Effect of the Nishinoshima Volcanic Eruption on Fine Particulate Concentration in Busan in Early August 2020
This study investigated the effect of volcanic materials that erupted from the Nishinoshima volcano, Japan, 1,300 km southeast of the Busan area at the end of July 2020, on the fine particle concentration in the Busan area. Backward trajectory analysis from the HYSPLIT model showed that the air parcel from the Nishinoshima volcano turned clockwise along the edge of the North Pacific high pressure and reached the Busan area. From August 4 to August 5, 2020, the concentration of PM10 and PM2.5 in Busan started to increase rapidly from 1000 LST on August 4, and showed a high concentration for approximately 13 hours until 2400 LST. The PM2.5/PM10 ratio showed a relatively high value of 0.7 or more, and the SO2 concentration also showed a high value at the time when the PM10 and PM2.5 concentrations were relatively high. The SO4 2- concentration in PM2.5 in Busan showed a similar trend to the change in PM10 and PM2.5 concentrations. It rose sharply from 1300 LST on August 4, at the time where it was expected to have been affected by the Nishinoshima Volcano. This study has shown that the occurrence of high concentration fine particle in Busan in summer has the potential to affect Korea not only due to anthropogenic factors but also from natural causes such as volcanic eruptions in Japan.