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UNIVERSITY OF BUCHAREST
FACULTY OF PHYSICS Guest
2024-11-23 17:51 |
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Conference: Bucharest University Faculty of Physics 2022 Meeting
Section: Physics Education
Title:
A modern method of teaching Applied Physics using an automatic weather station in an air quality study
Authors:
Marilena COLT (1,2), Bianca MIHALACHE (1), Valentin BARNA (1)
*
Affiliation:
1) University of Bucharest, Faculty of Physics, Bucharest-Magurele, Romania
2) ”Ion Luca Caragiale” National College, Ploiesti, Romania
E-mail
enachemarilena2007@yahoo.com
Keywords:
PM10, air pollution, synoptic maps, wind rose, meteorogram, descriptive statistics, physics education
Abstract:
There is a constant need to study concepts of Physics in an interdisciplinary way in order to understand real-life phenomena. The weather influences not only the take-off and landing of the planes, the development of the activities at sea, but also the dispersion of the air pollutants. Air pollution is a risk factor for human health with implications for the economy, the environment, and food security. The study aims at an interactive modern way of teaching concepts of Mechanics and Fluid Thermodynamics, analyzing how weather conditions influence the air pollution, using a professional automatic weather station. The research has two objectives. First one involves the gathering, storage and processing of experimental data provided by the weather station, which belongs to the National College „I.L. Caragiale” from Ploiesti. As an outcome of the data processing, specific graphs are performed in order to investigate the occurrence and the characteristics of an urban pollution event in December 2020. The results are complemented with those provided by state-of-the-art numerical research and meteorological prediction models designed for atmosphere research: HYSPLIT [1], with a complex data assimilation and a software architecture system, and the online resource wetter3.de [2], which offers an extensive collection of weather maps, calculated from the data of the German weather service model ICON and the American model US GFS. Students are able to analyze PM10 (the respirable fraction of particulate matter with diameter less than 10 µm suspended in the atmosphere) data series, provided by The National Air Quality Monitoring Network [3], in the context of specific meteorological conditions. Second objective is to understand how to use the equipment in optimal conditions. The progress of the understanding of multiple interdisciplinary concepts is reflected in results of a survey conducted among students.
References:
[1] www.ready.noaa.gov/HYSPLIT.php
[2] www.wetter3.de
[3] www.calitateaer.ro
Acknowledgement:
The data regarding ground-based air pollution was extracted from the public available Romanian National Air Quality Database, www.calitateaer.ro, last accessed in May 2022. Authors thank the enthusiasm of high-school students of “I.L. Caragiale” National College, who participated in the study.
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