Article published on Remote Sensing: Bird-Borne Samplers for Monitoring CO2 and Atmospheric Physical Parameters
Air quality monitoring in cities is significant for both human health and environment. Here, an innovative miniaturized active air sampler wearable by free-flying birds is presented. The device integrates a GPS logger and atmospheric calibrated sensors allowing for high spatiotemporal resolution measurements of carbon dioxide (CO2) concentration, barometric pressure, air temperature, and relative humidity. A field campaign, carried out from January to June 2021, involved the repeated release of homing pigeons (Columba livia) from downtown Rome (Italy), to sample...
Article published on Boundary-Layer Meteorology: Interaction of the Sea Breeze with the Urban Area of Rome: WRF Mesoscale and WRF Large-Eddy Simulations Compared to Ground-Based Observations
The Weather Research and Forecast (WRF) model is used to simulate atmospheric circulation during the summer season in a coastal region of central Italy, including the city of Rome. The time series of surface air temperature, wind speed, and direction are compared with in situ observations in urban Rome and its rural surroundings. Moreover, the vertical wind profiles are compared to sodar urban measurements. To improve the WRF model’s ability to reproduce the local circulation, and the onset and...
Article published on Urban Science: A Preliminary Study of Summer Thermo-Hygrometric Comfort under Different Environmental Conditions in a Mediterranean City
The thermo-hygrometric sensation of pedestrians in outdoor environments can be quantified by means of bioclimatic indices. In this work, the Mediterranean Outdoor Thermal Comfort Index (MOCI) is applied in the city of Rome (Italy) for the purpose of investigating the effect of local environmental conditions (urban, suburban, rural) on pedestrian thermal comfort. Hourly values of MOCI are calculated for the May–September period in the years 2015–2021 using weather quantities acquired by the four monitoring stations of the Regional Agency...
Hard time for Rome, many fires has affected the city
On 27 June, several fires occurred in the northwestern area of the capital. The greatest fire started at 11.30 UT (13.30 LT). At first brushwood burned, but then, due to the wind and the high temperatures, it quickly expanded affecting a large area, including fields, campers with gas cylinders, and some houses and producing a high column of smoke shown in the images. The plume has reached different areas of the city, covering the sky for several km also...
Article published on Theoretical and Applied Climatology: Analysis of two decade meteorological and air quality trends in Rome (Italy)
ABSTRACT: This study presents a trend analysis of a two-decade (2000–2020) series of surface meteorological and air quality data measured in Rome (Italy). Data series are collected at three sites in Rome downtown and its coastal surroundings. This paper fills the gap due to missing or incomplete recent information about the meteorological and atmospheric composition tendencies in the Rome area. Datasets are subjected to in-depth quality control and to statistical analysis to verify the data homogeneity, whilst trend analysis is performed...
Article published on BAMS: The Boundary Layer Air Quality-Analysis Using Network of Instruments (BAQUNIN) Supersite for Atmospheric Research and Satellite Validation over Rome Area
ABSTRACT: The Boundary layer Air Quality-analysis Using Network of Instruments (BAQUNIN) supersite is presented. The site has been collecting pollutant concentrations and meteorological parameters since 2017. Currently, BAQUNIN consists of three observation sites located in the city center of Rome (Italy), and in the neighboring semirural and rural areas. To the best of our knowledge, BAQUNIN is one of the first observatories in the world to involve several passive and active ground-based instruments installed in multiple locations, managed by different...
Article published on Atmospheric Measurement Techniques: Aerosol optical characteristics in the urban area of Rome, Italy, and their impact on the UV index
ABSTRACT: The impact of the aerosol optical properties on the ultraviolet index (UVI) in the urban area of Rome is investigated in this study. In particular, the influence of aerosol optical depth (AOD) and single scattering albedo (SSA), estimated at the wavelength of 340 nm, and of the Ångström exponent, calculated in the range 340–500 nm, over a period of 11 years (2010–2020) in the months from March to September are analyzed. The UVI is monitored by a Brewer spectrophotometer, whereas...