Temporal Variations of PM, PM, and Gaseous Precursors during the 1995 Integrated Monitoring Study in Central California.

The spatial and temporal distributions of particle mass and its chemical constituents are essential for understanding the source-receptor relationships as well as the chemical, physical, and meteorological processes that result in elevated particulate concentrations in California's San Joaquin Valley (SJV). Fine particulate matter PM coarse particulate matter (PM), and aerosol precursor gases were sampled on a 3-hr time base at two urban (Bakersfield and Fresno) and two non-urban (Kern Wildlife Refuge and Chowchilla) core sites in the SJV during the winter of 1995-1996. Day-to-day variations of PM and PM and their chemical constituents were influenced by the synoptic-scale meteorology and were coherent among the four core sites.