The current state and future direction of Eulerian models in simulating the tropospheric chemistry and transport of trace species: a review

Leonard K. Peters, Carl M. Berkowitz, Gregory R. Carmichael, Richard C. Easter, Graeme Fairweather, Steven J. Ghan, Jeremy M. Hales, L. Ruby Leung, William R. Pennell, Florian A. Potra, Rick D. Saylor, Tate T. Tsang

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

105 Scopus citations

Abstract

Limitations on comprehensive tropospheric chemistry/transport models are discussed within the context of a set of issues currently facing the environmental scientific and policy-making communities. A number of central improvements are discussed in a prioritized manner, with consideration of the key progress necessary to include feedback processes between meteorology and chemistry, aerosol formation, in cloud development with subsequent effects on wet removal, dry deposition and surface exchange processes, and impacts of chemical perturbations on radiation, climate, and weather. These improvements would result in a "third-generation model". The computational framework for this code is outlined, and estimates of required computer resources presented.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)189-222
Number of pages34
JournalAtmospheric Environment
Volume29
Issue number2
DOIs
StatePublished - Jan 1995

Bibliographical note

Funding Information:
While this article has largely focused on making atmospheric chemistry/transport models more comprehensive, ~ve also recognize that they must be made more relevant. Ultimately, support for the development of improved atmospheric chemistry models rests with the perception of the need to solve specific problems with the models. From a policy perspective, most of the important problems in atmospheric chemistry finally translate to assessment of present and future environmental impacts and the evaluation of the effectiveness of various emission scenarios at reducing future exposure's or meeting negotiated target emissions. Outside of a few examples (e.g. urban air quality), atmospheric chemistry models have not yet reached the level of acceptance that climate and weather prediction models have achieved. The impact of this reality is felt not only in funding but also in other supporting functions such as the allocation of CPU cycles. The en',ire atmospheric chemistry community should make it a priority to do a better job in this regard; after all, while we cannot do much about the weather, we certainly can do something about the environmental impacts of anthropogenic pollutants. In this context, improved atmospheric chemistry/ transport models are an essential, and indeed irreplaceable, tool for the effective management of our atmospheric environment Acknowledgements--The authors would like to thank their respective organizations for providing ongoing support for discussions and planning for a third-generation model of tropospheric chemistry/transport. This research was supported, in part, through a variety of grants and contracts to the investigators from the Department of Energy, the Envir-onmenhal Protection Agency, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, and the National Science Foundation. Pacific Northwest Laboratory is operated for the U.S. Department of Energy by Battelle Memorial Institute under Contract DE-AC'06-76RLO 1830.

Keywords

  • Eulerian models
  • Mathematical modeling
  • trace chemicals
  • tropospheric chemistry

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Environmental Science (all)
  • Atmospheric Science

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