On the identification and characterization of outdoor thermo-hygrometric stress events
Human thermal sensations are not controlled merely by the ambient temperature, but also by other biometeorological variables and personal factors. Therefore, thermo-hygrometric stress events need to be identified and monitored in addition to heat waves. The purpose of the present article is proposing a method for detection and characterization of thermo-hygrometric stress events, based on the rearrangement of heat waves indices and on new quantities. The Mediterranean Outdoor Thermal Comfort Index (MOCI) is used as a reference variable instead...
Dancing to HARMONIA’s Tune: Insights from the Third International MC Meeting
On 18 and 19 September 2023, the third international meeting for members of the Management Committee (MC) of the Cost Action HARMONIA was held in Athens. The Action, leaded by the PMOD World Radiation Center, CH, (Dr. Stelios Kazadzis) aims to improve and homogenize aerosol retrievals by establishing a network of institutions, instrument developers, scientific and commercial end users. ISAC (Dr. Monica Campanelli) participates in the Action as leader of Working Group 2 "Aerosol measurement improvement" in which BAQUNIN...
Characterization of Nitrogen Dioxide Variability Using Ground-Based and Satellite Remote Sensing and In Situ Measurements in the Tiber Valley (Lazio, Italy)
The spatial–temporal distributions of nitrogen dioxide (NO2) in a rural area of Tiber valley were evaluated over one year (March 2022–February 2023) using remote sensing and in situ measurements. Surface concentration monitoring was conducted using a Pandora-2s spectrometer and a chemiluminescence analyzer operated at the Liberti Observatory (CNR-IIA). In spring, when the growing season and the agricultural activities increase, NO2 peaks were detectable by the Pandora but not by the in situ analyzer. The tropospheric Pandora and TROPOMI VCD...
Temporal Variation of NO2 and O3 in Rome (Italy) from Pandora and In Situ Measurements
To assess the best measures for the improvement of air quality, it is crucial to investigate in situ and columnar pollution levels. In this study, ground-based measurements of nitrogen dioxide (NO2 ) and ozone (O3 ) collected in Rome (Italy) between 2017 and 2022 are analyzed. Pandora sunspectrometers provided the time series of the NO2 vertical column density (VC-NO2 ), tropospheric column density (TC-NO2 ), near-surface concentration (SC-NO2 ), and the O3 vertical column density (VC-O3 ). In situ...
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...