Potential of TROPOMI for understanding spatio-temporal variations in surface NO.sub.2 and their dependencies upon land use over the Iberian Peninsula

• Published in: Atmospheric chemistry and physics Vol. 23; no. 7; pp. 3905 - 7809
• Main Authors: Petetin, Hervé, Guevara, Marc, Compernolle, Steven, Bowdalo, Dene, Bretonnière, Pierre-Antoine, Enciso, Santiago, Jorba, Oriol, Lopez, Franco, Soret, Albert, Pérez García-Pando, Carlos
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Copernicus GmbH 03-04-2023
• Subjects: Land use; Nitrogen dioxide; Shipment of goods; Spain; Troposphere; Urbanization; Spain
• ISSN: 1680-7316

In orbit since late 2017, the Tropospheric Monitoring Instrument (TROPOMI) is offering new outstanding opportunities for better understanding the emission and fate of nitrogen dioxide (NO.sub.2) pollution in the troposphere. In this study, we provide a comprehensive analysis of the spatio-temporal variability of TROPOMI NO.sub.2 tropospheric columns (TrC-NO.sub.2) over the Iberian Peninsula during 2018-2021, considering the recently developed Product Algorithm Laboratory (PAL) product. We complement our analysis with estimates of NO.sub.x anthropogenic and natural soil emissions. Closely related to cloud cover, the data availability of TROPOMI observations ranges from 30 %-45 % during April and November to 70 %-80 % during summertime, with strong variations between northern and southern Spain. Strongest TrC-NO.sub.2 hotspots are located over Madrid and Barcelona, while TrC-NO.sub.2 enhancements are also observed along international maritime routes close the strait of Gibraltar, and to a lesser extent along specific major highways. TROPOMI TrC-NO.sub.2 appear reasonably well correlated with collocated surface NO.sub.2 mixing ratios, with correlations around 0.7-0.8 depending on the averaging time.