Gabriele Pfister Scientist II Atmospheric Chemistry Division National Center for Atmospheric Research pfister@ucar.edu Ph.: +1 303 497 2915 Fx.: +1 303 497 1400 View CV

Research Interests

My general research is in studying the composition of the troposphere using satellite and in-situ observations (e.g. aircraft and ground-based measurements taken during field campaigns) in conjunction with regional and global atmospheric models. I am addressing the link between local pollution processes and regional and global pollution in my current work. Gases and aerosols emitted from local human activities, in addition to natural sources, might change atmospheric composition on inter-continental or even global scales coupled through mixing, transport and chemical transformation. This makes local air quality a global issue and, as further consequence, also a factor in climate change. Air quality issues are also linked to public policy applications because many of the pollutants emitted by human activity are known to have detrimental impacts on health and natural and managed ecosystems with a direct bearing on human welfare and environmental quality.

Some of my current research topics include e.g. the intercontinental transport of pollution across the Pacific and how it impacts regional and local air quality over North America, the impacts of boreal wildfires on air quality and climate, or the role of emissions of volatile organic compounds from vegetation on atmospheric trace species such as formaldehyde or ozone.

The following article in Bridges Online provides a brief overview of my career path. Bridges is a publication of the Office of Science and Technology of the Embassy of Austria in Washington, DC .

Some Relevant Links:

=> Global and Regional Chemistry Transport Modeling
(MOZART, CAM-Chem, WRF-Chem (link to WRF-Chem Websites at NOAA and NCAR))

=> NASA field campaigns (INTEX-A, INTEX-B, ARCTAS)

=> Measurements of Pollution in the Troposphere (MOPITT) - Satellite Retrievals of CO

Selected Recent Publications

Pfister, G.G., J. Avise, C. Wiedinmyer, D. P. Edwards, L. K. Emmons, G. D. Diskin, J. Podolske, and A. Wisthaler (2011): CO source contribution analysis for California during ARCTAS-CARB, Atmos. Chem. Phys., 11, 7515-7532, doi:10.5194/acp-11-7515-2011.

Pfister, G. G., Parrish, D., Worden, H., Emmons, L. K., Edwards, D. P., Wiedinmyer, C., Diskin, G. S., Huey, G., Oltmans, S. J., Thouret, V., Weinheimer, A., and Wisthaler, A. (2010): Characterizing summertime chemical boundary conditions for airmasses entering the US West Coast, Atmos. Chem. Phys., 11, 1769-1790, doi:10.5194/acp-11-1769-2011.

Pfister, G.G., L.K. Emmons, D.P. Edwards, A. Arellano, G. Sachse, T. Campos: Variability of springtime transpacific pollution transport during 2000–2006: the INTEX-B mission in the context of previous years, Atmos. Chem. Phys., 10, 1345-1359, 2010.

Emmons, L.K., S. Walters, P. Hess, J-F Lamarque, G. Pfister, D. Fillmore, C. Granier, A. Guenther, D. Kinnison, T Laepple, J. Orlando, X. Tie, G. Tyndall, C. Wiedinmyer, S. Baughcum, S. Kloster,: Description and evaluation of the Model for Ozone and Related chemical Tracers, version 4 (MOZART-4). Geosci. Model Devel., 3, 43-67, 2010.

Pfister, G., C. Wiedinmyer, L.K. Emmons (2008), Impacts of the fall 2007 California wildfires on surface ozone: Integrating local observations with global model simulations, Geophys. Res. Letters, VOL. 35, L19814, doi:10.1029/2008GL034747. (Highlight Paper)

Pfister, G., A.M. Thompson, L.K. Emmons, P.G. Hess, J.-F. Lamarque, Y.E. Yorks (2008), Analysis of the Summer 2004 Ozone Budget over the U.S. using IONS observations and MOZART-4 simulations, J. Geophys. Res., VOL. 113, D23306, doi:10.1029/2008JD010190.

Pfister, G., L.K. Emmons, P.G. Hess, J.-F. Lamarque, S. Walters, A. Guenther, P.I. Palmer, P. Lawrence (2008), Contribution of isoprene to chemical budgets: A model tracer study with the NCAR CTM MOZART-4, to be published in J. Geophys. Res.

Pfister, G., P. G. Hess, L.K. Emmons, P. J. Rasch, F. V. Vitt (2008), Impact of the summer 2004 Alaska fires on top of the atmosphere clear-sky radiation fluxes, J. Geophys. Res., 113, D02204, doi:10.1029/2007JD008797.

Arellano, A.F.,Jr., K. Raeder, J.L. Anderson, P.G. Hess, L.K. Emmons, D.P. Edwards, G.G. Pfister, T.L. Campos, G.W. Sachse (2007), Evaluating model performance of an ensemble-based chemical data assimilation system during INTEX-B field mission, Atmos. Chem. Phys., 7, 5695-5710.

Bousserez, N., Attie, J.L., Peuch, V.H., Michou, M., Pfister, G., Edwards, D., Emmons, L., Mari, C., Barret, B., Arnold, S.R., Heckel, A., Richter, A., Schlager, H., Lewis, A., Avery, M.; Sachse, G., Browell, E.V., Hair, J.W. (2007), Evaluation of the MOCAGE chemistry transport model during the ICARTT/ITOP experiment, J. Geophys. Res., Vol. 112, No. D10, D10S42, doi:10.1029/2006JD007595.

Emmons, L.K., G.G. Pfister, D.P. Edwards, J.C. Gille, G. Sachse, D. Blake, S. Wofsy, C. Gerbig, D. Matross, P. Nedelec (2006), MOPITT Validation exercises during Summer 2004 fields campaigns over North America, J. Geophys. Res., 112, D12S02, doi:10.1029/2006JD007833.

Tang, Y., G. Carmichael, N. Thongboonchoo, T. Chai, L. Horowitz, R.B. Pierce, J. Al-Saadi, G. Pfister, J. Vukovich, M. Avery, G. Sachse, T. Ryerson, J. Holloway, E. Atlas, F. Flocke, R. Weber, L.G. Huey, J. Dibb, D. Streets, W. Brune (2006), The Influence of Lateral and Top Boundary Conditions on Regional Air Quality Prediction: a Multi-Scale Study Coupling Regional and Global Chemical Transport Models, J. Geophys. Res., 112, D10S18, doi:10.1029/2006JD007515.

Pfister, G.G., L.K. Emmons, P.G. Hess, R.E. Honrath, J.F. Lamarque, M. ValMartin, R.C. Owen, M. Avery, E. Browell, J. Holloway, P. Nedelec, R. Purvis, T. Ryerson, G. Sachse, H. Schlager (2006), Ozone Production from the 2004 North American Boreal Fires, J. Geophys. Res., 111, D24S07, doi:10.1029/2006JD007695.

J.T. Randerson, H. Liu, M.G. Flanner, S.D. Chambers, Y. Yin, P.G. Hess, G. Pfister, M.C. Mack, K.K. Treseder, L.R. Welp, F.S. Chapin, J.W. Harden, M.L. Goulden, E. Lyons, J.C. Neff, E.A.G. Schuur, C.S. Zender (2006), The impact of boreal forest fire on global warming, Science, 14: 1045, doi: 10.1126/science.314.5802.1045.

Atmospheric Composition Remote Sensing & Prediction (ACRESP) Program at NCAR

Last Update: 8/8/11