Assessment of carbonaceous aerosols at Mukteshwar: A high-altitude (~2200 m amsl) background site in the foothills of the Central Himalayas.

The present study examined the equivalent black carbon (eBC) mass concentrations measured over 10.5 years (September 2005-March 2016) using a 7-wavelength Aethalometer (AE-31) at Mukteshwar, a high-altitude and regional background site in the foothills of Indian central Himalayas. The total spectral absorption coefficient (b) was divided into three categories: black carbon (BC) and brown carbon (BrC); fossil fuels (FF) and wood/biomass burning (WB/BB); and primary and secondary sources.

Identification of key aerosol types and mixing states in the central Indian Himalayas during the GVAX campaign: the role of particle size in aerosol classification.

Studies in aerosol properties, types and sources in the Himalayas are important for atmospheric and climatic issues due to high aerosol loading in the neighboring plains. This study uses in situ measurements of aerosol optical and microphysical properties obtained during the Ganges Valley Aerosol eXperiment (GVAX) at Nainital, India over the period June 2011-March 2012, aiming to identify key aerosol types and mixing states for two particle sizes (PM and PM). Using a classification matrix based on SAE vs.