Expedition onboard the RV “Akademik V.A. Koptyug”, July 29-August 11, 2020

The expedition within the framework of the programs “Assessment and Forecast of the Ecological State of Lake Baikal and Adjacent Territories under Conditions of Anthropogenic Impact and Climate Change” and “Studies of the Composition and Spatiotemporal Distribution of Aerosol and Gas Impurities in the atmosphere above the water area of Lake Baikal” was carried out onboard the RV “Akademik V.A. Koptyug”, July 29-August 11, 2020, to study near-water atmosphere above the water area of Lake Baikal.

The main aim of the expedition was to conduct experimental studies of the content of aerosol and gas impurities as well as meteorological, radiation and dynamic characteristics of the atmosphere above the water area of Lake Baikal using various equipment in the regime of continuous monitoring; to assess the contribution of natural hazards (wildfires) and anthropogenic sources to the overall pollution of the atmosphere above the water area of Lake Baikal.

Equipment was installed on the upper deck of the research vessel; meteorological parameters were continuously measured with the EXMETEO meteorological complex; the concentrations and size spectrum of aerosol particles from 5 nm to 5 µm with a particle concentration of 1-105 cm-3 were determined using a diffusion aerosol spectrometer (DAS 2702M) and a Handheld 3016 particle counter. Spatiotemporal distribution and variations of gas impurities (ozone, sulfur oxides and nitrogen) were analyzed using Optek chemiluminescent gas analyzers. 30 aerosol samples were taken with General Metal Works high volume sampler and Armet aspirators to analyze the chemical composition of ions, microelements, PAHs, organic carbon, and soot. All parameters in the atmosphere were measured along the route of the research vessel, during the stops and near local sources of air pollution in the central ecological zone: the towns of Baikalsk and Severobaikalsk as well as the settlements of Listvyanka, Turka, Ust-Barguzin, Nizhneangarsk, and Boyarsk. Measurements were also carried out near large bays and coves, estuarine areas of the main tributaries of the lake, the Selenga and Barguzin, as well as the Angara River source where the emissions of polluted air masses from industrial complexes of Buryatia and the Irkutsk Region were observed.