Currently, there is no coordinated global observational network for mercury that could be used by the modelling community or to establish recommendations to protect human health and ecosystems on a global scale. Current national/regional monitoring networks are inadequate for a global scale assessment. Recognizing that TGM and Hg in wet deposition are spatially heterogeneous, several studies have aimed to set up monitoring networks in order to compare trends between sites in the same region, between regions, and to determine the influence of local and regional emission sources. There is also interest in understanding the processes that contribute to Hg variability on a diurnal, weekly, seasonal, and annual basis. It is important to stress that the measurement of Hg by itself is not sufficient to improve our understanding of Hg sources and impacts. Measurements of other key atmospheric constituents at the global monitoring sites are necessary to develop a better understanding of the global redistribution of Hg, and to further refine the parameterisation of key processes in global and regional atmospheric mercury models. The Global Mercury Observation System (GMOS) is a five year project (2010-2015), funded by the European Commission 7th Framework Programme (DG Research); it is aimed to establish a worldwide observation system for the measurement of atmospheric mercury in ambient air and precipitation samples. GMOS will include ground-based monitoring stations, shipboard measurements over the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans and European Seas, as well as aircraft-based measurements in the UTLS. GMOS is part of UNEP F&T, GEOSS, and UNECE-TF HTAP and will benefit and will cooperate with on-going monitoring programs in Europe, North America and Asia (i.e., EMEP, AMNet, CAMNet). The specific objectives of GMOS are: a)To establish a Global Observation System for Mercury able to provide ambient concentrations and deposition fluxes of mercury species around the world, by combining observations from permanent ground-based stations, and from oceanographic and tropospheric measurement campaigns. b)To validate regional and global scale atmospheric mercury modelling systems able to predict the temporal variations and spatial distributions of ambient concentrations of atmospheric mercury, and Hg fluxes to and from terrestrial and aquatic receptors. c)To evaluate and identify source-receptor relationships at country scale and their temporal trends for current and projected scenarios of mercury emissions from anthropogenic and natural sources. d)To develop interoperable tools to allow the sharing of observational and models output data produced by GMOS, for the purposes of research and policy development and implementation as well as at enabling societal benefits of Earth observations, including advances in scientific understanding in the nine Societal Benefit Areas (SBA) established in GEOSS.
The Global Mercury Observation System (GMOS)
Pirrone N;Cinnirella S;Sprovieri F;
2011
Abstract
Currently, there is no coordinated global observational network for mercury that could be used by the modelling community or to establish recommendations to protect human health and ecosystems on a global scale. Current national/regional monitoring networks are inadequate for a global scale assessment. Recognizing that TGM and Hg in wet deposition are spatially heterogeneous, several studies have aimed to set up monitoring networks in order to compare trends between sites in the same region, between regions, and to determine the influence of local and regional emission sources. There is also interest in understanding the processes that contribute to Hg variability on a diurnal, weekly, seasonal, and annual basis. It is important to stress that the measurement of Hg by itself is not sufficient to improve our understanding of Hg sources and impacts. Measurements of other key atmospheric constituents at the global monitoring sites are necessary to develop a better understanding of the global redistribution of Hg, and to further refine the parameterisation of key processes in global and regional atmospheric mercury models. The Global Mercury Observation System (GMOS) is a five year project (2010-2015), funded by the European Commission 7th Framework Programme (DG Research); it is aimed to establish a worldwide observation system for the measurement of atmospheric mercury in ambient air and precipitation samples. GMOS will include ground-based monitoring stations, shipboard measurements over the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans and European Seas, as well as aircraft-based measurements in the UTLS. GMOS is part of UNEP F&T, GEOSS, and UNECE-TF HTAP and will benefit and will cooperate with on-going monitoring programs in Europe, North America and Asia (i.e., EMEP, AMNet, CAMNet). The specific objectives of GMOS are: a)To establish a Global Observation System for Mercury able to provide ambient concentrations and deposition fluxes of mercury species around the world, by combining observations from permanent ground-based stations, and from oceanographic and tropospheric measurement campaigns. b)To validate regional and global scale atmospheric mercury modelling systems able to predict the temporal variations and spatial distributions of ambient concentrations of atmospheric mercury, and Hg fluxes to and from terrestrial and aquatic receptors. c)To evaluate and identify source-receptor relationships at country scale and their temporal trends for current and projected scenarios of mercury emissions from anthropogenic and natural sources. d)To develop interoperable tools to allow the sharing of observational and models output data produced by GMOS, for the purposes of research and policy development and implementation as well as at enabling societal benefits of Earth observations, including advances in scientific understanding in the nine Societal Benefit Areas (SBA) established in GEOSS.I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.
