The Earth’s atmosphere contains various dust particles that scatter and absorb solar radiation. Their amount and type affect the temperature on Earth – but how do we know what’s up there?

In this study, weather conditions causing warm waves in north−western Spits − bergen, exemplified by Ny− Å lesund station, were analyzed. Between 1981 and 2010, 536 days with the maximum temperature exceeding 8.3 ° C (the value of 95 percentile) were selected. 37 warm waves, which altogether lasted 268 days, were identified. A typical feature of pressure pattern causing warm waves was the appearance of positive anomalies of both the sea level pressure and the height of isobaric surface 500 hPa in the Euro−Atlantic sector of the Arctic. This indicates a presence of high−pressure systems in this region. Extremely warm days appeared more often with the circulation from the eastern than the western sector. Longer and warmer heat waves occurring in the last decade of the analyzed period may be considered as a sign of climate warming, which has a significant impact on environment, i.e. reduction in area and thickness of glaciers, reduction of permafrost and snow cover, changes in biodiversity, etc . The increase in the air temperature and more frequent occurrence of heat waves may encourage development of tourism in polar areas, potentially causing further changes in the environment.

Prof. Mario Molina, a Nobel Prize winner, talks about his experience in making the harmful effects of chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) known to scientists, the general public, manufacturers and politicians.

Height, frequency and spatial differentiation of atmospheric precipitation of the summer season for the period 1975-1982 are presented. Results of the respective investigations are compared with atmospheric precipitation in other areas of the western coast of Spitsbergen.

This paper discusses the study of the atmosphere of architecture, which places human perception of space at the centre, and thus expands the humanist aspect of architectural and urban theory and design. Referring her own research to the current state of the art, the author presents various definitions of atmosphere and methodologies of its description, which considerably encroach into the field of neurophysiology and psychology, but also value contemplation, literary descriptions, photographs and stage design in a new light.

The article presents a review of the researches on sea and atmospheric physics conducted by the Polish expeditions in Antarctica from 1977 to 1990.

The aim of the research was to determine the microbiological quality of atmospheric air in the Tuchów Sewage Treatment Plant, based on the presence of mesophilic bacteria, α- and β-hemolytic bacteria, actinomycetes and fungi. Bioaerosol measurements were made at four points (raw sewage inlet, aeration chamber, purifi ed sewage outlet and 150 m from the treatment plant, at the background point) in the period from January to December 2018. Bioaerosol samples were collected using Andersen’s 6-stage cascade impactor. The tested atmospheric air was characterized by a qualitatively and quantitatively diverse microfl ora. The highest amounts of all the studied groups of microorganisms were found at the raw sewage inlet, and in the case of actinomycetes, also twice in the place of biological purification. However, there were analyzes in which a higher concentration of microorganisms was observed outside the treatment plant at the control point constituting the background. This applies to bacteria and fungi. The largest source of emission of microorganisms to the atmosphere was the mechanical part of the sewage treatment plant (raw sewage inlet). The tested treatment plant may therefore contribute to the deterioration of the quality of the atmospheric air.

The aim of this work was to identify concentration levels of different chemical forms of mercury (TGM, TPM) in the ambient air in selected areas of the Silesian Region, characterized by low and high mercury emission. Based on the obtained data TGM and TPM concentration levels were determined. The project also focused on determination of dry and wet deposition of mercury compounds. Data concerning TGM and TPM flux rates in the ambient air and data on mercury deposition were used to determine a deposition coefficient. The coefficient was calculated as a share of mercury deposition on the land surface (dry and wet) to the amount of this contaminant transported with loads of air in the form of TGM and TPM in a given measurement station. At both monitoring stations the deposition coefficient did not exceed 0.2 %. The idea of calculating the deposition coefficient based on the analysis of TGM and TPM flux rate is a new solution. The proposed deposition coefficient allows to quantify information on a selected contaminant concentration and its potential impact resulting from deposition. Further studies on the deposition coefficient may contribute to the development of methods for estimating the impact of contaminants contained in the ambient air on other environmental components based on the analyses of the contaminant flux rate.

