• Korean Journal of Remote Sensing
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• v.37 no.6_2
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• pp.1837-1847
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• 2021

This study investigated wind corridors for the entire Suwon-city area using a geographic information system and a computational fluid dynamics model. We conducted numerical simulations for 16 inflow wind directions using the average wind speeds measured at the Suwon automated synoptic observation system (ASOS) for recent ten years. We analyzed the westerly (dominant wind direction) and easterly cases (not dominant but strong wind speed) in detail and investigated the characteristics of a wind speed distribution averaged using the frequencies of 16 wind directions as weighting factors. The characteristics of the wind corridors in Suwon city can be summarized as; (1) In the northern part of Suwon, complicated flows were formed by the high mountainous terrain, and strong (weak) winds and updrafts (downdrafts) were simulated on the windward (leeward) mountain slope. (2) On the leeward mountain slope, a wind corridor was formed along a valley, and relatively strong airflow flowed into the residential area. (3) The strong winds were simulated in a wide and flat area in the west and south part of Suwon city. (4) Due to the friction and flow blocking by buildings, wind speeds decreased, and airflows became complicated in the downtown area. (5) Wind corridors in residential areas were formed along wide roads and areas with few obstacles, such as rivers, lakes, and reservoirs.

• Journal of Korean Society for Atmospheric Environment
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• v.24 no.2
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• pp.162-175
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• 2008

Gyeongju, which was the central city of the ancient civilization at Silla Kingdom, has various kinds of stone cultural properties. It is significantly important to preserve historical sources of Korea. However, recent air quality data measured in Gyeongju did not show good air quality level. In order to investigate variation of the concentration of the air pollutants with meteorological condition, an air quality monitoring and an aerosol sampling were conducted during the intensive monitoring period in Gyeongju. Impacts of the meteorological factors on the air pollutants were also analyzed based on the air mass pathway categories using HYSPLIT model and the local wind patterns using MM5 model. The prevailing air mass pathways were classified into four categories as following; category I affected by easterly marine aerosols, category II affected by northwesterly continental aerosols, category III affected by southwesterly continental aerosols, and category IV affected by northerly continental aerosols. The concentrations of the air quality standards were relatively lower during the fall intensive monitoring period. At that time, the easterly marine air mass pattern was dominated. The seasonal average mass concentration of $PM_{10,Opt}$, which optically measured at the monitoring site, was the highest value of $77.6{\pm}28.3\;{\mu}g\;m^{-3}$ during the spring intensive monitoring period but the lowest value of $20.1{\pm}5.3\;{\mu}g\;m^{-3}$ during the fall intensive monitoring period. The concentrations of $SO_2$ and CO were relatively higher when the air mass came from the northwestern continent or the northern continent. The concentrations of ${SO_4}^{2-}$ and ${NO_3}^-$ increased under the northwesterly continental condition. It was estimated that the acidic aerosols were dominated in the atmosphere of Gyeongju when the air mass came from the continental regions.

• Journal of Environmental Science International
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• v.5 no.2
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• pp.131-140
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• 1996

Analysis of hourly variations of sulfur dioxide ($SO_2$) concentrations affected by regional climates for the period of yellow sandy dusts was carried out from March 31 through April 9, 1993. The concentration of 50, at a coastal city, Kangnung city, was much higher than that at an inland city Wonju in the west, but the hourly distrbutions of $SO_2$ concentrations show a similar tendency at both cities. Under the prevailing synoptic-scale westerly winds blowing over a high Mt. Taegualyang in the west toward Kangnung city in the eastern coastal region, the $SO_2$ at Kangnung is trapped by an easterly sea-breeze during the day and under prevailing easterly winds, it is also isolated by the high wall of Mt. Taegualyang, with its high concentration from 14 to 16 LST. Furthermore, when the westerly winds were dominent all day long the high $SO_2$ concentrations at Kangnung were produced by its intrusion from a urban city, Wonju or China in the west into a mountainous coastal city, Kangnung, to some extent, and when the air becomes rapidly cooled down at the clear daytime or the nighttime, their concentrations are also increased by a great amount of heating fuel combustion. Especilly, its maximum concentrations were shown in Wonju and Kangnung from 08 LST through 10 LST, due to the increase of auto vehicles near the beginning time of office hour and were detected again after sunset due to both increases of vehicles at the end of office hour and heating fuel combustion. During the period of Yellow Sandy Dusts which are transported from China into Korea, the $SO_2$ concentrations on rainy days at Wonju and Kangnung were much lower than the monthly mean values of $SO_2$, and their low concentrations could be caused by the scavenging process of rain.

