Numerical simulation and synoptic analysis of dust emission and transport in East Asia

This study is concerned with the mechanisms of dust storm development in East Asia and the characteristics of the responsible synoptic systems. Two severe East Asian dust storms which occurred in spring 2002 are analyzed using synoptic and remote sensing data. The relationships between the formation and the movement of the dust storms and the evolution of the synoptic systems are examined. It is shown that a dust storm may develop when a synoptic system moves to the desert area of Northeast Asia with a surface wind speed exceeding 6 m s(-1). Numerical simulations of the two dust storms are carried out using a dust storm forecasting model. The performance of the model is verified with observations. The dust sources are found to be consistent with the desert regions in Northeast Asia, but cover a somewhat larger area than the observations suggest. Finally, we present a conceptual model of dust storm generation and movement in East Asia on the basis of numerical modeling and synoptic analysis. (C) 2006 Published by Elsevier B.V.