Ambient concentrations of CO, as well as NOx and O3, were measured as a part of the PARADE campaign conducted at the Taunus Observatory on the summit of the Kleiner Feldberg between the 8th of August and 9th of September 2011. These measurements were made in an effort to provide insight into the characteristics of the effects of both biogenic and anthropogenic emissions on atmospheric chemistry in the rural south-western German environment. The overall average CO concentration was found to be 100.3±18.1 ppbv (within the range of 71 to 180 ppbv), determined from 10-min averages during the summer season. The background CO concentration was estimated to be ~90 ppbv. CO and NOx showed bimodal diurnal variations with peaks in the late morning (10:00-12:00 UTC) and in the late afternoon (17:00-20:00 UTC). Strong correlations between CO and NOx indicated that vehicular emission was the major contributor to the notable CO plumes observed at the sampling site. Both local meteorology and backward trajectory analyses suggest that CO plumes were associated with anthropogenically polluted air masses transferred by an advection to the site from densely populated city sites. Furthermore, a good linear correlation of R2 = 0.54 between CO and O3 (∆O3/∆CO=0.560±0.016 ppbv/ppbv) was observed, in good agreement with previous observations

This paper provides an overview of the results of research on changes in ground temperature down to 50 cm depth, on the Kaffiøyra Plain, Spitsbergen in the summer seasons. To achieve this, measurement data were analysed from three different ecotopes (CALM Site P2A, P2B and P2C) – a beach, a moraine and tundra – collected during 22 polar expeditions between 1975 and 2014. To ensure comparability, data sets for the common period from 21 July to 31 August (referred to as the “summer season” further in the text) were analysed. The greatest influence on temperature across the investigated ground layers comes from air temperature (correlation coefficients ranging from 0.61 to 0.84). For the purpose of the analysis of the changes in ground temperature in the years 1975–2014, missing data for certain summer seasons were reconstructed on the basis of similar data from a meteorological station at Ny-Ålesund. The ground temperature at the Beach site demonstrated a statistically−significant growing trend: at depths from 1 to 10 cm the temperature increased by 0.27–0.28 ° C per decade, and from 20 to 50 cm by as much as 0.30 ° C per decade. On the Kaffiøyra Plain, the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) has a greater influence on the ground an d air temperature than the Arctic Oscillation (AO).

In this study, atlases of wave characteristics and wave energy for the Barents Sea have been generated for the years from 1996 to 2015 based on ERA-Interim datasets from the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF). The wave power resources in the Barents Sea can be exploited with sea ice extent declining in recent years. The entire Barents Sea has been divided into multi-year sea ice zones, seasonal sea ice zones and open water zones according to the 20-year averaged sea ice concentration. In the entire domain, the spatial distributions of the annual averaged and mean monthly significant wave heights and wave energy flux are presented. For the open water zones, 15 points have been selected at different locations so as to derive and study the wave energy roses and the inter-annual wave power variation. Moreover, the correlations between the wave energy period and the significant wave height are shown in the energy and scatter diagrams. The maximum wave power occurs in the winter in the western parts of the Barents Sea with more than 60kW/m. The wave energy can therefore be exploited in the open water zones.

This article aims to analyse the influence of weather types on meteorological

conditions in Petuniabukta (Svalbard) during July and August of 2016. The paper analyses

the daily courses of air temperature and humidity at four measurement points located on

the west bank of Petuniabukta near Adam Mickiewicz University Polar Station during

two different types of weather conditions: (i) cloudy and windy, (ii) calm and clear.

These weather types, distinguished on the basis of wind speed and cloudiness, allowed

for the creation of composite maps of the synoptic situation (SLP and geopotential

height of 500 hPa distribution) and its anomalies. In the study area, the air temperature

range in windy and cloudy weather conditions was larger (-10°C to 15°C) than that in

sunny and calm weather (0°C to 15°C), which contrasts the range of humidity values.

The diurnal cycle of meteorological elements in sunny and calm days is strongly related

to the sun elevation angle. In the above-mentioned weather types, the air temperature

was higher by several degrees (median 5°C to 8°C) than on windy and cloudy days

(median about 0°C to 6°C) at each measurement point. On days with sunny and calm

weather, a smaller vertical temperature gradient of air is observed (for sunny and calm

days 0.63°C and for windy weather 0.8°C).

In this article the capabilities or mathematical heavy gas atmospheric dispersion models to describe the dispersion or heavy gases in complex and obstructed terrain arc presented. The models have been entegorizcd into three main classes: phenomenological (empirical) models. intermediate (engineering) models and computational fluid dynamic (research) models. Each group or models is discussed separately. The general features or the models arc discussed briefly, Examples of the heavy gas atmospheric dispersion models carable to treat the influence or non-Ilut and obstructed terrain on the heavy gas dispersion result from the work carried out in the European Union and in the US. No model simulating the heavy gas atmospheric dispersion over complex or obstructed terrain has been yet developed in Poland. The need lor future work on the effects of complex and obstructed terrain on the heavy gas atmospheric dispersion is expressed. future research in the area should include both experimental and modeling work. In the context of this raper future modeling work is worth considering in more detail. il seems that all the approaches 10 describe the hcavv gas atmospheric dispersion over complex and obstructed terrain arc worth further aucntion. This opinion is supported by the fact that these approaches arc used in different types of heavy gas dispersion models. which in turn differ in applications. The simpler methods arc introduced to the simpler heavy gas atmospheric dispersion models applied mainly in the routine calculations. The advanced techniques capable to describe the: now near complicated geometrics are used in the sophisticated models applied mainly as a research tools.