• Atmosphere
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• v.22 no.2
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• pp.209-219
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• 2012

Extreme heavy snowfall episodes have been investigated in case of accumulated snowfall amount larger than 50 cm during the past ten years, in order to understand the association of low-level stability with heavy snowfall in the Yeongdong region. In general, the selected 4 events have similar synoptic setting such as the Siberian High extended to East Sea along with the Low passing by the southern Korean Peninsula, eventually inducing easterly in the Yeongdong region. Specifically moist-adiabatically neutral layer has been observed during the heavy snowfall period, which was easily identified using vertical profiles of equivalent potential temperature observed at Sokcho, whereas convective unstable layer has been formed over the East sea due to relatively warm sea surface temperature (SST) about $8{\sim}10^{\circ}C$ and lower temperature around 1~2 km above the surface, obtained from RDAPS. Difference of equivalent potential temperature between 850 hPa and surface as well as difference between air and sea temperatures altogether gradually increased before the snowfall period. Instability-induced moisture supply to the atmosphere from the East sea, being cooled and saturated by the upper cold surge, would make low-level ice cloud, and eventually move inland by the easterly flow. Heavy snowfall will be enhanced in association with low-level convergence by surface friction and upslope wind against Taebaek mountains. This study emphasizes the importance of low level stability in the Yeongdong region using the radiosonde sounding and RDAPS data, which should quantitatively be examined through numerical model as well as heat and moisture supply from the ocean.

• Journal of Korean Society for Atmospheric Environment
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• v.15 no.4
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• pp.441-455
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• 1999

Meteorological characteristics of three high-ozone episodes in the Greater Seoul Area, selected on the basis of morning-average wind direction and speed for the 1990~1997 period, were investigated. Three high-ozone episodes thus selected were seven days of July 3~9, 1992, nine days of July 21~29, 1994, and three days of August 22~24, 1994. Along with surface meteorological data from the Seoul Weather Station, surface and 850-hPa wind fields over the Northest Asia around the Korean Peninsula were used for the analysis. In the July 1992 episode, westerly winds were most frequent as a result of the influence of a high-pressure system in the west behind the trough. In contrast, in the July 1994 episode, easterly winds were most frequent due to the effect of a typhoon moving north from the south of Japan. Despite different prevailing wind directions in the two episodes, the peak ozone concentration of each episode always occurred when a sea-land breeze developed in association with weak synoptic forcing. The August 1994 episode, selected as being representative of calm conditions, was another typical example in which peak ozone concentration rose to 322 ppb under the well-developed sea-land breeze. All three high-ozone episodes were terminated by precipitation, and subsequent rises in ozone concentrations were also suppressed by a series of precipitation afterwards. In particular, two heavy rainfalls were the main reason why the August 1994 episode, with the highest and second-highest ozone concentrations during the 1990~1997 period, lasted for only a few days.

• Atmosphere
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• v.26 no.2
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• pp.227-241
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• 2016

This study investigated the cause of the heavy snowfall that occurred in the East Coast of Korea from 6 February to 14 February 2014. The synoptic conditions were analyzed using blocking index, equivalent potential temperature, potential vorticity, maritime temperature difference, temperature advection, and ground convergence. During the case period, a large blocking pattern developed over the Western Pacific causing the flow to be stagnant, and there was a North-South oriented High-to-Low pressure system over the Korean Peninsula because of this arrangement. The case period was divided into three parts based on the synoptic forcing that was responsible for the heavy snowfall; detailed analyses were conducted for the first and last period. In the first period, a heavy snowfall occurred over the entire Korean Peninsula due to strong updrafts from baroclinic instability and a low pressure caused by potential vorticity located at the mid-troposphere. In the lower atmosphere, a North-South oriented High-to-Low pressure system over the Eastern Korea intensified the easterly airflow and created a convergence zone near the ground which strengthened the upslope effect of the Taebaek Mountain range with a cumulative fresh snowfall amount of 41 cm in the East Coast region. In the last period, the cold air nestled in the Maritime Province of Siberia and Manchuria strengthened much more than that in the first half and extended to the East Sea. The temperature difference between the 850 hPa air and the SST was large and convective clouds developed over the sea. The highest cumulative fresh snow amount of 39.7 cm was recorded in the coastal area during this period. During the entire period, vertically oriented equivalent potential temperature showed neutral stability layer that helped the cloud formation and development in the East Coast. The 2014 heavy snowfall case over the East Coast provinces of Korea were due to: 1) stagnation of the system by blocking pattern, 2) the dynamic effect of mid-level potential vorticity of 1.6 PVU, 3) the easterly air flow from North-South oriented High-to-Low pressure system, 4) the existence of vertically oriented neutral stable layer, and 5) the expansion of strong cold air into the East Sea which created a large temperature difference between the air and the ocean.

• Journal of Conservation Science
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• v.37 no.3
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• pp.209-219
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• 2021

In this study, the wind environment in an urban area near Sungneymun gate was numerically investigated in the cases of inflow directions. The wind fields for the target area were simulated using Geographic Information System data and Computational Fluid Dynamics model. Results, including vector fields, three-dimensional wind velocity components, and wind speeds, were analyzed to examine flow characteristics. Wind direction variability affected by buildings was shown in the target area. The complex flows around Sungneymun did not depend on the inflow direction as a boundary condition. The wind speed around Sungneymun was generally 3 times stronger at 14 m above ground level (AGL) compared to the surface wind at 2 m AGL and relatively high in the case of easterly inflow. The effect of wind was also analyzed to be relatively significant at the southeast side of Sungneymun. Thus, it was suggested that the assessment of wind environment affected by high-rise and high-density buildings should be necessary for the architectural heritage in urban areas.

