Sao Paulo's "Surface Ozone Layer" and the Atmosphere

This book describes tropospheric ozone concentrations observed in the Sao Paulo Metropolitan Area (SPMA), Brazil, between 1996 and 2005, and different climatic patterns possibly linked to them. Ozone hourly data was used to calculate different time scale averages. Seasonal cycles were observed, with a spring maximum and an autumn minimum. Stations located in areas away from the main urban centre showed higher concentrations, somewhat linked to the predominant land use in their surroundings. In the monthly and daily analysis of ozone concentrations and atmospheric behaviour, higher ozone concentrations were related to higher solar radiation and lesser relative humidity, both resulting from the predominance of systems such as high-latitude anticyclones, the Southern Atlantic semipermanent anticyclone and Upper Level Cyclonic Vortexes from Northeastern Brazil. For months of lower ozone concentations, more intense or frequent frontal systems were observed, with higher cloudiness and increased rainfall, sometimes linked to the Southern Atlantic Convergence Zone. It was also observed that generally, less polluted months were preceded by other months with better dispesion conditions.

Autorentext

Julio Barboza Chiquetto was born in Sao Paulo, Brazil, in 1982. Always interested in different topics, he studied Geography at the University of São Paulo. There he discovered his passion for climatology and graduated studying the city's air pollution history. He started his Master's research right after, about tropospheric ozone in Sao Paulo.