Weather forecasting requires knowledge of the laws of atmospheric movement. Apart from classic fluid mechanics, we must consider the rotational motion of our planet, the differential heating of its surface through the absorption of solar radiation, as well as water evaporation and condensation processes.

Many modern processes for the production and casting of metals and their alloys are carried out in protective gas atmospheres, which protect them, for example, from oxygen pollution. This applies, for example, to titanium, magnesium or aluminum alloys. Most liquid alloys are comprised of constituents that differ in vapor pressures, resulting in harmful phenomenon during melting due to evaporation of some of its components. This harmful process may be limited by the selection of a suitable gas atmosphere in which the liquid metal treatment process is carried out. In the paper, results of study on the impact of the type of gas atmosphere on the rate of evaporation of zinc in argon – hydrogen mixtures are presented. It should be noted that such mixtures are used, for example, in metal welding processes, in which it is also possible to evaporate a component of the so-called liquid metal pool. The research results showed that the rate of zinc evaporation increases with the increase of hydrogen content in the gas atmosphere.

In this case ceramic layers from Metco ZrO2 and Al2O3 powders mixture (25/75; 50/50 and 75/25) were obtained through atmospheric plasma spraying (APS) after five passes on low carbon steel substrate. The sample surfaces mechanically grinded (160-2400) before and after ceramic layer deposition. Powder’s mixtures and the surface of ceramic thin layers were analyzed through: scanning electron microscopy (SEM). In order to understand the effect of surface wettability of the ceramic layers, before and after grinding the surface, three different liquids were used. Experimental results confirm the modification of the steel substrate surface characteristic from hydrophilic to hydrophobic when the ceramic layer was deposited. Surface free energy of hydration increases for all the samples with zirconia percentage addition before polishing process.

Meteorological and biometeorological conditions during the warm seasons (June– September) of 1979–2008 are described for the Hornsund area, Spitsbergen. The measure− ments were taken at four sites: at Hornsund, at the Hans Glacier (at its equilibrium line and in the firn section) and at the summit of Fugleberget. The variation of meteorological and biometeorological conditions was analysed in relation to altitude, distance from the sea and the ground type. In warm seasons, the air temperature at Hornsund was 2.2°C higher on aver− age than at the Hans Glacier (central section) and by 2.8°C than at the Hans Glacier (firn sec− tion) and at Fugleberget. The average wind speed recorded at Hornsund was higher (0.6ms−1) than at the Hans Glacier and lower (0.9ms−1) than at Fugleberget. Four biometeorological in− dices were used: wind chill index (WCI), predicted insulation of clothing (Iclp), cooling power (H) and subjective temperature index (STI). The strongest thermal stimuli were ob− served on the Hans Glacier and in the upper mountain areas. The study has found a consider− able degree of spatial variation between the meteorological elements investigated and the biometeorological indices in the Hornsund area. The impact of atmospheric circulation on meteorological elements and biometeorological indices is also presented. The mildest bio− meteorological conditions of the warm season found at Hornsund were associated with air masses arriving from the southwest and west.

The article presents the biometeorological impact of thermal and humidity conditions on the human body in the Hornsund area in the southern Spitsbergen, Svalbard. This was determined based on diurnal air temperature range, the day-to-day variation in average diurnal air temperature and the average diurnal relative humidity. The temporal variability of thermal and humidity biometeorological stimuli in Hornsund was examined for the period 01.11.1978–31.12.2017. A lessening of biometeorological impact was found in the southern Spitsbergen region, including a statistically significant negative trend in strongly- and severely-felt stimuli (according to diurnal air temperature range), and in significant and severe stimuli (according to day-to-day variation in average diurnal air temperature). A non-significant positive trend was observed in the number of days of relative humidity with humid and very humid air. To analyse the spatial variability of the stimuli around the Hornsund fjord, data were used from seven year-round measuring stations for the period 01.07.2014–31.06.2015. The most unfavourable conditions were found on the Hans Glacier, on the summit of Fugleberget and inside the fjord. The paper presents the role of atmospheric circulation on thermal and humidity stimuli. In the Hornsund region, the highest probability of unfavourable sensible temperatures for humans occurring during the year was mostly in winter and early spring. This was related to the advection of air masses from the north-east sector, regardless of baric regime type. It was found that very humid air (> 85%) flowed over Hornsund for practically the entire year from the S–SW as part of both cyclonic and anti-cyclonic systems.

