An historical experiment: Los Angeles smog evolution observed by blimp.

Unlabelled: Observations of smog over the Los Angeles Basin (LAB) links high oxidant mixing ratios with poor visibility, sometimes <5 km. By the 1970s, investigators recognized that most of the aerosol affecting visibility was from gaseous oxidation products, sulfate, nitrate, and organic carbon. This led to the 1972-1973 Aerosol Characterization Experiment (ACHEX), which included observations at the ground and from aircraft.

Air quality measurements-From rubber bands to tapping the rainbow.

Unlabelled: It is axiomatic that good measurements are integral to good public policy for environmental protection. The generalized term for "measurements" includes sampling and quantitation, data integrity, documentation, network design, sponsorship, operations, archiving, and accessing for applications. Each of these components has evolved and advanced over the last 200 years as knowledge of atmospheric chemistry and physics has matured.

Precursor reductions and ground-level ozone in the Continental United States.

Unlabelled: Numerous papers analyze ground-level ozone (O₃) trends since the 1980s, but few have linked O₃trends with observed changes in nitrogen oxide (NOx) and volatile organic compound (VOC) emissions and ambient concentrations. This analysis of emissions and ambient measurements examines this linkage across the United States on multiple spatial scales from continental to urban. O₃concentrations follow the general decreases in both NOx and VOC emissions and ambient concentrations of precursors (nitrogen dioxide, NO₂; nonmethane organic compounds, NMOCs).

Source attribution of air pollutant concentrations and trends in the southeastern aerosol research and characterization (SEARCH) network.

A new approach for determining the contributions of emission sources to trends in concentrations of particulate matter and gases is developed using the chemical mass balance (CMB) method and the U.S. EPA's National Emission Inventory (NEI).

Tropospheric aerosols: size-differentiated chemistry and large-scale spatial distributions.

Worldwide interest in atmospheric aerosols has emerged since the late 20th century as a part of concerns for air pollution and radiative forcing of the earth's climate. The use of aircraft and balloons for sampling and the use of remote sensing have dramatically expanded knowledge about tropospheric aerosols. Our survey gives an overview of contemporary tropospheric aerosol chemistry based mainly on in situ measurements.

The Southeastern Aerosol Research and Characterization (SEARCH) study: spatial variations and chemical climatology, 1999-2010.

Unlabelled: The Southeastern Aerosol Research and Characterization (SEARCH) study, which has been in continuous operation from 1999 to 2012, was implemented to investigate regional and urban air pollution in the southeastern United States. With complementary data from other networks, the SEARCH measurements provide key knowledge about long-term urban/nonurban pollution contrasts and regional climatology affecting inland locations and sites along the Gulf of Mexico coastline. Analytical approaches ranging from comparisons of mean concentrations to the application of air mass trajectories and principal component analysis provide insight into local and area-wide pollution.

The Southeastern Aerosol Research and Characterization (SEARCH) study: temporal trends in gas and PM concentrations and composition, 1999-2010.

Unlabelled: The SEARCH study began in mid 1998 with a focus on particulate matter and gases in the southeastern United States. Eight monitoring sites, comprising four urban/nonurban pairs, are located inland and along the coast of the Gulf of Mexico. Downward trends in ambient carbon monoxide (CO), sulfur dioxide (SO2), and oxidized nitrogen species (NOy) concentrations averaged 1.

Energy supplies and future engines for land, sea, and air.

The 2012 Critical Review Discussion complements Wilson, (2012), provides pointers to more detailed treatments of different topics and adds additional dimensions to the area of "energy". These include broader aspects of technologies driven by fuel resources and environmental issues, the concept of energy technology innovation, evolution in transportation resources, and complexities of energy policies addressing carbon taxes or carbon trading. National and global energy data bases are identified and evaluated and conversion factors are given to allow their comparability.

Source contributions to atmospheric gases and particulate matter in the southeastern United States.

A new approach for determining the contributions of emission sources to concentrations of particulate matter and gases is developed using the chemical mass balance (CMB) method and the U.S. EPA's National Emission Inventory (NEI).

Multipollutant air quality management.

On the basis of a recent NARSTO assessment, this review discusses the factors involved in the implementation of a risk- and results-based multipollutant air quality management strategy applicable to North America. Such a strategy could evolve from current single-pollutant regulatory practices using a series of steps that would seek to minimize risk of exposure for humans and ecosystems while providing for a quantitative evaluation of the effectiveness of the management process. The tools needed to support multipollutant air quality management are summarized.

Remote sensing of particulate pollution from space: have we reached the promised land?

The Critical Review of Hoff and Christopher, along with the discussants, provides an important perspective on the interface between satellite measurement science and air quality observations. A top-down picture of the usefulness of satellite observations in terms of air quality regulatory and technical support requirements can be summarized. The air quality requirements are (1) determination of compliance with the ambient air quality standards, (2) inference of human and ecosystem exposure, (3) identification of intra- and intercontinental events relevant to EE, (4) establishment of trends in ambient concentrations relevant to accountability, (5) regulatory and forecast model applications, and (6) extension of fundamental knowledge relevant to air quality.

Surface-level fine particle mass concentrations: from hemispheric distributions to megacity sources.

Since 1990, basic knowledge of the "chemical climate" of fine particles, has greatly improved from Junge's compilation from the 1960s. A worldwide baseline distribution of fine particle concentrations on a synoptic scale of approximately 1000 km can be estimated at least qualitatively from measurements. A geographical distribution of fine particle characteristics is deduced from a synthesis of a variety of disparate data collected at ground level on all continents, especially in the northern hemisphere.