Application of ESE Data and Tools to Particulate Air Quality Management

The CAPITA REASoN Project

August 15, 2003

Stefan Falke and Rudolf HusarCenter for Air Pollution Impact and Trend Analyis

Washington University in St. Louis

REASoN Project ObjectivesWe will work closely with partner agencies in developing an ESE supported Federated Particulate Matter Network through research in data access, infrastructure building, and tools development for data processing and analysis.

Specifically, the project will:• Identify ESE datasets and tools suitable for PM management.

• Build infrastructure to support distributed data access and connectivity with existing networks.

• Conduct data processing to convert some raw ESE data to PM relevant data and combine with surface PM data.

• Develop web tools to support decision making through data access, visualization, and analysis.

• Apply SEEDS principles in working with the PM management community to incorporate the developed resources in the decision making process.

CAPITA’s research background provides the necessary tools to pursue these objectives.

CAPITA’s Research Areas

Air Quality Science & Management

Satellite Imagery Processing and Analysis

Information Technology Research in support of Air Quality Management

CAPITA integrates air quality science and research with information technology to produce knowledge in support of decision making.

Analysis of air quality spatial patterns and temporal trends, their causal factors and their impacts. Dissemination of analysis results into air quality manamgent descion making processes.

Derivation of air quality relevant measures from satellite observations

Development of IT software and services to improve the data access, analysis, interpretation, and communitcation of air quality issues.

Air Quality Science & Management

Analysis includes surface monitoring observations, model results, satellite observations.

CAPITA has a long and fruitful relationship with air quality organizations, such as the US EPA and has been involved in air quality management support such as the Ozone Transport Assessment Group.

CAPITA researchers have examined pollutant concentration data, the relationship been pollutant emissions and receptors, meteorological influences, causal factors, longe range transport issues, and chemical composition.

Analysis of spatial patterns on regional, contintental, and global scales. Temporal trends from daily to secular scales.

Satellite Imagery Processing & Analysis

Daily Image Cloud Mask

Minimum Reflectance Aerosol Optical Depth

Derivation of AOT from SeaWiFS

Aerosol Optical Depth is a measure of the excess reflectance at a location on a given day. Cloudy areas are ignored using a cloud mask.

The minium reflectance image serves as a valuable indicator of surface vegetation patterns.

Data Fusion

The fusion of surface and space-borne observations provide a particularly powerful potnetial to generate new air quality knowledge.

Multiple sources of data combined, or fused, produces a richer, more complete understanding of a phenomena than what is obtained from any single source of data.

Asian Dust

Information Technology

Distributed Voyager (dVoy) is a spatial and temporal data exploration software application accessible through a web browser that supports interoperability based on Web Services (XML,SVG,OGC) and legacy support by encapsulating existing data and exposing them as Web Services. (Access to standard HTTP/FTP servers)

Distributed Folders (dFolders) is an infrastructure for organizing, presenting, and navigating distributed content from the web. dFolders facilitate uniform description, structuring, and discovery of heterogenous web content

Advances in IT have a profound impact on the way air quality research is conducted and how reseach results are disseminated and used. CAPITA has been invovled in developing novel IT software and services for more than 15 years. Recent developments:

dVoy Spatio-Temporal Data Browser

Render

Spatial Slice

Find/Bind Data

Data Cube

Time Slice

Time Portrayal

Spatial Portrayal Spatial Overlay

Time Overlay

OGC-Compliant GIS Services

Time-Series Services

Portray Overlay

Homogenizer Catalog

Wrapper

Mediator Client Browser

Cursor/Controller

Maintain Data

Vector

GIS Data

XDim DataSQL Table

OLAP

Satellite

Images

Data Sources

dVoy queries yield slices along the spatial, temporal and parameter dimensions of multidimensional data cubes.

• The Voyager program consists of a stable core and adoptive input/output section• The core executes the data selection, access portrayal tasks• The adoptive, abstract I/O layer connects the core to evolving web data, flexible

displays and to the a configurable user interface:– Wrappers encapsulate the heterogeneous external data sources and homogenize the access

– Device Drivers translate generic, abstract graphic objects to specific devices and formats

– Ports expose the internal parameters of Voyager to external controls

Data Sources

Controls

Displays

Voyager Core

Data Selection

Data Access

Data Portrayal

Adoptive Abstract I/O Layer

Dev

ice

Dri

vers

Ports

Wra

pp

ers

Voyager: The Program

User Interface Components

Catalog: User selects among distributed ‘wrapped’ data

Map View: Displays Selected Data

Control Panel: Provides user with facilities to customize display Time View: Displays Selected Data

dVoy Example: Fire, Smoke, & Air Quality Network

dFolders

The base units of the dFolder structure are ‘pages’ which link directly to a data source. Pages are grouped into folders, for example there may be a folder of an Asian Dust Event. Folders may be further grouped into events, communities, or projects. This website structure supports flexibility in the display of content, as any folder “level” can be extracted from the database, and it promotes consistency through the website. Example: May 2003 Asian Smoke Event

Story Telling / Knowledge Production

On April 15 and 19 1998, dust storms in the Gobi Desert produced unusually large dust clouds, some of which was transported across the Pacific. When it was evident that the dust cloud was reaching North America, an interactive website was set up by CAPITA to share observations, and ideas. By April 29 the ad-hoc ‘virtual workgroup’ consisted of over 40 scientists and air quality managers from North America and Asia.The collaborative work produced by the virtual community generated mulitple publications including a Special Issue on Dust in the Journal of Geophysical Research.

The Asian Dust website: http://capita.wustl.edu/Asia-FarEast/

REASoN Story Telling / Knowledge Production

Data from relevant satellite and real time aerosol sensors that observe partciulate matter are collected and displayed through an aerosol monitoring dashboard accessible by anyone as a web page. At any given time, a designated set of human observers are assigned the task of watching for “interesting” events, such as the Quebec fires (below). When such an event occurs, a notification message is transmitted to air quality managers and interested subscribers. Following the notification, the community of interested observers begins to assemble a “storybook” summary of the event and shares the summary with the air quality management group. Given such technical guidance, the air quality manager decides on the appropriate action.

Real time PM data available from satellite and surface based sensors. Left image shows the MODIS reflectance and fire location pixels. On the right, the TOMS satellite and surface visibility data are superimposed on SeaWiFS reflectance image.

Relevant Publications

Fusion of SeaWiFS and TOMS Satellite Data with Surface Observations and Topographic Data During Extreme Aerosol Events http://capita.wustl.edu/CAPITA/CAPITAReports/0111FalkeFusionJAWMA/FalkeDataFusion.pdf

Transboundary Movement of Airborne Pollutants: A Methodology for Integrating Spaceborne Images and Ground based Data http://grid2.cr.usgs.gov/publications/air_pollution.pdf

Aerosol Virtual Community Website http://capita.wustl.edu/Databases/UserDomains/SaharaDust2000/

SeaWiFS Aerosol Optical Thickness: http://capita.wustl.edu/capita/capitareports/0305EPAStaSeminar/SurfAerCoRetrieval.htm