARC), State Meteorological Agency (AEMET), 38001 Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Spain
  2. 2 retired
  3. 3 Modelling Area – Department of Development and Applications, State Meteorological Agency (AEMET), 28040 Madrid, Spain
  4. 4 Instituto de Geociencias (IGEO), Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas – Universidad Complutense de Madrid (CSIC-UCM), 28040 Madrid, Spain
  5. 5 Barcelona Supercomputing Center (BSC), 08034 Barcelona, Spain
  6. 6 now at: the World Meteorological Organization (WMO), 1201 Geneva, Switzerland
  7. 7 Departamento de Ingeniería Industrial, Universidad de La Laguna (ULL), 38002 La Laguna (Tenerife), Spain
  8. 8 Instituto Universitario de Estudios de las Mujeres, Universidad de La Laguna (ULL), 38002 La Laguna (Tenerife), Spain
  9. 9 TRAGSATEC, Madrid, Spain
  10. 10 Territorial Delegation of AEMET in the Canary Islands, State Meteorological Agency of Spain (AEMET), 35017 Las Palmas, Spain
  11. 11 Territorial Delegation of AEMET in Catalonia, State Meteorological Agency (AEMET), 08071 Barcelona, Spain
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Revista:
Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics

ISSN: 1680-7316

Año de publicación: 2024

Volumen: 24

Número: 7

Páginas: 4083-4104

Tipo: Artículo

DOI: 10.5194/ACP-24-4083-2024 GOOGLE SCHOLAR lock_openAcceso abierto editor

Otras publicaciones en: Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics

Resumen

During the months of February–March (FM) of the 2020–2022 period, several intense dust intrusions from northern Africa affected Europe. The frequency of dust events was exceptional, considering that wintertime is the season with minimum dust activity in the Mediterranean, and some episodes displayed a duration and/or intensity never recorded before, affecting large areas of the western Euro-Mediterranean (WEM) region. The main objective of this work is to construct a catalogue of FM dust events over the WEM for the 2003–2022 period based on satellite aerosol retrievals and to analyse their atmospheric drivers at the synoptic and large scales, paying special attention to the recent 2020–2022 period of high dust activity. Overall, our results indicate large intraseasonal and interannual variability in the occurrence of wintertime dust events over the WEM. Dust events of FM 2020–2022 were characterized by enhanced dust concentration and high maximum altitudes in comparison with those of previous years (2003–2019). WEM dust events are associated with enhanced activity of high-pressure systems over the Euro-Atlantic sector, which favour the obstruction of the westerlies and the occurrence of cut-off lows at subtropical latitudes. However, these high-pressure systems can exhibit a large variety of configurations, including meridional dipole blocking patterns with poleward shifted jets or Mediterranean subtropical ridges with an intensified mid-latitude jet. The former is the dominant favourable pattern for WEM dust occurrence, but the latter was relatively common during the 2020–2022 period.