Certain chemical parameters such pH, specific electric conductivity (SpC) and concentrations of chloride ions (Cl-) have been analysed in samples of precipitation collected close to the Polish Polar Station at Hornsund (PPS), SW Spitsbergen. On the basis of seasonal data from years 1993-1994 and 1998-1999, some differences are apparent from the two sets. There is also a marked difference in the seasonal results, especially with respects to pH values; summer precipitation (pH of which can be as low as 3.78) is much more acidic than winter. This was particularly notable in respect of the summer of 1993, and was presumably the result of a relatively unusual atmospheric circulation and a high influx of airborne contaminants from Europe. The wide variation in specific electrical conductivity measurements is considered to be related to variations in wind direction and speed. That precipitation the highest total dissolved salts, of 11.7 mm w.e. (water equivalent), (November 1993), provided 10.7 g of salt per square metre of tundra near the Polish Polar Station. The proximity of the sea, consequently the development of marine aerosols, largely determines the chemical nature of the precipitation. Thus, variations in the chloride ion concentrations during the study periods more or less reflect the variations in the marine aerosol influences on the nature of the polluted precipitation. An analysis of the atmospheric circulation reveals that the most acid precipitation occurs most frequently in the C-8 type of circulation (cyclonic S + SW) and also, less so, for type C-3 (anticyclonic S + SW).

The contribution of mercury and iodine in the particles of atmospheric aerosol and in the surface film of marine waters were estimated in the region of Admiralty Bay, King George Island, South Shetlands. Aerosols were collected with microscopic copper grids and on fibrous filters of microsorban type, and surface film with glassy slides. The obtained data are significant as natural background data.

In this article we construct a finite-difference scheme for the three-dimensional equations of the atmospheric boundary layer. The solvability of the mathematical model is proved and quality properties of the solutions are studied. A priori estimates are derived for the solution of the differential equations. The mathematical questions of the difference schemes for the equations of the atmospheric boundary layer are studied. Nonlinear terms are approximated such that the integral term of the identity vanishes when it is scalar multiplied. This property of the difference scheme is formulated as a lemma. Main a priori estimates for the solution of the difference problem are derived. Approximation properties are investigated and the theorem of convergence of the difference solution to the solution of the differential problem is proved.

The purpose of the present study was to extract high added value titanium from Ti-doped Seaside Magnetite Concentrated (Ti-SMC), which has a high potential reserve for Ti-Fe with 4–6% Ti, 50–52% F e, 1–2% A l, and 1–2% Mg content by applying innovative, economical, environmentally friendly methods. A gitaion HCl leaching was applied to the Ti-SMC sample at different leaching temperatures (25–50–75–90°C), at acid concentrations (8–10–12 N ), and leaching times (30–60– –120–240 min) in atmospheric conditions. A fter the leaching experiments under the indicated conditions, the optimization of the leaching experiments was determined with Ti% recovery that dissoluted by elemental analysis, and the titanium recovery values reached the maximum value with increased leaching time at 50°C and 10 N HCl acid concentration; and 65% Ti was recovered in 30 minutes, 67% in 60 minutes, 74% in 120 minutes, and 82% Ti in 240 minutes. F or Ti-SMC, leaching was carried out at 50°C leaching temperature and at 10 N acid concentration for 480 minutes, and a 92% Ti extraction value was achieved. A ccording to the extraction results of all leaching experiments, the leaching temperature of 50°C, the acid concentration of 10 N , and the leaching time of 480 minutes were determined as the optimum conditions. In this study, it was emphasized that this resource is a potential reserve, which has not been used as a source before, with 92% Ti extraction with atmospheric acid leaching, which is an environmentally friendly method, consuming less energy than Ti-SMC, which is difficult and expensive to extract with traditional methods.

The work describes the methodology and results of analysis for the consequences assessment of eruption from Cumbre Vieja volcano in Canary Islands. The preliminary analysis of dispersion of emitted pollutants was performed using Lagrangian trajectories model. To estimate long-term outcomes of eruption in terms of deposition and concentration of eruption products the Eulerian model of air dispersion was used. The model uses data from Global Forecasting System meteorological model launched at the NCEP-NOAA centre. The average concentration and deposition of sulfur compounds as well as the probability and time of the pollution cloud reaching all European capitals were examined. In 90 days a cloud of pollutants (SO2, volcanic ashes) spread over the northern hemisphere. Pollution reached Africa, North Sea and Europe. With an average emission of 15,000 tons of SO2/day, the maximum calculated deposition to the Earth’s surface reached 0.8g/m2, while overall deposition – 35 kilotons in the domain area.

In view of the need to transform the Polish energy sector from a coal-based to a low-emissions industry, can wind and solar power alone provide enough of an alternative?