• Atmosphere
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• v.29 no.4
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• pp.429-438
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• 2019

Organic carbon (OC) and elemental carbon (EC) in PM_2.5 were measured with Sunset Laboratory Model-5 Semi-Continuous OC/EC Field Analyzer by NIOSH/TOT method at Anmyeondo Global Atmosphere Watch (GAW) Regional Station (37°32'N, 127°19'E) in July and August, 2017. The mean values of OC and EC were 3.7 ㎍ m^-3 and 0.7 ㎍ m^-3, respectively. During the study period, the concentrations of reactive gases and aerosol compositions were evidently lower than those of other seasons. It is mostly due to meteorological setting of the northeast Asia, where the influence of continental outflow is at its minimum during this season under southwesterly wind. While the diurnal variation of OC and EC were not clear, the concentrations of O₃, CO, NOx, EC, and OC were evidently enhanced under easterly wind at night from 20:00 to 8:00. However, the high concentration of EC was observed concurrently with CO and NOx under northerly wind during 20:00~24:00. It indicates the influence of thermal power plant and industrial facilities, which was recognized as a major emission source during KORUS-AQ campaign. The diurnal variations of pollutants clearly showed the influence of land-sea breeze, in which OC showed good correlation between EC and O₃ in seabreeze. It is estimated to be the recirculation of pollutants in land-sea breeze cycle. This study suggests that in general, Anmyeondo station serves well as a background monitoring station. However, the variation in meteorological condition is so dynamic that it is primary factor to determine the concentrations of secondary species as well as primary pollutants at Anmyeondo station.

• Asian Journal of Atmospheric Environment
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• v.8 no.1
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• pp.15-24
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• 2014

The capital city of Himalayan Country Nepal, Kathmandu Valley is surrounded by consecutive high mountains, which limits the air distribution and mixing effects significantly. It in turn generates steady air flow pattern over a year except in monsoon season. The air shed in the Valley is easily trapped by the surrounded mountains and the inversion layer formulated as the cap. The $PM_{10}$ concentration was noticeably higher than the standard level (120 ${\mu}g/m^3$) in urban and suburban area of Kathmandu valley for all seasons except monsoon period. The Valley area experiences similar wind patterns (W, WWS, and S) for a year but the Easterly wind prevails only during the monsoon period. There was low and calm wind blows during the winter season. Because of this air flow structure, the air emission from various sources is accumulated within the valley air, high level of air pollution is frequently recorded with other air polluted cities over the world. In this Valley area, brick kilns are recognized as the major air pollution source followed by vehicles. Mostly Bull Trench Kiln (BKT), Hoffman Kiln and Vertical Shaft Brick Kiln (VSBK) are in operation for brick firing in Kathmandu valley where the fuels such as crushed coal, saw dust, and natural gas are used for processing bricks in this study. Tool for the Reduction and Assessment of Chemical and Other Environmental Impacts (TRACI) was used for screening and quantifying the potential impacts of air emission from firing fuels. The total Environmental Performance Score (EPS) was estimated and the EPS of coal was approximately 2.5 times higher than those of natural gas and saw dust. It is concluded that the crushed coal has more negative impact to the environment and human health than other fuel sources. Concerning the human health and environment point of view, alternative environment friendly firing fuel need to be used for brick industry in the kiln and the air pollution control devices also need to be applied for minimizing the air emissions from the kilns.

• Atmosphere
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• v.30 no.3
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• pp.221-236
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• 2020

The Gangneung region has the complicated geographical characteristics being adjacent to East Sea and Taeback mountains, and thus sea breeze could play an important role in local weather in various aspects. This study aims to understand overall characteristics of sea breeze largely based on long-term (2009~2018) ground-based observation data. We also propose a selection criteria of sea breeze occurrence day; 1) daily precipitation is less than 10 mm, 2) surface wind direction is 0~110° (northerly to easterly) for more than 3 hours during the daytime, 3) wind direction is 110~360° for more than 3 hours during the nighttime, and 4) land and sea temperature difference is positive during the daytime, 5) sea and land sea-level pressure difference is more than 0.5 hPa. As a result, a total of 595 days was selected for the past 10 years. The occurrence of sea breeze is the highest in late Spring to early Summer (May to June). The passage time of sea breeze at the inland station (1.6 km farther inland) is one hour later than the coastal station. On the typical sea breeze event of April 12, 2019, the passage speed and duration of sea breeze was 15 km hr^-1 and about 9 hours, respectively, with its depth of about 500 m and its head swelling. The current results emphasize the critical role of sea breeze in forecasting surface temperature and wind, and contribute to relieve heat wave especially in summer in the Yeongdong region.