A Study on Changes in CO2 Concentrations and their Impact on Radiative Forcing at Urban Center and Background Sites on Jeju Island in Recent Years
The spatial and temporal variations of CO2 concentrations and radiative forcing (RF) due to CO2 were examined at urban center (Yeon-dong) during 2010-2015 and background sites (Gosan) during 2010-2014 on Jeju Island. The RF at the two sites was estimated based on a simplified expression for calculating RF for the study period. Overall, annual mean CO2 concentrations at the Yeon-dong and Gosan sites have gradually increased, and the concentrations were higher at Yeon-dong (401-422 ppm) than at Gosan (398-404 ppm). The maximum CO2 concentrations at the two sites were observed in winter or spring, followed by fall and summer, with higher concentrations at Yeon-dong. The RF at Yeon-dong (annual mean of up to 0.70 W/m2 in 2015) was higher than that at Gosan (up to 0.46 W/m2 in 2014), possibly because of higher CO2 concentrations at Yeon-dong resulting from population growth and human activities (e.g., fossil fuel combustion). The highest monthly mean RFs at Yeon-dong (approximately 0.92 W/m2) and Gosan (0.52 W/m2) were observed in spring 2015 (Yeon-dong) and spring 2013 (Gosan), whereas the lowest RFs (0.17 and 0.31 W/m2, respectively) in fall 2011 (Yeon-dong) and summer in 2012 (Gosan).